Custom Printed Fabric

 

Hey there!

Today I wanted to talk about Custom Fabric, specifically Custom Printed Fabric.  I love custom fabric groups on Facebook and have my favorites linked on the right side of my blog.  I ran into a creative hindrance.  I wanted something for a race.  I searched through all the groups and nothing was inspiring.  I did have someone from a fabric group reach out and try to have me join their group so I could buy something from them.  Honestly, I just don’t like the quality of their fabric.  There also are other people that have fabric groups and while I was looking for a print, found the majority of the shop's files on Shutterstock.  I was a bit perturbed.  I thought the person legitimately designed these prints.  Ok maybe I am just naïve.  One of the downsides of custom fabric groups is that the TAT can be a few months since it is printed in China.  Then if the round falls over CNY, it is much longer.

I resorted to posting in a general group and again, nothing.  A shop owner that I had purchased from before reached out and said that she could have something custom printed if I had a file.  We chatted a bit and understood what she was explaining.  So I purchased a file on Shutterstock and emailed it to her.  She sent an invoice and off we went!  I received the fabric in under two weeks.  I then sent it to Bolder for skirts and tops.  This was for our first Run for the Turtles. I then repeated it for Universal’s Mardi Gras and a few other designs.  

Last year she referred me to the company that she used for printing.  So I set up an account and started having them print my fabric directly.

Here is how I created our skirts for the 2023 Margaritaville Race.  I found this file on Shutterstock and purchased it. Learning that the optimum size is 2400x2400 px.  I resized the file directly in Shutterstock and downloaded the jpg.

Next, you will want to go to Raspberry Creek Fabrics and create an account.  Then you will go to the custom printing tab and upload your jpg.  Please make sure to check off any required boxes.  You should check the scale by viewing Full Width.  The DPI must be 300 for the print to be clear and not fuzzy.

Then on the right side, you will want to choose your fabric type.  Scroll down to Swim Knit.

You should notice that Raspberry Creek defaults to HALF YARD increments, so if you need 1 yard of fabric for your Bolder skirt, please make sure that you 2 to your cart.  If you are a larger size and need say 1.5 yards, change the amount in your cart to 3.   That extra little bit could be used to make a raglan tank with a mesh body.  You can either check out after your one file or keep adding files/prints.  What I love about this company is that it is located in the USA and are eco eco-friendly.  They have been around since 2010.  I also purchased their fabric swatch booklet.  Their swim fabric is so silky, light, and has movement.  

TAT is super short.  I received our shark fabric in about a week and sent it right up to Bolder.  We received our shorts options from Leah.  I chose Kitty Purry and Miss V chose Sunflower.

Our finished skirts looked amazing and we received so many compliments at the race last year. 

I also am including pictures of other fabrics that I had printed at Raspberry Creek Fabrics.  I also have two more prints that I just purchased so that I could have a couple more skirts ready for Disney this fall.

I have purchased seamless, repeating files on Shutterstock and Etsy.

If you ever consider custom printing fabric and need help, I would gladly help.  

Crowned Athletic Sash - reimagined

 

Time to get crafty!

This morning I decided to finally reimagine a Crowned Athletic Sash.  This idea came to me after I tried the magnets for a local race.  I really didn’t think they worked for us.  We put them on our shirts and then drove to the race.  Our bibs moved around with the seatbelts and during the race.  I really prefer a belt with toggles.  I also love that our belts can hold a water bottle, but sometimes feel too tight for my liking.   Disclaimer:  I am a walker so the bottles don’t bounce around.

Ok, back to craft times…I got out all my supplies.

Enchanted Rose Sash (small)

Heat & Bond seam tape

Side release buckles

1 inch wide elastic

Race bib toggles

Needle, thread and mini cricut heat press

Ruler

Fabric scissors

First I measured out a length of the elastic that fit around my waist and added a few inches.  I then looped it through the buckles.  To be safe I folded the ends over twice and hand stitched them across three or four times.  This made an adjustable belt.

