You know that moment when seemingly disparate parts of your world collide together ever so sweetly into a unifying eureka mash-up? Just nod if you have no idea what I’m on about. Sip some coffee. I’ll explain. Stay with me here.
As a designer, I like to think I make clear, conscious decisions about the things I bring into my home and for the most part I do a reasonable job pleasing my always-on-call Inner Art Director. There are exceptions of course and I do pick my battles, but up until a couple weeks ago, I really and truly thought I had all areas covered.
But I was wrong.
Seemingly out of nowhere, after YEARS of my paying zero attention to them, I came to the horrid realization that my kitchen tea towels are in fact, sad.
Very sad.
Once the horror of it all had washed over me and I’d stopped wringing my hands and wailing, ‘Why, WHY didn’t I do something about this SOONER?!?!” (oh Hindsight, you’re a steely dame I’m never going to fully get), I realized something needed to change.
While I pondered what my options were, I busied myself with the illustrating of an ongoing collection of fantastical recipes I’ve been creating. I thought nothing of it as I focused on finessing my work.
[This is a dragon. This is a dragon’s nostril being fine-tuned. Any questions?]
Now here’s where the Parfait of Awesome revealed its sweet self to my giddy brain: Enter the long-awaited and anticipated The Spoonflower Handbook: A DIY Guide to Designing Fabric, Wallpaper, and Gift Wrap!
*insert preferred celebratory trumpet sound here*
Peruse this thorough fabric designing guide and you’ll find your crafting options endless, once you’ve got the basic knack of how Spoonflower functions.
This goes without saying for those of you who know my work, but for transparency’s sake let me state for the record that I’ve been nothing short of a RABID user of Spoonflower’s custom printing services (and hello, contests, Mama loves a good contest, no lie) for many, many joyous years now.
I can’t and won’t quit you, Spoonflower. Not without a restraining order.
But for some reason, what didn’t register until I flipped through the pages of this hot little paperback of plenty was that, HELLO, I could amend my sad tea towel situation while simultaneously showcasing my brand-spanking new magical recipes.
Two-for-one special, it’s Recipe Tea Towels to the rescue!!!
So after just a little fat quarter-friendly format-changing…BLAMMO!
Unicorn-Infused Eggs on Toast tea towel, reporting for duty, sir yes sir!
As if that wasn’t festive enough, add another favorite recipe and…KAPOW!
Toasted Marshmallows with Eau de Dragon Breath, a recipe no self-respecting kitchen should be without. BAM!
The linen-cotton substrate Spoonflower offers has always been my hands-down favorite, so basking in the half-yard glory of these two new towels is far from difficult. Plus, the colors pop like it’s nobody’s business.
Just hem up the edges and say “Happy retirement on a cruelty-free, free-range farm, sad tea towels!”
And with that, Inner Art Director = HAPPY.
The book tutorial has a great step for making a loop to hang your tea towel, but I know how I operate (read: sloppy…messy…lazy…take your pick). I’m more of a shove-it-through-a-handle type of tea towel user, so I skipped that loop step. That’s another great thing about this book; you can pick and choose what suits your aesthetics and lifestyle best and get all crazy bespoke on your bad self.
I’m pleased as punch with these new additions to the house. So much so, I might embrace drying dishes again without grimacing. Pffffft, hahaha, puh-leeze.
And that, THAT, my friends, is how a Parfait of Awesome with Fresh Spoonflower Sprinkles can enter your life, revitalize your home, inspire your imagination, and embrace your creative tendencies all in one glorious fell swoop.
Sure, the unicorn may look concerned but that’s beside the point when you have the mad skillz to conjure up some scrumptious recipe tea towels of your very own with the help of great tools like Spoonflower and this new delectable book.
Hello, infinite possibilities, let’s get cookin’!
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The Spoonflower Handbook Blog Tour Schedule:
9/12 Sammy K (hey, that’s me!) featuring
the Recipe Tea Towel project – samarrakhaja.com
9/15 Sherri Lynn Wood of Dainty Time featuring
the Doppelgänger Dog Pillow project – daintytime.net
9/17 Audrey Smit of This Little Street featuring
the Coloring Desk Wrap project – thislittlestreet. com/blog
9/22 Kate of See Kate Sew featuring the
Photo Panel Wall Art project – seekatesew.com
10/16 Emma Jeffery of Hello Beautiful featuring
the Geometric Soiree Kitchen Chairs project – hellobeautifulblog.blogspot.com