For those of you who don't know Dan Morris he is a very unique designer in the quilting world. For one, he is more of a stylized realist artist rather than a quilter. But this little fact is what makes him so amazing at making novelty prints!
His process is much different than others who create their art digitally, which gives his fabric a unique dimensional quality. He creates a pencil drawing, traces that in ink, then colors the drawing with architectural and watercolor markers or colored pencils. After that is complete he then scans and manipulates a layout in Photoshop.
We recently received Mrs. Sew & Sew, one of his latest lines!...and my head won't stop spinning while I look at it-- imaging so many fun projects to create. Luckily, Dan's here today to plant a seed of a few more ideas for you...
Mrs. Sew and Sew was the first collection I’ve designed where I tried to directly honor the talented people who create amazing quilts and crafts for their friends and loved ones using my fabric. In designing this line, I tried to fill the collection with a broad array of vintage sewing imagery adapted from a range of different eras to appeal to quilters and crafters of all ages.
Mrs. Sew & Sew is the first sewing theme collection that I have ever designed, and I welcomed the challenge of creating something totally new. As an artist, I appreciate how important my studio space is to my creative process. The Mrs. Sew and Sew collection for me was a way to give quilters a canvas for which they can use to decorate their sewing room and make the time they spend creating for others more enjoyable for themselves.
The sewing panel design featured in the Mrs. Sew & Sew collection is very versatile. Combine 3 rows of 3 to create a quick wall quilt project for a sewing room. For a more involved project, fussy cut the individual panels squares and piece them together with an alternating block. If space is your concern, simply cut out 3 panel squares to create a quick wall hanging. With the remaining 3 panel blocks, you can make one additional wall hanging for a friend!
I received an email from a quilter who used one of my fabric collections to create a quilt for a friend who was terminally ill. I was reminded why designing fabric is unique from any other product category for which I design. When designing fabric, I am creating a raw material from which another creative person makes something lasting and meaningful. Their craft and the circumstance for which they gift it to another person are unique and special. Their time and effort represent how much they care about those they gift it to. I always try to remember when I’m creating art for fabric that those are the people I work for. I hope the time and effort I put into my work honors the creative work that they do.
- Dan MorrisLabels: RJR Fabrics
