The hard part isn't designing the art it's figuring out the delivery system, how to email large files. So I've been up to my ears in shopping carts, 300 dpi jpgs, png files, it's fun like a puzzle but a lot of problem solving.
Does anyone do digital scrapbooking? Do you have a favorite site that you use? Anyone use Etsy to buy patterns?
What do you like better, big prints or little prints? Frames? Borders? Cross stitch or regular embroidery?
Themes? What is hard to find? Birthdays? Graduation?
Any advice, suggestions, recommendations, ideas would be hot.
Marilyn.
--
Don't be afraid to attempt something new.
Remember, it was amateurs who built the ark.
It was professionals who built the Titanic.
Hello! I love your stuff.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of embroidery, I would love borders that I could use to trim tops. Especially like a kimono style top with borders around the neckline, arm openings and the tie under the bust. It would be wonderful if your designs could be sold in tandem with shirt, jacket sewing patterns. I would be interested in regular embroidery (not cross stitch). So, in short, my interest would be for making apparel.
Wishing you much success.
:) Ann
I want paper!!! As a paper artist, I'm always looking for new patterns to play with.
ReplyDeleteI love a pdf for hand embroidery.
ReplyDeleteWonderful advice! Thanks, everyone!
ReplyDeleteAnyone else having anything that they'd like to pitch in. Do dish!
Marilyn
Please, oh please, don't use 4-Shared for downloading. They make you wait to download, so you'll buy their "Premium" product. I've waited as much as 5 minutes to just begin the download. As far as papers go, I love bright colors and happy designs, also quirky things. Cats, dragons, dragonflies, fairies (but not tooo sweet, they've gotta have a little "bite" to them). Moons and stars are good, too. And sparklies! As I mentioned above, I also love Arts and Crafts designs, anything early 20th century. Those colors are nice, too. As far as sites go, some of my faves are: Scrap Girls, The Graphics Fairy, Scrappin Cop, Ginger Scraps, SuzyQ Scraps, Snips N Snails, Deviant Scrap. Whew! I'm out of breath! I'm sure I'll love whatever you do! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteSo to summarize... hand embroidery suitable for garment and towel embellishment, paper prints, quiet smaller prints to coordinate with the bolder designs and cats, dragons, fairies, moon, stars, and arts and crafts. I am on it!
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking funky fonts, borders & frames for embroidery - would like to experiment with embroidering quotes, poetry & such onto things like denim skirts and purses, scarves and other clothing, hats, etc. Had the urge to get back into sewing and embroidery - haven't since middle school - and your post has my mind in a whirl of ideas now. I forsee a trip to craft & fabric stores in my future. Thanks for the inspiration! :)
ReplyDeleteAs someone who is passionate about needle related crafts and rubbish at any pencil, paint, ink or other fluid related art, I would adore the opportunity of being able to use your designs. You are inspirational, as well as fun. I wish you had been around when my child was a child - we would have had so much fun using your Toymaker stuff to do. I am going to turn one of your designs into something needle related - just need time and design whether it will be embroidery, knitted, appliqué, sewn............will let you know.
ReplyDeleteKeep me posted! I'd love to see what you come up with. :-)
DeleteHi Marilyn.
DeleteYour papers, patterns and art-nouveau-sy flowers and decorations in such wonderfully vivid colors are really something quite special. They stand out from most other papers in that they are so bold, and not so theme-oriented. This may not be in the interest of scrapbookers (where at least the marketing at craft stores seems to imply that pages have themes), but they should work very well for cardmakers, endpapers for bookmakers, etc. For cardmaking papers, there's a set of 'basic themes': for him, for her, for kids, love, friendship, thanks, sympathy, special occasions, holidays, new baby and birthdays. Scrapbooking would have a lot of the same along with school (start & end of year, graduation), recitals, sports, vacations, etc. I like d1blodgett's comment about 'happy designs' - true!!! Also, a lot of color schemes will go in and out of fashion. It's nice to have the 'bright colors' that are mix and match, but can also work stand-alone, too. (Does that make sense?)
In terms of your online shop, from a buyer's perspective, it seems to work like others I have purchased from, but I'll say that it would be nice if your borders and embellishments were in a zip file (or several ones) like your papers. I would also suggest that you use some of the adorable ornamentation that you use in your newsletters (the valentine issue was full of cute and unique hearts/ flowers).
What I'm always looking for:
- Irish/Celtic-look (because my daughters did a lot of Irish dancing and I still support their dance school),
- seasonal papers or embroideries (esp. autumn and winter - note: not Christmas) that are either classy or creative (so much is kitschy or has really stupid color schemes) and
- real eye-catchers like your Poppy Deco (that has EVERYTHING going for it in my mind: 5 Stars!!!!).
Another suggestion is to submit one of your patterns weekly to Spoonflower.com which has a fabric-of-the-week contest. You'd get your patterns seen by a whole community of quilters, fabric artists and other sewers who would probably go wild over your designs. That way you could get some publicity from a whole new set of people and that never hurts!
I hope this rambling has helped! My advice: just keep cranking out the type of designs that you have been. They are winners.
All the best,
Janice
Janice! Thank you so much for all this great advice. You rock! I'm inspired!
ReplyDeleteMarilyn.
I am in love with the flower and geometric designs above, I wish they came in fabrics so I could make myself a blouse out of each one - takes me back to the late 60s - early 70s, when I was a wanna-be flower child. Quilters must be wild about your designs too!
ReplyDelete