Design Your Own Fabric

I want to tell you about a cool place on the web where anyone can design their own fabric.  The site is Spoonflower (http://www.spoonflower.com/ ).  A few weeks ago I was contacted through my Etsy store (http://www.leslieshappyheart.etsy.com/ ) by a customer named Betsy wondering if I could make a bag for her from fabrics she designed and had printed at Spoonflower.  Of course I said yes, because custom orders are a big part of what I do!  So she ordered the fabric and had it sent directly to me from Spoonflower.  It took about 2 weeks from the time she ordered it to the time I got it.  Here is the fabric:

Clearly, Betsy has a love of dachshunds and the beach!

She ordered one of my small zippered purses, and a key chain pouch.  Here is the result:

Betsy let me know that she is extremely happy with the bag and pouch!  I am happy to have had the experience with Spoonflower, although I haven't yet designed my own fabric--but some day I will!

Here are a few more things to know about Spoonflower:  you can buy other peoples' fabrics, and I saw some wonderful things there I would love to buy (and I probably will)!  What a great way to find something unique!  You can order a sample swatch of cotton quilting-weight fabric for $5, a fat quarter for $11, or a yard for $18. There are several other fabric choices too, such as cotton knit, canvas, sateen, or upholstry weight twill.  This is a great resource to keep in mind.  Maybe you don't need it today, but in the future, if you were looking unsuccessfully for a special fabric, you could always just design it yourself!