Elephant House Fabrics is a fairly new custom fabric group, but they are one to watch. They have been coming out with some of the most unique and imaginative designs that I have seen in a while. The
Fairytale Floral round is a prime example. It's all f
loral designs inspired by Hans Christian Andersen and Brothers Grimm fairytales!
When asked for my first choice of print, I selected the
Thumbelina floral. I said I would work with cotton lycra or woven and was sent the woven which is so soft and has a nice bit of drape.
I really loved all the elements from the story and could envision myself wearing this as a spring and summer blouse.
I was drawn to the yellow background and the red tulips with a yellow fring. They remind me of the "world's favorite" from the arboretum - my photo below for reference. These are my favorite tulips at the arboretum.
So I have a funny little story about this top. This was not the shirt I intended to make. I keep my patterns folded up in 6" by 9" manilla envelopes labeled with the designer and the pattern name. I grabbed my envelope and pulled out the pieces. The pattern is by a European designer and her patterns - while given a name - are also identified by numbers and letters. The pattern pieces do not have the name on them - only the number/letter designation. I cut out the front piece and then went to grab the back, I noticed the number/letter was different. I had a wrong piece in my envelope!
Fortunately, custom wovens are 60" wide and I was sent a cut that was just a few inches short of 2 yards. I gathered up all the correct pieces, cut them out, then saw I still had enough fabric to finish the wrong top.
This top is the
Wardrobe by Me Daisy Dolman T-shirt. I was lucky that this pattern is made for either a lightweight woven or a knit. I did not have enough of this woven left to do the woven facing for the neckline or armholes, but the pattern includes instructions for a ribbed knit finish. I absolutely love how this turned out and so glad I made this by accident.
I was also sent a fat half of the
Snow Queen floral to sew up. This one was on cotton lycra. The cotton lycra is a 220 gsm making it perfect for any project.
This is a story that I was not familiar with, and I ran off to read a synopsis of it online. The print incorporates elements from the story beautifully. Snow plays a big role and is seen as the white dots in the prints. There are also roses and spring flowers and a crow in the story.
The colors of this print are so pretty and I wanted them to stand out, so I paired the print with this grey sweater knit. I made the
Shwin Designs Carolina Tee. This has become one of my favorite patterns to make. You can find a great variety of sweater knits perfect for this pattern at
Sincerely Rylee Fabrics. The
50 Shades of Grey box will get you a variety of greys like the one I used.
I love how my shirt came out and it has me anticipating the blooming of my hyacinths in my front yard that look just like these in the print.
The shirt I intended to make initially with the
Thumbelina floral was the
Wardrobe by Me Piper Boho Tunic.
I tested this pattern about 3 years ago and made a handful of them. I really love the pattern and thought it was perfect for a springtime blouse.
I love the relaxed fit and the split neckline. The point below the split is supposed to have a few lines of elastic shirring, but I omitted it in this version.
I think the
Thumbelina floral was perfect for this blouse. The cotton woven has the perfect drape and the colors are so vibrant and rich. I'm also thoroughly impressed that I was able to manage 2 blouses out of my almost 2 yard cut!
Here's a snapshot of all the
Fairytale Florals at preorder.
The preorder for the
Fairytale Florals ends on March 11th. All prints are available on cotton wovem cotton lycra, and french terry. Each one is so unique and beautiful. I really had a hard time picking a favorite. There's something that I love about each of these prints.
Follow me on
Instagram and
Facebook!
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. These links provide me with a small compensation if you make a purchase using my link. There is not cost to you when you do this. My thoughts and opinions given in this blog post are mine.