Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippets we are talking to Lara Cross, the textile designer behind Glorybox Designs, a bright and eclectic range of fabrics, fashion and jewellery based on prints. She has a vibrant passion for colour and her quirky style is evident throughout her work.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
Looking back on my upbringing, it seems so obvious that I would end up being a textile designer- but really, I didn’t even know it was a thing until I was in my third year of studying fashion. Even fashion design was a late start for me, I had initially planned on being some sort of creative director and studied Drama and Film at uni, then lived in China for five years and came home to ‘start’ my life. It took a long time to find that field where my skills just clicked in to place, but I did have a great time getting there! Being surrounded by beautiful textiles, colours and prints was just normal to me, I didn’t know that I could be ‘good enough’ to do that too. I think I have always struggled to prove to everyone that so-called normal people can love colour, and that just because you’re creative it doesn’t mean you’re an idiot. It’s probably not your experience if you grow up in a city, but I grew up in a small town and there is certain pressure to conform- so a lot of my work and ranges tend to have a story behind them, a little provocation and thought to give it meaning as well as beauty.
I enjoy word-play, puns and often have a bit of tongue-in-cheek when I come up with a new theme- my last range was called ‘Iconoscopy‘ which was a tribute to our aging rock icons, and the next range is battle Armor for modern feminists, so no doubt there will be subtle references to female anatomy as well as some more blatant imagery. I have been compiling war words that we use daily, and I’ll start sketching off those, from there I’ll probably end up in mixed media experimentation and move into digital. I work with both screen and digital prints, but the designs always go through the computer before they get there. Digital design is definitely one of the late great discoveries of my life. I use my prints in my clothing and in my resin jewellery, I am very hands-on.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
I love colour mixing when I screen print. I don’t really plan ahead I just go in with an open mind and play. I was also pretty surprised to discover how much I love the minutiae of digital design and getting right into the pixels to create repeats. It’s a secret language. There’s lots to enjoy.
What would your dream creative project look like?
The day I get the phone call from Romance Was Born to collaborate on a range….that will be a pretty great day. (Just to be clear, they can also email me)
Which other Australian designers, artists or creative people are you enjoying?
I am thoroughly enjoying the work of Haus of Dizzy and Doodad and Fandango– they are both forging great paths in sticking it to the patriarchy, all while looking awesome. The rise of dressing for yourself is something that really appeals to me and my customers.
In another life what natural talent would you wish for?
I would love to write raunchy high-society books like Jackie Collins and Rebecca Chance. Maybe I still will….
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Dulwich Hill (Sydney’s hipster Inner West)
Favourite spot for a bite:
IKEA, not a popular choice I know but I get really freaked out by how obsessed people are with “good’ coffee or things served on wooden boards.
Secret Inspirational spot:
I love the run-down and industrial, behind my house there is a derelict lot that has lots of tire piles, runaway bamboo and fabulous rusty things. It’s being demolished bit by bit (there was an amazing old warehouse I could sketch in and spray paint on) but for now it still a bit of a secret garden of crap that I can enjoy.
You can follow what Lara is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippet’s we are talking to Sara Johnson, the artist behind ‘Travelling Alice’ a printmaker based in Sydney who designs and prints her own fabric before making it into unique accessories.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
Travelling Alice is a range of hand printed travel accessories, made in my Sydney Studio.
I studied Fine Arts just out of High School as I just wanted to Draw, while there I learnt Printing (wow ) I could turn my drawings into prints.
At nineteen I got the opportunity to volunteer in India for three months, and this is where my love of fabrics and Crafts came from and of course my travelling obsession began, seeing all these amazing artist, crafts people. Traveling Alice Started from a need to make light weight and colourful travel accessories for myself and friends. I am such an organised traveller I like to pack things so they are easy to find but of course they have to look good as well.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
Drawing drawing and drawing. My Mum is a sign writer so I have always been around pencils, pens and brushes my whole life so it feels as natural as eating. By the way I have the worst hand writing, so I did not get this talent.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
I design fabric that I can sew into accessories. Travel definitely influences my style and my life. I became obsessed with it when I first travelled to India when I was 19. This was also where my love of Fabrics and pattern came from, you get exposed to colour and patterns, it’s a feast for the eyes.
If you could have your portrait painted by any artist dead or alive, who would you choose?
Louise Bourgeois, that would be amazing and fun, she was known for her Sculptures but I love her printmaking. Louise Bourgeois was also known for her dry humour so we could have a laugh at the same time.
