Art Gallery Fabrics - The Creative Blog

Hello fab makers!

I hope you’re having a great day! As you might know the color of June is baby blue. We just can’t get enough of this soft and delicate color. It’s such a fresh shade that can be a nice alternative to white and it’s definitely gender neutral. Whether you sew garments or home decor with baby blue fabrics, you can be assured that your project will be timeless.

To give you a few ideas of what you can make with the baby blue prints from our ColorFun selection, we’ve chosen six projects that you can sew. Check them out!

1. Out and About Dress

For those of you who love sewing garments, this dress is a quick make! The fresh baby blue knit with accents of pink from Wonderland Fabrics by Katarina Roccella is simply enchanting. If you want to make this Out and About Dress check out our designer Sew Caroline's website.

2. Align Bed Runner

If you’re looking to add a quilty touch to your bedroom without having to sew a whole quilt, a bed runner is a great solution. We combined black and white fabrics with the dotted baby blue fabric from Lagom for a geometric look. (click on name for pattern)

3. Gossamer Pillow

The fastest way of updating your home decor is by changing the pillows in your house. What do you this of this subtle print from Gossamer fabrics by Sharon Holland? This fresh print can be used for a nursery or living room.

4. Quilt Block by @aylagracepatchwork

In addition to making great accessories with baby blue fabrics, remember that it’s great for quilting too! We love how Kelly-Anne combined this simple blue print with bold florals. Both from Skopelos fabrics by Katarina Roccella. Check out her instagram page for more cute projects.

5. Hot Air Balloon Dress by Alexis Wright

Summer is here! Why not make the little girls in your family sweet summer dresses? This hot air balloon print from Inblue Fabrics by Katarina Roccella will make your little one feel like she’s floating. Check out all the beautiful children's garments Alexis sews, on her Instagram.

6. EPP Block by Lesley Storts

Last but not least, baby blue can add such a delicate touch to your EPP projects. We’re adoring how Lesley fussy cut this tiny floral print from Charleston Fabrics by Amy Sinibaldi. Visit her instagram page for more cute projects.

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I hope you loved all the project ideas that can be made with baby blue fabrics. To purchase this range of ColorFun prints, visit Fat Quarter Shop's website.  Let me know in the comments how do you coordinate baby blue fabrics in your projects.

Till next time!

-Stephanie

Hello Makers,

Obsessed with making flying geese? I know I am, which is why I decided to make the Double T Block featuring Indie Boheme fabrics. In this video we use the no waste method which gives you four at a time flying geese! The simplicity of this block and the fussy cut center makes this block super fun to make!  

Make sure to download the Double T Block PDF and enjoy the video below!  

In the comments box below let me know which block tutorials you would like to see next! To check out more fun AGF Quilt Block Collection tutorials head to our youtube channel! 

Happy Sewing, 

Melissa 

Hello AGF Aficionados!

It’s been a while since I’ve written, but I’m excited to be back and ready to share some fun projects and helpful sewing tips! Now that I’m a member of the mommy club a whole new world of adorable sewing has opened up before me and I have a couple tutorials for projects in the works that you’ll want to sew for yourself or for someone you know (maybe for a little someone you know). Along the way, I’ll be highlighting construction methods that will help you with all your sewing across the board, non-baby sewing included!

Some of you may have seen a sneak peek of my Little One rockin' some AGF duds in the Wonderful Things Lookbook way back in January. Time has flown by and he is now almost crawling- he’s gone from a little squish to a bouncy baby boy so fast!

Now, a question that people always ask me is “what should I sew as a present for the baby?” Here are two really easy projects that I have gotten tons of use out of and that would make great gifts for the expectant parent. The first is a nursing pillow cover.

These pillows are the best for all sorts of reasons, but one thing that isn’t that great is the variety (or lack thereof) in prints for pillow covers. I’ve been able to make a couple covers for my pillow and I love them! They brighten my living room and are the envy of other moms (or so I like to imagine). It’s also something that will be used constantly from the newborn stage through to the sitting stage.

Instructions on how to draft your Pillow Cover Pattern:

1. Place either the pillow or the pillow cover on a piece of paper and trace. Fold the paper in half and “true” the pattern, ie, blend the lines together smoothly so that both halves are the same. Add your desired seam allowance to all edges, except the fold line. Since the finished edges on my serger measure at 3/8” I added about 3/8” around the shape. Cut out your pattern piece. This is your front piece.

2. Now, trace the front piece and draw a line where you will sew in the zipper. Cut apart the back pieces, then trace them onto paper adding extra seam allowance at the straight edges for the zipper (I added 1/2”) and cut out.

3. Pin your pattern pieces to fabric and cut one of each.

4. Cut two strips of interfacing (1" x Width of Pillow) to stabilize your knit edges at the back zipper opening.  Fuse the interfacing to the wrong sides of the fabric at the edges so it’s easy to sew the zipper to the knit fabric. (You can even use non-knit interfacing since by sewing to a zipper you are essentially removing the stretch anyway.)

