One of the best parts about being an active part of the quilting and fabric industry as well as being a shop owner..(ummm yes.. have I mentioned that SPOOL is up and running?) is being in contact with SO many creative people putting out amazing new designs, fabrics and patterns each season.
Quite frankly it is pretty much jaw dropping, but in the best way possible. To become friends with such talent is a real creative blessing.
Early this year you might remember me telling the story of being semi-stranded after a quilt market party and I was thoughtfully and gracefully rescued by Ms. Amy Barickman and given a ride back to my hotel… well it has been the start of a wonderful relationship and I am now able to really pay her back by giving a BIG shout out to her and her new line of fabric SoHo Bandana.
I was thrilled to say yes to the offer to play with some of her new fabric and be part of her National Sewing Month Blog Hop!
When I got the fabric my mind was spinning.. such a versatile collection being both traditional and but also trending towards SoHo chic which is such a wearable look that this fabric really has so many options but I chose to go off as usual by the seat of my pants and make something sort of ” out there”
When I saw these fabric I thought of the return of fall and the glory of the outdoors.. the fun of finding a good hiding place under a tree, a good book and all those other things that make childhood so great.
With that in mind and a generous amount of yardage from Amy and her team I went to work on an easily portable tent just right for hanging out for a lazy afternoon under a tree. Kid’s tents are nothing new but a pint sized little escape never fails to be adorable.. I could have gone with something like this Child’s Play Tent ( very cool) but really wanted something without a frame to deal with.
Of course this brought with it it’s own issues but after a few days of creative thinking and sourcing I just dived in ( there is that seat of my pants thing again!)
I started with some waterproof canvas for the bottom so that wet ground would not be an issue.. but I think it might be even easier to start with a round vinyl tablecloth since cutting the circle was not much fun.
After that I knew that I wanted support to keep the circle shape and was inspired by a pop up hamper we have around here, that was the right idea but how? Like many times I need structural inspiration I headed to the hardware store, and in this case Harbor Freight. There I found just what I needed,
Connectable and flexible fiberglass rods in the form of a wire running kit for under $8 – can’t beat that!. It was the perfect thing to run in a pocket around the outside of the circle bottom to hold the tent open wide!
Holding the tent up was the last big issue.. I knew I wanted it to be flexible and adaptable so I went with canvas loops and a bungee cord so the tent could be ” hung” from a flexible center point that would give but not rip when children were playing in it.
So there you go.. inspiration in the way of some very cool fabric, a bit of creativity to make it fit my vision and a can-do attitude that let me fly by the seat of my pants and make a sweet hideaway for some very special little people in my life.
I want to thank Amy Barickman, for the chance to play with her amazing fabrics and if you are looking for some more inspiration of your own take a look at the video that was made for that very purpose!
But wait wait… there is more.. As a gift from Amy and Red Rooster Fabrics we have two wonderful quilt patterns to share with you in easy to print PDF format.
Click here to get a copy of the pattern for your very own —–>> sohobandanaweb