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Sydney South
Favourite spot for a bite:
I am a Coffee lover so food is a second thought so my favourite place to get coffee is White Horse Coffee in Sutherland
Secret Inspirational spot:
To be honest I find inspiration anywhere and anytime of the day or night. I have numerous note books so I can quickly write the inspiration down.
You can follow what Sara is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook
Stripes are an absolutely timeless design staple! But with them always being in style it’s easy to sometimes forget just how fabulous and versatile they are. Here at Digital Fabrics we wanted to shine the spotlight on stripes again, and have created a gorgeous range of prints that re-imagines classic stripe designs – introducing our Stripped Back Collection.
Our most recently designed textile collections drew focus to luscious textures and the organic nature of hand drawn motifs. What better way to keep things interesting than to launch a series of designs that celebrates crisp lines, formal shapes and a timeless aesthetic. It was crucial to adopt interesting considerations of both colour and form since we were working in the continuous design space of ‘stripes’. Not only did the designs need to feel fresh, it was also essential to create a diverse collection to avoid designing prints that were too similar to each other.
Variation in band width was key in generating a distinct range of textiles. This allowed us to develop wide, colour-blocked styles as well as contemporary revivals of the pinstripe. Colour was also a major element when it came to designing striking stripe prints. The collection re-imagines neutrals, using soft blush pinks in the same way that you would typically use brown and cream colours. The range pairs these neutrals with dreamy sorbet inspired hues, bold mustards and deep navy accents.
The collection features prints which are both minimal and edgy, with some designs undeniably inspired by the rich history of stripe patterns in print design. These designs would be fabulous in both the home and the wardrobe, and we can’t wait to see what you do with them!
The Stripped Back Collection is available for purchase in our Design Library!
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippet’s we are talking to Sara Johnson, the artist behind ‘Travelling Alice’ a printmaker based in Sydney who designs and prints her own fabric before making it into unique accessories.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
Travelling Alice is a range of hand printed travel accessories, made in my Sydney Studio.
I studied Fine Arts just out of High School as I just wanted to Draw, while there I learnt Printing (wow ) I could turn my drawings into prints.
At nineteen I got the opportunity to volunteer in India for three months, and this is where my love of fabrics and Crafts came from and of course my travelling obsession began, seeing all these amazing artist, crafts people. Traveling Alice Started from a need to make light weight and colourful travel accessories for myself and friends. I am such an organised traveller I like to pack things so they are easy to find but of course they have to look good as well.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
Drawing drawing and drawing. My Mum is a sign writer so I have always been around pencils, pens and brushes my whole life so it feels as natural as eating. By the way I have the worst hand writing, so I did not get this talent.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
I design fabric that I can sew into accessories. Travel definitely influences my style and my life. I became obsessed with it when I first travelled to India when I was 19. This was also where my love of Fabrics and pattern came from, you get exposed to colour and patterns, it’s a feast for the eyes.
If you could have your portrait painted by any artist dead or alive, who would you choose?
Louise Bourgeois, that would be amazing and fun, she was known for her Sculptures but I love her printmaking. Louise Bourgeois was also known for her dry humour so we could have a laugh at the same time.
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Sydney South
Favourite spot for a bite:
I am a Coffee lover so food is a second thought so my favourite place to get coffee is White Horse Coffee in Sutherland
Secret Inspirational spot:
To be honest I find inspiration anywhere and anytime of the day or night. I have numerous note books so I can quickly write the inspiration down.
You can follow what Sara is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippet’s we are talking to Anna Hayman, a UK based print designer who creates fabrics, wallpaper and other homewares from original lino printing and ink drawings. Her work is influenced by the art and craft era as well as the sixties and seventies which is clear in her current work.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
I am a British print designer specialising in printed lampshades, wallpapers, fabrics and cushions. I create my designs from linoprints and ink paintings. I began trading in February 2016
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
My favourite part is transforming artwork – in my case a Lino print or an ink painting – into a pattern. Pattern is my utter obsession so creating repeat designs from artwork is a really exciting point for me, often there are literally endless possibilities of how it can be repeated, mirrored or formed, and seeing that take shape is completely thrilling. That comes just before the worst part, getting the pattern to repeat, which can take forever and is truly boring! Luckily I’m a bit of a geek 🙂
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style? I would describe my work as half hippy, half traditionalist, intricate, relaxed and colourful. I’m influenced by old English styles, I visit a lot of old places, and 1920’s places, but also love Bohemian 70’s style. Creatives I’m influenced by are Celia Birtwell, Biba, The Bloomsbury Group, Olaf Hajek, Aubrey Beardsley and many more.
In another life what natural talent would you wish for?
