A few months ago, I was helping out at a creative fair in Hasselt. There, I met Lotte Martens, a fabric designer who was presenting her soon-to-be-released line of screen-printed fabrics, called Flowers for Pia. Her designs were stunning and unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was great getting to know Lotte there, and when her fabrics finally came out at the end of last year, I immediately ordered two panels from Bambiblauw. They will be used for the cover images for a soon-to-be-released pattern.
A few weeks ago then, I was asked to participate in a blog tour for the fabrics. I couldn’t say no of course, and two nights ago I finally made a first dress in a Lotte Martens panel (‘
Bromelia‘).
The design of the dress is one I actually made around four years ago. When I just started sewing, I made a little dress for Norah, and a few weeks ago I took it out again so Ava could wear it. I was a bit surprised when I saw the dress: I remembered the stunning fabric*, but not the pleats I made in the front.
When I think of myself as a beginning seamstress, I imagine someone who made many things which were too small before they were finished, and many bad fabric choices. But looking at the pleating detail (6 topstitched pleats), I guess I wasn’t all that bad after all. Even though this dress too was too small before it was finished 😉
I recreated the pleating in a new dress for Norah, but threw cap sleeves and a blind zipper into the mix. Making the dress went really fast, and I’m happy with the result.
I’m particularly happy with the quality of the fabric. It’s a bit heavier than most fabrics, but it’s not stiff at all. It is
really soft and has a beautiful drape. And I just love the neon print so much.
Up until a few weeks ago, the prints were only available on big panels (120 cm high by 145/150 cm wide), but now you can also buy panels of just 60 cm high. Bambiblauw also sells the
fabrics unprinted. And great news for American readers (who I’ve noticed are often jealous of the unique fabrics we have here in Europe): Bambiblauw will start shipping to the US later this week! Yay!
*Does anyone know this fabric? I know I ordered it with fabric.com, but I cannot find back the name or designer. I love it even more now than four years ago, and I’d love to know who designed it.