Remember a while back when I said I was finally going to design my first fabric line? Well, I’ve had the designs for a while now, but I kept futzing around with it. I found myself stuck in perfection mode…couldn’t decide on colors, etc. I also took a few detours, did a few home projects and hand printed some things, in the mean time.
Until last night, when I finally pulled the trigger. I did it. I ordered a yard. Ofmyownfabricdesign. From Spoonflower. Yay, Me! Okay, it’s not a whole collection yet (baby steps), but it’s a start that I’m pretty excited about. I cannot wait till it arrives so I can make something with it. Which means you all have to wait to see it too, hehe!
I waited so long because of sticker-shock. Spoonflower is great, but it’s not cheap. The DIYer in me kept thinking I could do it myself. I am absolutely in love with fabric stamping and screen printing, but after a few days of printing and sewing, I realize that those media are a little limited for what I want, which is yardage. And Color. Lots of it. So I bit the bullet and ordered the durn yard of fabric and got on with it.
Here is a long bolster pillow I made using my hand-printed fabric… I just love it, but the printing took the better part of my day, while the sewing took me less than an hour.
I am looking forward to listing something I made with my own design. I do still plan on hand printing some items, but for the most part I will leave the printing to Spoonflower.
Speaking of the shop, I have been cranking out some new earrings. Apparently I won’t be able to leave them behind as I thought. It seems they are quite popular. Everywhere I go people ask for the earrings. I have shops who want to sell them, so like they say, ‘give the people what they want!’ So here’s a shot of what my work table looks like currently…
Here are some more pillows I made for my living room. Isn’t the one in the forefront just gorgeous?! The fabric is is a lovely Batik with gold embroidery. Yes, I think they are both gorgeous, but I’m partial to shiny things…The fabric in the background was one I fell in love with while thrifting.
Let me just say, I am just simply in love with India. I love all things Indian. The people, the food, and the décor, oh my! Attending an authentic Indian wedding is on my bucket list. I recently discovered a lovely blog about Indian Interior Décor. I have been inhaling everything on this site, taking in the visual feast that it is. Needless to say, it is really informing a lot of my design direction. In the future I see my work melding my African background with other ethnic influences to create a very rich look. So excited!
AfroMartha 
Hey Yetunde! So glad you pulled the trigger and made those pillows very nice! I’m in the process of doing the same look forward to seeing more of what you create and sharing my pieces as well. Tell the fam I said hello!
Thank you Anitra, for visiting! I would love to see your creations as well. Do you have a link? The fam says hi back!
Let me say that I’m nothing but proud and happy and excited for you! I’m glad you took that leap of faith. Sometimes we hold ourselves back for no real good reason. And I’ve seen Spoonflower’s prices so I know what you mean, but having your own design out there is worth the extra penny or silver dollar.
And it’s nice that you do already create a product that is in high demand. I think having that no matter how big or small it is, makes spending other time working on another avenue of your passion that much more obtainable. You can take your time developing your new ideas while continuing to reap the benefits of the older ones.
Wishing you continued success!
Thank you sooo much Libby! Your support always means a lot to me. When I really sit down and calculate costs, I can see why Spoonflower charges what they do, and I can justify paying that much. When you add up the cost of ink and other supplies and the medical costs of breaking my back, It’s worth it just to outsource the whole shebang!
Thanks for the well-wishes, and wishing you the same.