Next I wrapped the sash around my waist the same way as the elastic and added a few inches and cut.  I turned the sash inside out and pressed the ends.  Then folded the ends over once and pressed with my mini cricut.  Fold over again and put a small piece of seam tape between the layers and press again.  I did this on both sides.  

Next, I turned the sash inside right and slipped the belt through the inside of the sash.

Then undo the toggles and slip them around the belt/sash and attach the bib.  If you are afraid of the stiff toggle material, you could also use some ribbon, cording, tulle.

I am going to test it out tomorrow on our walk.  But for now, it fits comfortably and is adjustable YAY!

Road trip with a large custom order

What do you do when you place a large Bolder Athletic Wear order and all the fabric won’t fit in one large USPS Flat Rate box?  You could split it up into two boxes or you can take a road trip and still spend less on gas than shipping.  You take a road trip!

Miss V and I headed up to Bolder Athletic Wear on April 9th.  Here is what we ordered and our shorts options.

First was our swings for the Margaritaville Race.  Miss V chose Dark Purple shorts and I picked baby blue.

Second was a FunkiFabric in Zenith.  I had this printed to match the Crowned Athletic Changed Fate Athletic Top.  I am hoping to be able to register for the Princess 10k next year and going to wear Merida.  I chose Golden Shorts.  Since my last order of FunkiFabrics didn’t feel as though it had as much stretch, I chose to go with a medium skirt with small shorts.

Third up is my Alien Fabric from MissMac Fabric (the shop closed suddenly this year)  I chose Moss Green Shorts.

Fourth is also a MissMac Fabric of Goofy.  Goofy is my favorite Disney Character.  I chose Ultra Royal Blue shorts. 

Fifth is a Friendship skirt and Raglan Tank.  I chose Space Blue shorts and white piping.  For the tank, I chose a white mesh body and mix and match the “Fetti” print for the neckline, armholes, and the the shoulders.  This fabric is from Purple Dragon Fabric.

Sixth was tropical flowers and I chose Fuchsia shorts.  The fabric is from Oh So Pretty.

Seventh was the pineapple print and chose Grass Green shorts.  The fabric is from Oh So Pretty.

Eighth was the fabric for Miss V’s WRC Triple Champion shirt.  It was from Kammie Lou Lou.  This was one of those easy choices.  Lime shorts!

Next up was an Orange Bird fabric from Oh So Pretty.  This one was a bit more difficult.  I kept going back and forth between tangerine and sunflower.  I finally decided on Sunflower.

Next up is another Oh So Pretty fabric.  This one is another LP inspired called Castle Mouse.  I chose Tangerine shorts.

I also decided to bring up my Minion Giggle Scrap to have a shirt made.  I chose to have an Anthracite mesh body.

The morning of our trip, I quickly added one more order and that was the Madam Leota fabric from Wonderground. (They don’t sell fabric like they used to, so this has been sitting in a bin for a couple of years)  I chose dark purple shorts and purple mesh for the tank.

While there, I decided to order a White Criss Cross Flutter with Lime piping and shorts to go with the Crowned Athletic Pixie Flyer Athletic Tank.

Yes, this was a very large order.  I had sold the majority of another brand's skorts.  I have also been saving points for a very long time and turned them into two free items.  I am also a Bolder Insider so I receive double points on orders.  They do add up.  

Friendship Style

I have recently discovered the Friendship style skirt, which has become one of my favorite types of skirts. I love the fact that I can create an individual custom with two different fabrics. 

Miss V, and I can customize our skirts to match each other. Sometimes we use the same fabrics on the main part of the skirt, like on our Santa skirts, while other times we mix and match, like on our Nightmare Before Christmas skirts. 

Another option we have is adding coordinating piping. Sometimes we add the same color, while other times we pick different colors for our skirts. 

I am currently in the process of making a purple and white Mickey "Fetti" Friendship skirt. This one is particularly fun to create since purples can be difficult to match. So, I picked Space Blue shorts and white piping. I am also having an individual custom raglan tank made. The body will be white mesh, and I will mix and match the neckline, armholes, and shoulders.