Spoonflower, Yet Another Way to Feed My Fabric Addiction

Tweet I’m working on some fun new stuff for the shop and I needed some pretty specific fabric.  I couldn’t really find what I was looking for (even after emailing a few of my fave online fabric shops) so I decided to print my own at Spoonflower.  Holy moly, so much fun!  And no, they didn't sponsor this - I was just really excited to share my VERY OWN fabric!



On Spoonflower you can upload your own designs and have them printed on a bunch of different base fabrics.  You can also shop other people’s designs – there are some AWESOME fabrics available!

I designed my fabric in Photoshop and uploaded it to Spoonflower, which was quick and easy.  My design is 42” wide and 16” tall, so I just set it up in Spoonflower as a basic repeat, checked the previews, and ordered my 3 yards (which came to a total of $54.60, in case you were wondering).



Shipping was lighting fast.  I ordered on December 25th and the fabric was in my hot little hands on the 30th.  I washed it in warm water, ran it through the dryer, and ironed it. 

I really am happy with the fabric.  It is noticeably stiffer than the quilting weight cottons I usually work with, but I’m guessing it will soften up after a few washes (plus the stiffness makes it super easy to sew).  I don’t think I’d use it for apparel because it does wrinkle pretty easily.  If you’re sewing apparel, try one of the other base fabrics.



The colors are really bright and crisp.  In a couple areas that are a solid color, like this pink, the color does look a little heathered.  However, some of the tiny tiny details are perfectly clear, which is really impressive.  And there’s a nice white margin around the entire printed area so you don’t have to worry about any of your design being trimmed off (which was really important for the future of this fabric).

Overall, I’ll for sure be a repeat Spoonflower customer.  I went with the quilting weight cotton because that’s what I typically use, but I think next time I’ll try another base fabric.  The ability to design fabrics for specific products has triggered a whole slew of new product ideas!



If you have any questions about the process, feel free to ask.  And if you’re going to order, definitely check out their FAQ for some good info about getting your file ready to upload.  Oh, and I’ll share what this fabric becomes soon – a big thanks to my sister Kate for planting the idea in my head!

Have any of you tried Spoonflower or any other fabric printing service?  What would you do with your very own fabric designs?