New Printables for April - Safari Animals, thank you cards and more!

My Etsy shop, hfcSupplies, has been filling out nicely with new printable designs this month - I've been filling in gaps in some of my existing themes and have lots of ideas for new ranges I hope to introduce soon!

I've been making up some samples too, like this Safari Animal themed box.  The printable templates for this design also include a cupcake holder insert - so it's perfect for cupcakes, but can also be used as a favor box for parties, or for giving little gifts.  See full details for this box on Etsy here.

If you would like to see more samples made up from my printables, I am sharing other photos over on my Facebook and Instagram pages.  If you have made something using my printable designs don't forget to let me know about any photos you share - I would love to see what you make!

Other printable designs newly listed in my Etsy shop include these thank you cards, which are also part of my Safari Animals range...

Here are some other new printable thank you cards; part of my 'Abigail' range which features a hand drawn flower and leaf design on a kraft paper background...

I also added a few new Hot Air Balloon designs, including this large printable party package to accompany the smaller package which was already in my shop...

And finally, this set of digital stamps is also new this month.  Too late for Mother's Day in the UK this year, but I thought I would still release it this month for anyone celebrating Mother's Day in May.  Also, the elements in this set are all individual stamps so the flowers and leaf can be used for other projects - not just for Mother's Day!

Spoonflower Contest - Japanese Garden

This month Spoonflower have partnered with Sprout Patterns for their design contest.  The theme is Japanese Garden and the winning design will be featured in the release of a new kimono sewing pattern!

I enjoyed having longer to work on this contest, which gave me the opportunity to spend time researching ideas, sketching and finally pulling my ideas together into a finished pattern.  I collected some of my inspiration on this board on Pinterest - like beautiful flowers and kimonos.  

I sketched ideas which included different flowers, birds and butterflies, but in the end decided to keep the design a little simpler, by creating a repeat made from intertwined cherry blossom and anemones, with a butterfly.

I'm happy with how this design turned out - as well as making it available to buy on fabric, giftwrap and wallpaper on Spoonflower, I plan to use it on products in my Society6 shop.  For the contest, I chose a turquoise shade for the background colour but I also plan to have some test swatches printed in other colours - I tried grey for the background and think this looked nice too.

Voting is now open (until 27th April) on Spoonflower http://www.spoonflower.com/sprout-design-challenge. I noticed that there are 705 entries - so lots of people were inspired by this theme!  I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone else came up with.

Things I love about Spring

Earlier this week the weather was so lovely and warm, I took the opportunity to get outside and take some photos.  The weather is so changeable though - today it feels much more like winter again!
Spring is my favourite time of year, I thought I would share some of my recent photos and the reasons why I love Spring...

More daylight - the days are now longer than the nights and each evening the sun is setting later and later.  I always think my mood is lifted so much by blue sky and sunshine, but just having more daylight, even on a rainy day, makes me feel better.

Warmer weather - the sun has more warmth in it now and it's nice to start going outside without thick coats and scarves.  Spring warmth is just right, before it gets too hot in summer!

Spring bulbs - I love seeing everything starting to grow and gardens becoming more colourful with all the Spring bulbs.  There are still daffodils about and the tulips and bluebells have just started appearing.

Blossom - a tree full of blossom is so beautiful!  It doesn't seem to last long, but it's nice seeing the different types of trees blossoming at different times.  The pear blossom in my garden is just starting the appear and I'm hoping that my cherry tree will have more than last year (about 4 flowers!).


Gardening - now the weather is improving and things are growing, it inspires me to get out in my garden more.  I love watching things grow, caring for the plants and learning how to grow new things. It's time to sow all the seeds for summer flowers and crops too.

Birds - another sign of Spring is hearing the birds singing and watching them build nests in the garden.

My birthday - having a birthday in April is also a reason why I like Spring! This is the cute cake my Mum and sister made for me...

What do you like about Spring?  Is it your favourite season too?

Budgies Mug and My Designs on Society6

Back in December last year I treated myself to a Christmas present of a new mug - I know, this post is a little late!  As well as being a present to myself, I also ordered this mug to test out the ordering process and products from Society6.  The mug features my row of budgies illustration, with a coordinating chevron pattern around the bottom.  I was very happy with the whole process; the quality of the mug and print, delivery was quick from USA and the mug arrived well packaged.

My shop on Society6 is still fairly new, so my range is quite limited at the moment but I am gradually adding new designs and products.  The latest designs include my Clockwork Hummingbird illustration which is available on products including cards, phone cases and cushions.  I have also expanded the range of products which my Southwest Feathers and Arrows design appears on - you can now buy this design on leggings!  It's exciting to see my designs appear on the products - I love that Society6 previews how your designs will look!

Do you have experience of using Society6 - either as a designer or buyer?  I would love to hear your opinions on it!

Colour Palette Inspiration #26 - Peach Kalanchoe Flower

If you follow me on Instagram you may recognise this photo as I shared it a few days ago.  I grew this plant (which I believe is a kalanchoe) from a cutting last year and over the last few weeks I have been watching the flower buds grow until I opened the curtains one morning to find a flower had finally bloomed.  I love the colours of these flowers and buds so much I thought they would be great for making a colour palette from!

New Spoonflower Samples

Last week I received a swatch sampler with 15 of my new fabric designs on from Spoonflower.  I have a real mix of seasonal ones in this set, with designs for Valentine's, Autumn and Christmas!

The Autumn Leaves design is one of my favourites, it was designed with my pen and watercolour drawings of leaves.

I also have ditsy hearts in 3 different colour ways, and larger watercolour hearts in pink...

These are a couple of my new designs for Christmas; decorative stars in red and white and a design featuring gingerbread people, houses and candy...

You will find all of these designs, and more, in my Spoonflower shop.  My samples were printed on Kona cotton, you can choose to have them printed on a range of different types of fabric as well as wallpaper and giftwrap.