Writing! I have been reading a lot about the lives of writers recently and I must say it does seem an appealing occupation. I’ve always told myself I am terrible at writing, especially copy, but really I just haven’t had the space to explore it. I would love to take a summer learning how to construct a book, for instance.
Which other Australian designers, artists or creative people are you enjoying at the moment?
Estelle Briedis, for her exacting palettes of colour, Nine Lives Bazaar for their beautiful brand building skills and photography, and Instagram legend @labohemehouseofthewishingtrees for her inspiring and abundant use of brights with white, and layering of textures.
If you could only use one colour in your work what would it be?
Hard question! But I’m crushing hard on jade at the moment, a sort of greenish turquoise, a colour which can be hot and cool, and quenching somehow. I’d find it hard to live without orange though, deep vibrant orange, warm and fresh at the same time.
If you could have your portrait painted by any artist dead or alive, who would you choose?
Lucian Freud, not just because I love his work (I love flat looking paintings with a lot of detail) but because I feel I have the right sort of face for his portraiture.
Which five words best describe you?
English, rebellious, clever, arty, fun.
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Ringmer in Sussex, England.
Favourite spot for a bite:
Any good seafood restaurant, or sushi place.
Secret Inspirational spot:
Charleston farmhouse, the Bloomsbury group country house hotspot of the 1920’s, which is 15 minutes from where I live.
You can follow what Anna is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook
We are right in the middle of a gorgeous Sydney Summer, and for most of us have gone back to work after a (hopefully) relaxing festive break. What better way to feel like we’re still on holidays than with the launch of a new range of summery prints- our Tropicana range. Time to take a very grown up trip to the tropics!
All of the designs began by taking inspiration from tropical flora and carefully hand painting a series of detailed Banana Palms and Monstera leaves. At Digital Fabrics we love all things textural, and by using one of our favourite mediums, watercolours, we were able to create really luscious leaf motifs to start creating textile designs from.
We wanted to rework classic tropical designs to create elegant and accessible prints. To achieve this we determined each design as a large scale print to celebrate the gorgeous watercolour aesthetic. We then primarily used a colour palette of contrasting neutrals with muted colours such as blush pink and sage to ensure the designs as timeless.
We see these designs being suitable for both interiors and fashion and just looking at these new prints has us dreaming about fabulous statement curtains or retro swimsuit designs. We’d love to hear about the kind of project you envision these designs for!
The Tropicana Collection is available for purchase in our Design Library!
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippet’s we are talking to Anna Hayman, a UK based print designer who creates fabrics, wallpaper and other homewares from original lino printing and ink drawings. Her work is influenced by the art and craft era as well as the sixties and seventies which is clear in her current work.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
I am a British print designer specialising in printed lampshades, wallpapers, fabrics and cushions. I create my designs from linoprints and ink paintings. I began trading in February 2016
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
My favourite part is transforming artwork – in my case a Lino print or an ink painting – into a pattern. Pattern is my utter obsession so creating repeat designs from artwork is a really exciting point for me, often there are literally endless possibilities of how it can be repeated, mirrored or formed, and seeing that take shape is completely thrilling. That comes just before the worst part, getting the pattern to repeat, which can take forever and is truly boring! Luckily I’m a bit of a geek 🙂
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style? I would describe my work as half hippy, half traditionalist, intricate, relaxed and colourful. I’m influenced by old English styles, I visit a lot of old places, and 1920’s places, but also love Bohemian 70’s style. Creatives I’m influenced by are Celia Birtwell, Biba, The Bloomsbury Group, Olaf Hajek, Aubrey Beardsley and many more.
In another life what natural talent would you wish for?
Writing! I have been reading a lot about the lives of writers recently and I must say it does seem an appealing occupation. I’ve always told myself I am terrible at writing, especially copy, but really I just haven’t had the space to explore it. I would love to take a summer learning how to construct a book, for instance.
Which other Australian designers, artists or creative people are you enjoying at the moment?
Estelle Briedis, for her exacting palettes of colour, Nine Lives Bazaar for their beautiful brand building skills and photography, and Instagram legend @labohemehouseofthewishingtrees for her inspiring and abundant use of brights with white, and layering of textures.
If you could only use one colour in your work what would it be?
Hard question! But I’m crushing hard on jade at the moment, a sort of greenish turquoise, a colour which can be hot and cool, and quenching somehow. I’d find it hard to live without orange though, deep vibrant orange, warm and fresh at the same time.
If you could have your portrait painted by any artist dead or alive, who would you choose?
Lucian Freud, not just because I love his work (I love flat looking paintings with a lot of detail) but because I feel I have the right sort of face for his portraiture.
