Get to Know Ya Time with Valori Wells!

 

We just got in the beautiful new collection Wish from one of our favorite Free Spirit designers, Valori Wells!! If you've ever been over to her website, you might actually pass out from all the beautiful color and design just blooming from your screen! As soon as I laid eyes on her new collection Wish, I immediately thought it is one of her prettiest collections to date and I think its my new fave! So we decided to ask this seemingly infinite WELL of inspiration a few questions about designing, her new line and how to stay inspired!

 

 

 

 

Cabbage Rose: Designing fabric and quilts, writing books, photography and co-owning a store, your life seems quite full of creativity! How did you get started in the wonderful world of fabric?

Valori Wells: It seems like it was a natural transition for me….. even though I studied Photography in college I always had a love of fabric. I am a self taught fabric designer. The hard way, trial and error, I am always pushing myself to be better at what I do. When I got out of art school I found myself following a boy to North Carolina and ended up working at a Quilt Shop. Go figure since I grew up in one! My mom and I were working on our second book and I realized how much fabric was apart of my life and so I went to Quilter’s Only – it was a small division of Springs Industries – and I submitted my ideas and photography. They took me on and I worked with them for 3 years before a good friend, Donna Wilder, started Free Spirit. I knew that was where I should be. Donna really nurtured me as a designer.  Free Spirit was where I started really pushing myself to do all the drawings and repeats and paintings of my designs. And I haven’t stopped pushing my creativity for fabric since. I have been designing for 15 years…. 

 

 

 

 

CR: Tell us a little about your design process and what inspires you!

VW: I am always inspired by nature and now that I have a family they are constant inspiration for me. I always carry a sketchbook with me and draw all the time. Those drawings and my photography start the creative process of making a collection of fabric. From the drawings I create repeats by hand then take bits and pieces of the drawing in repeat and ink them in black and white and scan them into my computer. Pull them up into Illustrator and put them back together into repeat and then color them.  It is a long transition from idea to fabric and I think long and hard about my designs where they come, the story behind them, from the color to the projects I make.

 

 

 

  

CR: Was there a specific muse for the new collection, Wish?

VW: My family and friends and my love of trees….. I really wanted to create a tree print and with that idea I started thinking about my wishes.. which lead to my family and friends wishes. I sent out requests to my friends and family to write their wishes on paper I provided. I received wishes from people ranging in ages of 2 to 70. I then took the wishes and turned them into branches. From there the rest of the collection just grew. (You can read even more about the specific designs from this collection on her blog here!)

 

CR: I love the names that you gave the color ways, Patience, Strength and Courage...is naming your prints part of the story for a collection or a fun finishing touch?

 

VW: It is part of the collection…especially this collection. It represents my friends and family and their wishes. Sounds funny but the older I get the more sappy and sentimental I am….so names and stories are more important to me than they were in the beginning.

 

 

 

CR: What's your absolute favorite creative outlet? Any hidden talents?

VW: I love to take photos, paint, silk screen, block print and combine them, sometimes in quilts and other times on paper. I just LOVE to create not matter what it is and try new things, get better at what I already do and push myself to grow.

 

 

CR: Even though your portfolio might suggest otherwise, surely you're human and go through creative dry spells like the rest of us! Any tips for getting the wheels turning again if you've been in an un-creative rut?

 

VW: I do go through those times that’s when I will look at art, go to galleries, look at Pinterest, my books and just sketch. By looking at other peoples work I forget my own issues and that seems to help open my mind. When I was in art school I would worry so much when I didn’t have an idea, with age and experience I have mellowed out and found ways to help me stay inspired. I also have some go to magazines that I love, Sweet Paul, Anthology, UpperCase, Mingle, Darling, they are filled with inspiring photographs as well and great recipes and articles.  

 

 

 

 

CR: What’s your favorite go-to handmade project for gifts? We’re always looking for new ideas to add to that arsenal!

VW: My Wish Bird is my favorite handmade gift….. they are stuffed birds with a pocket in the back for wishes or little gifts. They make me smile…

 

 

 

CR: Besides releasing new fabric collections, is anything else exciting happening for you this year?

 

VW: I am working on a book that will release October of 2014. 2014 is going to be a very exciting year for me….(stay tuned) Other than that same busy life with the shop, fabric and family….and hopefully some painting in there somewhere!



I adore getting to peek into the lives of designers, its always so encouraging and inspiring to hear about how others create and get out of ruts especially! Thanks again Valori!! We LOVE WISH!

 

And if YOU LOVE WISH, tell us what you're going to make in the comments section! If you can't quite figure it out, you can always make this fab FREE QUILT PATTERN above that Valori designed specifically for this collection! DOWNLOAD IT HERE!

 

Happy Wishing!

 

Fabric Feature: Out to Sea by Sarah Jane!!

 

 

I'm pretty sure we're all near cuteness overload but this collection just HAS to be talked about! Ever since we saw Sarah Jane's booth at Spring Market we've been anxiously awaiting the arrival of Out to Sea and now that its here we don't know what to do with ourselves!! Too many creative ideas just spring to life in the presence of these adorable maritime inspired prints!

 

 

 

  

 

I guess that's why Sarah Jane decided to host the Out to Sea DIY Blog Tour featuring this adorable collection! There is just SO much you can do with these fabrics, its a little crazy!

LOVE the Narwhal Pillow!! Perfect if you're redoing a kids room in this collection or just to add a little whimsy to an already nautical decor!!

 

 

 

I totally laughed out loud with glee when I saw the Narwhal Wall Mount! Such a fun and creative way to bring some pattern to the wall in a wee one's room!

