Thursday 17 January 2013

FreeSpirit Fabrics Feature Great Designs

Many great new fabrics are arriving at Owl & Drum on a weekly (and, often, daily!) basis from numerous different companies – including some great new looks from FreeSpirit Fabrics.

The company, a division of Westminster Fibers, based in Charlotte, N.C., features dozens upon dozens of fabrics designed by many popular artisans in the fabric field.

Among the new fabrics by FreeSpirit that are now in stock at Owl & Drum are licensed designs by Erin McMorris, Valori Wells, Joel Dewberry and Jenean Morrison.

The latest group to hit the shelves are McMorris' new fabrics called “Trixie In Blue,” “Buttercup in Bubble Gum” and “Talk Talk In Bubble Gum” from her collection called Moxie.

“Erin's fabrics feature great designs and use great colors,” said Bianca Howell, the co-owner of Owl & Drum. "They're very unique."

McMorris studied graphic design at the University of Cincinnati and then textile design at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City.

On her website, erinmc.com, she said she's since “doodled, drawn and designed” in London, San Francisco and New York, while "currently resting her laptop" in Portland, Oregon.

McMorris' designs and patterns have been used in a wide variety of products, including bedding, women's and children's apparel, paper products, and towels. She has sold or licensed her designs to 11 different companies, including Michael Miller Fabrics.

Trixie in Black

Buttercup in Bubble Gum

Talk Talk in Bubble Gum
Morrison has created a collection named “In My Room,” four different styles of which recently arrived at Owl & Drum’s midtown Tulsa store.

The designs – “Happy Place,” “Nook,” “Sunday Paper” and “Shade Tree” – are all made from 100 percent cotton.

Happy Place

Nook

Sunday Paper

“Jenean’s designs feature interesting geocentric shapes, mixed with modern florals,” Howell said. “The color palettes of oranges, browns, greens and pinky reds give a really nice feel for the season.”

She has also created new fabrics called “Grand Hotel,” “Powerpop” and “Silent Cinema” for FreeSpirit’s fall season. Her debut collection for FreeSpirit was called “Moondance.”

Morrison, who lives in Memphis with her husband, writes on her blog that she’s been “a creative free spirit” since early childhood.

“I always found it easiest to express myself through a drawing or a craft project,” she said.

“I describe my style as eclectic modern. I’m drawn to modern design, but love the randomness of eclecticism and intricate design. I’m inspired by classic design form, which I strive to modernize – with a unique and interesting twist!”    

In addition to creating cool fabrics, Morrison was thrilled recently to be commissioned to create two exclusive paintings for the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas.

“Prints of the paintings will hang in over 700 rooms - Viva Las Vegas!” 

To appeal to as broad an audience as possible, she has also created a design brand called Posh Pattern by Jenean. 

“The program has been successful beyond my wildest dreams and we now license design collections for use on giftwrap, stationery, partyware, scrapbooking kits and much more,” she said.

For more details, visit www.poshpattern.com or jeneanmorrison.typepad.com.

Another new FreeSpirit fabric collection in stock at owlanddrum.com is called “Notting Hill” by Joel Dewberry, a prolific designer, artist and craftsman.

Four versions of the fabric – titled “Hexagons,” “Hourglass,” “Primrose” and “Pristine Poppy” – are on offer in the store and online. The color palettes focus on canary yellow, aqua, orange and red.

Hexagons

Hourglass

Primrose

Pristine Poppy


The second oldest of seven children, Dewberry grew up in a home where he said he was “introduced early on to the excitement of expressing his creativity through a variety of artistic mediums.

His father and mother, a renowned artist herself, nurtured his natural inclination toward the arts and “encouraged developing it into my life's work,” Dewberry writes on his blog.

The graphic design graduate of Brigham Young University in Utah worked in brand development and corporate identity (including the home and textiles markets) in the Pacific Northwest before “realizing his ultimate reward” by launching his own textiles brand – Joel Dewberry Eclectic Modern – in May 2007.

“Joel's superb sense of harmonizing an eclectic mix of design styles into a cohesive fabric collection has drawn him respect and attention as it delivers a modern, yet timeless, style,” according to freespiritfabric.com.

Valori Wells’ newly-created fabric collection for FreeSpirit is titled “Novella.”

Owl & Drum is also happy to have the collection lines called “Zigzag Indigo,” “Rain” and “Finnelopy” in stock.

Zig Zag Indigo

Rain

Finnelopy

Zigzag Indigo features four shades of blue and white in a chevron pattern; Rain has medium- and dark-orange raindrops on a light-blue background; and Finnelopy, which details white birch trees, with green-and-pink ivy, blue-petaled flowers and little orange butterflies. 

Wells (who, additionally, created the “Wrenly Christmas” collection for the fall season) has been designing fabric patterns in her rural hometown of Sisters in central Oregon for the last six years.

“People really like chevron patterns at the moment; they’re very popular,” said Howell, who runs Owl & Drum with her business partner, Dani Weaver. “So, I think our customers will very much like Valori’s new designs.”

Wells draws her inspiration from nature and the Oregon landscape, using photography to capture the images and scenes she wants to re-create in her quilting and fabric designs.

“A designer at heart, she sees ideas and is able to capture them in her artistic endeavors,” according to freespiritfabric.com.

A graduate of the Pacific Northwest College of Art – where she earned the school's “Outstanding Photographer of the Year” award in 1997 - she creates patterns and book covers, while also running her family’s store, The Stitchin’ Post, in Sisters.

Wells is the author of two books, titled “Stitch ‘n’ Flip” and “Radiant New York Beauties,” and has co-authored four books on gardening and quilting with her mother, Jean.

“Valori finds that working in a quilt shop gives her a view into what customers want in fabric,” FreeSpirit’s website states. “She takes what she learns from her customers and her own desires for fabric to create original designs.”

For more information about the new collections, visit freespiritfabric.com, which includes photos and details about hundreds of fabrics, patterns, accessories, supplies and finished products.

For more details about Owl & Drum – Tulsa’s one-stop shop for fabrics, homemade gifts and craft supplies – call Bianca at 918-742-1404, visit owlanddrum.com, or follow the store on Facebook, Twitter, Blogger.com, Pinterest and Instagram.

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