February Feature: Spoonflower | Design Website

I'm wrapping up 2021 February Features with a miraculous site called Spoonflower. The first night I uncovered this world of designs, I felt like I had wandered into the art gallery of Alice's Wonderland.  The site hosts weekly design challenges with a themed prompt, and thousands of artists submit designs bursting with color, shapes, word play, and illustrations. The community votes for their favorites and winners are displayed each week. The most intriguing part is that any design can be applied to any item, be it a duvet cover, placemat, tea towel, pillowcase, wallpaper etc. Talk about customization! I love the entire concept and will keep tumbling down the rabbit hole to peek at the ever-changing kaleidoscope of patterns.  

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Some of my favorite design challenges are linked below: 

Design Challenge: Paint by Numbers

Design Challenge: Game Night 

Design Challenge: Snail Mail

Design Challenge: Continuous Line Contour

Design Challenge: Sports & Leisure

Design Challenge: Aromatheropy

Design Challenge: Limited Color Palette

Design Challenge: Line Art Safari Wallpaper

Other fabrics

Design Challenge: Play Mat

Spoonflower provides the perfect spot to discover designers, illustrators, and artists. You can view an archive of their work, and from there, search for them on Instagram. I've done just that! :) 

Artist: heidi abeline

Artist: Katherine Quinn

Artist: Olive and Ruby 

Artist: Kate Herbert Designs 

Artist: Kate Rhees

Artist: NanShizzle 

Artist: Movezerb

Color wheels and rainbows,

- SJW

February Features: Nikki McClure | Papercut Artist

Nikki McClure is far and away my favorite artist right now. Her artwork is fantastically elaborate and unquestionably eye-catching. The two videos linked below show her process from creating a sketch to cutting it out of a single piece of black paper. A simple concept with breathtaking execution! Her calendar collection features some of her best work, uniquely tied to a theme for the year, yet always incorporating and reflecting the natural world. She also has a lovely set of children's books and a baby journal we bought for each of our little ones. I'm glad to support this Washingtonian :) 

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Video 2
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Shop

Lines, curves, and cuts,

- SJW

February Feature: A Paper Caper | Printmaker

This next friend of mine is a linocut artist, meaning she carves designs in relief on blocks of linoleum and then uses them for prints. It's a specific form of block-printing, using carving tools, a brayer (roller), ink, paint, and paper or fabric. You can see these materials and examples of the original blocks in a few of the pictures below. From the simple to the intricate, Rachel's designs are really fun to look at. I'm especially fond of her playful penguin series! Lots of feathers and fur :) 

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Shop 

Get rid of that negative space,

- SJW

February Feature: Andrea Shields | Illustrator

Discovering someone you know is extremely artistic is like learning they have a super power. A gal I knew at UT has my talent of choice, drawing and painting. I love everything having to do with stationary -- the prints, puns, and patterns -- and Andrea Shields delivers on all accounts. Her style is bright and friendly, detailed and floral. It's hard not to drool over her delicious invitations and decadent monograms. A feast for the eyes!

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Website

So pretty you could eat them up!

- SJW