Driftwood

Driftwood is a collection that I designed for Makower UK recently. It's a nautical-inspired collection in muted colours and the perfect print for creating a beach house vibe.

The main print is called Cove and shows a pretty harbour scenic in tones of blue, cream and grey. It's inspired by the coastal villages of Cornwall with its quaint cottages and lighthouses in a lino cut style.

Beach huts are the quintessential English seaside icon so I created these quirky beach huts on a cream background. Each one is slightly different to each other with contrasting door colours and nautical items decorating their exteriors.

Seashells are a great image for a nautical group and naturally work in this Lino cut style. I've also mixed a few seagrasses and seaweeds with this crowded shells design.

These cute sealife creatures make a great spaced design and are perfect for using on smaller crafting projects or as a lining fabric for bags and purses.

This seagrass print comes in a pretty sage colour, also great as a co-ordinate to the other designs.

The Cove scenic harbour design has also been designed in a more multi colour palette, including sage green and turquoise.

You couldn't have a nautical collection without a sailboat design so I designed this one on the open sea with the odd lighthouse scattered around.

The Ripples print makes a great texture and looks like the waves on the sea. It's great for using as a binding on a quilt or a lining for a beach bag.

The Cottages design is so cute and a nod to the hillside villages around the South-west coast of the UK.

Citrus

I've recreated my citrus print in a variety of colour palettes which are great for all kinds of summer activities. Whether it's used on homewares to enhance your home, or for sewing projects to inspire your summer wardrobe there are a lots of options in Spoonflower shop. 

This yellow and white version is a lovely fresh print and would work well in sewing projects. There are many fabric choices and I especially love the soft cotton lawn option which would be great for making summer skirts or dresses with.

This citrus print below offers a darker colour option with orange and yellow citrus fruits on a pleasing teal background. This print can also be bought on a variety of fabric options. I love the linen cotton canvas which is great for making into bright tea towels.

If you don't fancy making your own items, there are plenty  of ready-made items in my Spoonflower shop. This print would look great in the home, especially in the bedroom. I'm loving the duvet cover and sheet set as well as the curtains and cushion cover.

This is the original version of the citrus print, but I've added a few more tones to mix it up a bit. It has a lovely warm feel to it and would look great on tableware for the home.

Ready-made items include tablecloths (in rectangular or oval sizes), as well as table runners and napkins.

Sweet cherries

 This cherry print is the perfect print for a summer sewing project with its bright red, juicy cherries on a fresh green background. You can just imagine picking one up and popping it into your mouth.

You can buy this cherry print in my Spoonflower shop on a wide variety of fabric choices, from lighter weights such as gauze and chiffon, to heavier weight fabric such as canvas or velvet.

This cherry print would look great on a summer skirt. Spoonflower has a choice of fabrics that would be perfect for this sewing pattern, including cotton lawn or cotton sateen.

I'm looking forward to making this print into bags and purse for my Etsy shop. Watch this space!

Summer fruit

 I'm dreaming of summer with these juicy strawberry prints, which remind me of long picnics in the sun. The strawberries look good enough to eat! They come in a repeat pattern and can be bought in my Spoonflower shop by-the-metre. It would be great for making into tote bags or for making into little girls' summer dresses. You can buy it by-the-metre in my Spoonflower shop here.

You can also buy many ready-made items in my Spoonflower shop. It looks great as a ready-made cushion cover, available in a variety of sizes.

This strawberry print also comes on a white background.

You can buy it as a tablecloth, in varying sizes. Makes a great addition to a summer garden party!

In the jungle

I'm revisiting this jungle collection I designed for Makower UK a while ago. It's designed in a naive style and includes hippos, giraffes and elephants.

The main design comes in two colour palettes and this one is on a teal background. The cute animals are surrounded by foliage and they peer through the leaves in a cheeky manner.

Co-ordinates for this collection include an allover elephant design, a tiny scattered elephants design and a lovely bold star print which is great for using as lining fabric or quilt edging.

This collection also includes a panel. The panel is called a cheater quilt and can be made to look like a pieced quilt. It's great for using as a cot quilt or alternatively, each individual square can be cut out and made into cushion covers etc.

The montage design is a great allover design and uses a loose patchwork effect.

Rainbows, hearts and stripes are also a cute addition to the collection.

The main design looks lovely and fresh on this white background.

The pink elephants are a bright addition as well as the multi coloured stars on a cream background.

The montage design looks vibrant with the addition of hot pink.

Pretty rainbows and hearts, perfect for a little girl's bedroom.

 

Sea life

I created this bright sea creatures print for my Spoonflower shop. It includes sea urchins, seahorses and tropical fish, as well as a cheeky crab or two, in a red and white colour palette.

This print would look great on bedding for a kid's room. It comes on a duvet cover like the one below.

The duvet cover has a sturdy zipper closure.

It also comes as a sheet set in a variety of sizes.

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Jewel Tones

I really enjoyed designing this collection for Makower UK. We decided to call it Jewel Tones as it is beautifully rich and opulent and the colours all work really well together. Needless to say, my favourite print is the leopard print!

Cheeky leopards are surrounded by delicate foliage coloured in a similar palette to the background.

Each leopard design has a matching leopard print in similar colours.

The leopard print makes a great co-ordinate to the leopard design.

I designed this sarasa print as a lovely decorative addition to the animal prints. It incorporates stylised leaves and flowers in vibrant colours.

Some of the leaves have been created using a dotty effect which softens them and adds interest and depth to the design.

Multi colour hummingbirds flutter on a cream background.

We also added a dark teal background as a rich background for the bright hummingbirds.

Josef Frank

I always love a trip to the Fashion and Textile Museum and yesterday I went on a pilgrimage there to check out the stunning textiles of Austrian architect and designer Josef Frank. He designed his first fabrics in the 1910s, but by the time he moved to Stockholm in the 30s he had gained vast experience in design and interior decoration.

The first exhibit was this lovely room set. It's a sea of colour and pattern that all works together to create a really inviting environment. He felt that a home should feel comfortable and cosy and used soft sofas, hardwoods and dramatic fabrics to create a haven.

Frank's designs depicted paradise, with all sorts of berries, leaves and wildlife sharing one environment in a vibrant colour palette.

He was designing during the second world war and his vibrant textile designs were a stark contrast to the horrors of what were going on.

 Fantastical fruit sits next to bold florals and scale varies a lot within one design.

Josef Frank's designs are seen as distinctly Swedish and have paved the way for the likes of Ikea and Marimekko, which is why they might look familiar!

Thoughoutt the exhibition, there were pieces of furniture upholstered in his stunning fabrics, which visitors were invited to sit on.

I highly recommend a trip to this inspiring exhibition, a haven for any textile-lover.