Bella Blvd Studio Blog: Fabric Style

Riley Blake Designs markets our fabrics under Stephanie Hunt as the designer. When purchasing or searching the Riley Blake website it's actually easier & more efficient to find the Bella Blvd fabrics under "Stephanie Hunt" as the artist.

Little Girl’s Dress, by Christine Ousley.

This beautiful dress, made with Bella Blvd's Sunny Happy Skies fabric, makes the perfect Easter dress for little girls. Wouldn't it be fun to use the same paper in a layout when you also have your child dressed in it? I've got to do that some day.

I just love dresses with bright bold colors on little girls. This dress features a pleated bodice and skirt. There is also an underskirt which makes it very full. My little model actually wouldn't take it off to go home she loved it so much. Which was fine, except for the fact that it was close to 40 degrees outside.

There is a beautiful bow in the back and with just two buttonholes, even a beginner could make this dress. The pattern is the Esmee Cottage Dress by Amelie and Henri.

If you are interested in learning more about sewing, Riley Blake Fabrics, maker of Bella Blvd fabrics, offers some great video tutorials on all different kinds of projects. They have a block of the month video series and tips and tricks for beginners and advanced sewers alike. Their blog also lots of great information.

Supplies:
Sunny Happy Skies cotton fabric by Bella Blvd for Riley Blake Fabrics

Cooking Set, by Tiffany Hood.

This set was made using "Insul-Brite" insulated lining inside. Insul-Brite is like batting, but it's filled with pieces of metal and is used to line projects that hold hot items, such as hot pads, curling iron bags, ironing board covers, and in this case, a casserole dish caddy and oven mitt.

These projects feature the new Summer Breeze fabrics by Bella Blvd for Riley Blake Fabrics. I love the colors in this line, and the patterns are adorable. The prints I chose from the line are all turquoise, yellow, and orange. My favorite is the turquoise print on the oven mitt. I need more of that for sure!

The caddy is basically two long rectangles (36"x12" each) bound and then sewn together in the center crossed perpendicularly. The edges were rounded using a dinner plate as a guide. Sew on velcro and then straps last. The oven mitt was done using a free pattern found online (www.youcanmakethis.com).

When sewing items like this, you'll want to use a Jeans needle because you'll be sewing through 8 layers of thick materials. There is an inner and outer layer of fabric, plus the Insul-Brite, and a thick layer of pre-quilted batting inside too. I chose to sandwich all the layers and then "quilt" them using diagonal stitches before making the project to add to the durability when washed (and because it looks cute).

Supplies:
Summer Breeze cotton fabrics by Bella Blvd for Riley Blake Fabrics; 1 yard of Insul-Brite (enough for one caddy and two oven mitts); 1 yard of pre-quilted batting; White bias tape (border of caddy); Velcro (secures the caddy closed)

Pink Heart Art, by Kathy Frye.

This project was inspired by the PINK Summer Splash fabric in the Bella Blvd. Summer Breeze collection, along with the fact that it is Valentines month! By cutting out pieces of fabric in similar shapes as the curvy detail in the fabric, I was able to fill in the heart shape. Kind of like a puzzle!

I also used the PINK Summer Fish Tale fabric (Summer Breeze collection), with its strong graphic lines, to create some movement and interest. The pieces of the heart were raw edge appliqued and then the completed heart was satin stitch appliqued to a plain white background fabric.

I free motion quilted all around the heart with lots of curves and designs. The completed heart is stretched onto an Artist Canvas. The finishing touch was to wrap a pink and white gingham ribbon around the edge and top it with a bow.

Supplies:
Summer Breeze cotton fabrics by Bella Blvd for Riley Blake Fabrics; white cotton fabric; thread; ribbon; quilt batting; artist canvas; staples