Which five words best describe you?
English, rebellious, clever, arty, fun.
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Ringmer in Sussex, England.
Favourite spot for a bite:
Any good seafood restaurant, or sushi place.
Secret Inspirational spot:
Charleston farmhouse, the Bloomsbury group country house hotspot of the 1920’s, which is 15 minutes from where I live.
You can follow what Anna is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook
Here at Digital Fabrics we have a very exciting textile collection to launch just before the end of the year, with a really fun range of fabric prints to get you through Summer. The designs are inspired by dynamic and quirky Memphis design surface patterns and uses contrasting colours, shapes and textures to create playful designs that can be used together or on their own.
All of the print designs started out on paper! By using different mark making processes with a variety of materials such as markers, paints, pens and sponges, graphic shapes and surfaces began to emerge. These were then dissected and collaged together to create interesting designs with lots of energy.
Colour is such a key component of this collection and it was really important to get them right. We combined very on trend pastel shades, with timeless neutrals, and whites to contrast with bold blacks and splashes of electric warm colours.
The Memphis Summer Collection is perfect to get those creative juices flowing over the next few months! Whether it’s making something in time for an event over the festive season or it’s because you’ve finally some free time to work on a DIY project, Digital Fabrics can help out with your fabric printing needs. We see these designs working for both interiors and fashion, with statement cushions and fabulous Summer dresses being the first things that come to mind!
The Memphis Summer Collection is available for purchase in our Design Library!
We’re very excited here at Digital Fabrics to be dropping another range of yummy prints! This time we’re inspired by bold earthy colours and organic forms, bringing to you a collection of hand painted, textural abstract designs.
Our Sunset Gum design is a small scale abstract print with bold contrasting colours. Who doesn’t love a splash of red?
Our Blush Pebble design is a medium scale graphic print. We just can’t get enough of pink!
Our Ochre Scatter design is a small scale print with a fabulous burnt vermilion colourway, able to liven up any space or outfit!
Our Clay design is a medium scale print with bold geometric shapes and a deep warm colour palette.
The Artful Simplicity collection is available for purchase in our Design Library. We can’t wait to see what you do with them!
Exciting news! We have a new competition for all Textile designers out there, budding or experienced. The theme is ‘Palm Springs’. We know, fun right?
Create a fabric design for ‘interiors’ or ‘fashion’ inspired by ‘Palm Springs’ using any method you want. This could be photograph, paint, collage, sketch and could be based on colour, texture, architecture or landscape, there are no boundaries. Let your creativity GO WILD!
There will be 3 winners:
1st Prize will receive $250 worth of custom printing on a fabric from our stock plus a 45cm x 45cm cushion on waratah with their winning design, insert included.
2nd Prize will receive $100 worth of custom printing on a fabric plus a 45cm x 45cm cushion on waratah with their winning design, insert included.
3rd Prize will receive $50 worth of custom printing on a fabric plus a 45cm x 45cm cushion on waratah with their winning design, insert included.
All top ten designs will receive a strike-off of their design.
How it works:
Create it. Design it. Share it! Get your friends to share it too.
Why?
The top 10 designs will be voted for by the public, so share your designs with your friends, get them voting for you!
From the Top 10, there will also be one public voted winner, this will be the design that gets the most likes and the prize will be one 45cm x 45cm cushion with their design. Yay!
The competition will open on Saturday 21st October and close on Thursday 16th November at 9am Eastern Standard Time. All voting will close at 9am Eastern Standard Time Monday 20th November.
Top 10 will be announced on Monday 20th November on social media and will be featured on our website.
Winners will be announced on Friday 24th November.
Rules:
- Upload your design onto your Instagram account.
- Add the tag: #dfpalmsprings and tag us: Digital Fabrics @digitalfabrics so we can find your entry! If you don’t use the correct hash tag we may not see your design.
- We love to know the story behind the design and what inspired you so tell us everything!
All designs must be submitted by Thursday 16th November 9am Eastern Standard Time to be included in the competition.
Just a little inspiration for you to enjoy:
Terms and conditions:
This competition for Australian residents only.
Please use the correct hashtag to be included: #dfpalmsprings and tag us @digitalfabrics to ensure we can see your entry.
Only entries with the correct hashtag #dfpalmsprings will be in the running of the competition.
Unlimited entries allowed.
The team at Digital Fabrics will choose the finalists.
The winning prize can be used for one fabric type only from our stock fabric collection.
The 45cm x 45cm cushion will be printed front and back and mailed to you.
We can’t wait to see all the designs!
DF Team
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