laurel top

This is my second Laurel. After the jumper, I wanted to try to make a version of the pattern with sleeves, and I also wanted to take on the challenge provided by the “self designed” category of the Laurel contest.

Spoonflower would be a great option for the self designed category of the Laurel contest, but I’m really trying to work through my stash, if possible. (I mean, aside from buying all that sale voile.) I decided to use this gray Swiss dot that I’ve had for some time. (I think I bought it for a dress for my daughter years ago – such a familiar story.) On instagram, I had been seeing all the beautiful fabric that people were making for the printed fabric swap—many pretty things from simple designs. I had been wanting to give printing a go again since my class with Lotta Jansdotter at QuiltCon, and this top and contest category were a good opportunity to put it all together.

I wanted to do stripes with the same stencil I made in Lotta’s class, and I wanted it to look like something I would wear. Stencils scare me a little because there’s a fine line between something that looks cool and something that looks like a crafty arts and crafts project. I wanted my paint to be subtle and pretty. Generally, I don’t associate metallic gold paint with subtle, but I chose a darker paint that is metallic—not glitter—and on top of the gray fabric it’s toned down. The gold on gray reminds me of an antiqued finish. The paint adds a little more texture.