 

Does your little one love pirates?? Make them this super sweet Pirate Doll with the tutorial by One More Mushroom! How cute would it be to give a pirate themed gift, complete with an Out to Sea quilt and this little guy as a new member of their pirate crew!

 

The Anchor Pillow by Tea Rose Home would look totally adorable on a neutral couch or your favorite chair! I love all things nautical and this fun pillow is a easy way to add a punch of it into your decor!

 

 

I just LOVE all of the Map Panels, each panel comes with 4 maps on it so you can create fun placemats, a map pillow or two, or frame it for wall art in a nautical themed room!! You can download the instructions for this Rounded Cushion here!

 

 

How about making Amy Butler's Must Have Pillow with your favorite prints from the collection for a nursery? The pattern is ON SALE this week too!

 

 

And don't think this line is just for the kiddos!! You really can't get any more chic than the Anchor Skirt! Doesn't it look like something straight from Anthropologie?? I love how Cotton & Curls styled it with a simple gray tee to really let her creation stand out! Even if you're not into the nautical prints, that's one skirt pattern you'll come back to again and again!

 

I absolutely LOVE a peter pan collar and Cotton & Curls strikes again with this detachable version in the pretty Sea Flowers print! What a fun way to dress up a plain shirt!! You could even embellish with a little button in the center to make it your own! I think I might make a few as Christmas gifts! 

 

There will be more projects shared throughout the month on Sarah Jane's blog so keep checking back there every Wednesday for more inpsiring ideas for using this collection! We hope you're all just as charmed by it as we are!



Fig Tree Trunk Show & SALE!!

Hey everyone!! We hope you all had the best Thanksgiving Day! But now, it's time for shopping! For any of our local customers, you simply MUST make it into the Cabbage Rose today or tomorrow! We currently have Fig Tree & Co.'s newest Trunk Show and it's just too sweet to miss seeing it in person! 

The front bed is dressed in Fig Tree's best with the Stems Quilt making quite the splash with everyone who sees it! I can't tell you how many ladies we've helped pick out Fig Tree prints to make this quilt! We've also had lots of Mama's and Grandma's asking for the Goodnight Moon robe pattern!  Make this little robe in some of our deliciously soft Flannels (we have every style from masculine to feminie, sophisticated to whimsical) and whoever you give it to won't ever want to take it off! 

Aren't these Mini Stockings the cutest? What a fun Christmas decor idea, and a great way to use less traditional fabrics! They would even be sweet to make as your pet's stockings! Dog biscuits and or chew bones will look too cute poking out of these tiny stockings!

Make these adorable little pincushions with the Strawberry Shortcake pattern! This would make a great Christmas present for the ladies in your quilt bee or guild! What quilter or sewer couldn't use another especially cute pincushion?

I really love the Pillow Duet pattern, with it you can make both styles of pillows shown here! I especially love the fabric covered buttons used to embellish these sweet bed accessories! They were made using the i-top Brad Maker!

And these are probably my favorite of her new patterns! Three Blind Mice is another sweet pincushion pattern that only takes a few Fat Quarters to complete! And they are just too cute for words!! We're currently out of stock right now (they've been flying off the shelves since Festival) but we'll be getting some more in soon so if you'd like us to hold one for you and send it out when it arrives, give us a call! 817-377-3993

 

We also have Joanna's newest patterns from her stamp wallhanging series, Singing in the Rain and Bunny Duet! These would both be so adorable to hang up for Spring or even Easter decor! And that applique and emrboidery just looks like too much fun!! So come on out and check out all of the beautiful Fig Tree Samples and get inspired!!

IN STORE ONLY SPECIALS!!!!

25% OFF all Christmas Fabrics, Hometown and Curio when you purchase in the store!! Come get your Christmas Shopping finished at the Cabbage Rose!!

Quilt Market Weekend!

Hey everyone! This weekend at market was absolutely incredible and we're so excited now for our inspiration to transform into amazing new projects to share with all of you in the coming months! We'll share more over the next few days but here's some of the jaw-dropping things we saw at Quilt Market! {above photo: taken in the FreeSpirit Booth}

Some of the adorable new samples made in Moda's newest and upcoming collections! We'll be getting both of these lines so be sure to check our Coming Soon section in the next few weeks for their accepted arrival dates!

We were really excited by Colette Patterns! Her asthetic is so classically feminine, charming in a very Audrey Hepburn sort of way! We can't wait to go through her new book!

We all couldn't wait to see the Parson Gray Booth! The man behind the fabric is none other than Amy Butler's husband, David Butler! We had a lot of fun talking with David in his booth! He even got the girls to pose in his booth so he could show his bandmates that they didn't have to feel sorry for him hanging out at Quilt Market all weekend! We are eagerly awaiting the arrival of Curious Nature in the shop! It was fun seeing a man's ideas on accessorizing with fabric! Like how he used his fabrics to make the High Street Messenger bag and got the hardware, strap and finishings from an army pack you can get for $5 at an Army Navy supply store!

The Michael Miller Booths were so much fun! They're picnic theme was so sweet, they even served fruit infused water for all of the picnic-ers! We had a great time picking out some of their new lines with our rep, Bob who we all love so much! He kept us laughing the whole time!

So much fun and so inspiring, ideas have been running through our brains ever since! You've got to love getting such an overwhelming surge of eye candy! Tuesday we're heading back down to Houston to set up for Festival with Marci Baker and we hope you all can come out and see us at Booth 2036-2039! And we'll be uploading more photos here and to Facebook so stay tuned!