5. Cut two zipper tabs 1 1/₂” x 4” and fuse interfacing to them as well.  Pin the short ends of the tabs to the ends of a 22” zipper, right sides together, and sew.  Trim tabs to match the width of the zipper.   If you are using a shorter zipper make the tabs longer so that they reach beyond the edge of the pillow sides.  

6. Pin the zipper to the Back Top, right sides together, and sew a straight stitch as close to the edge as you can (using a zipper foot).  Open, press and top-stitch.  Repeat the process to sew the zipper to the Back Bottom.  Here is a tutorial that shows the zipper application I used.  Trim the zipper tabs as needed so they are flush with the edges of the pillow body.

7. Now, pin the front and back right sides together, making sure the zipper is partially open.  Sew together using either a serger or the zig-zag stitch on your sewing machine.  Flip your creation right side out and stuff with a pillow!

Be sure to browse all the amazing knits AGF has to offer!  There's sure to be something for everybody.  Here are just a few recommendations: 

Well, that's all for today but I'll be back with more projects from babyland. 

Until then, Happy Sewing!

-Christine

Hello, beautiful sewists!

Lately I’ve been thinking about how sewing is a craft that you can always experiment with. With so many designers, fabric collections, and beautiful free quilt patterns available you can never get bored! The style that has been catching my eye is the boho trend. There’s something so carefree about this style and it’s so stylish in a funky way (plus I feel connected to it because my mom calls me the “bohemian” of the family”).

One collection that portrays boho style beautifully is Pat Bravo’s new collection Indie Boheme fabrics. This collection is the continuation of her successful first Indie Collection. Indie Boheme combines Pat’s love for faraway influences, eye-catching colors, and bold designs to create a free spirited range of prints.

Every time I look at this collection, I simply dream of flowy tunics and maxi dresses!

But boho style isn’t just for garments! You can add a creative touch to your home with boho decor with it. Think patchwork pillows, unique quilts, and much more. I invite you to flip through the Indie Boheme lookbook to find inspirations for all kinds of boho inspired projects.

Add a new quilt pattern to your collection by downloading the “Wildflowers” free quilt pattern.

If you would like to contrast the bold prints with a few blenders, here are a few we’ve curated for you. Aren’t they divine?

Now, for the best part! You can join Pat’s love for “la vie de boheme” by adding a bundle of this collection to your stash!

To enter the giveaway simply fill the form below. Giveaway ends Thursday, June 22nd at 3:00pm EST. Good luck!

I hope you’re in love with Indie Boheme by Pat Bravo as much as we are!

Till next time,

Stephanie

******GIVEAWAY CLOSED******

Congrats, Sandy Belt for winning the Indie Boheme Fabrics giveaway! Please check your email.

Hey makers!

I just wanted to tell you how grateful we are to have you in our lives. We strongly believe that the sewing community is so amazing because sewists are generous and love to work together. This is why when we were planning our booth layout for Spring Quilt Market in St. Louis, Missouri, we had the strong urge to plan an activity for the attendees that visited our booth. We thought “why not make a quilt at Quilt Market?” and that’s what happened!

The blocks featured AGF Denim, Fusions, and our Lower the Volume Capsules

We set up a booth where attendees could sew a block that would be part of a quilt we were going to donate to a charity. To make things even more fun, we invited Mister Domestic to be the sewing master at the booth where he kept everyone motivated. It was great to see everyone laugh and share tons of sewing stories!

Once the quilt top was complete we brought it back to the AGF HQ where we added the backing, binding, and quilted it. For the donation we decided to pair up with our friends at Stash Builder Box since they’re all about quilting for a good cause. This wonky log cabin quilt was sent off with the rest of their Heart Builders quilts that were going to Camp Hobe; a summer camp for terminally ill children. We are grateful for everyone who participated! I hope that everyone that took part in this quilt loves how it turned out and that the child who receives this quilt knows that he/she will be wrapped with love!

Let me know in the comments if you’ve ever sewed for charity. As always, stay creative and thanks for inspiring!

-Stephanie

 P.S. If you want to see all the other fun things that happened at Quilt Market check out Part I and Part II of our recap. ;)

Hello Makers,

As you know AGF has been featuring one color each month in our ColorFun blog posts series. The current month is dedicated to baby blue fabrics, April was all about fuchsia, on March we featured black and white fabrics, etc. But colors look best when combined, right? Especially, when it comes to mixing and matching colors in our quilts. Sometimes we just follow our gut and everything comes out beautiful, but there are times when we would rather follow some guidelines when combining colors. This is when the color wheel comes to the rescue! :)

Take a look at the Guide below and learn how to use the color wheel to find complementary and analogous colors and have fun choosing fabric for your next sewing and quilting project :)

I hope you like all the tips above. Let us know in comments what colors are you choosing for your next project and what's your method of combining colors so they look just right.  :)

-Ola