One of the many things I love about designing fabric collections for Art Gallery Fabrics is the beautiful Look Book they produce for each new fabric line. The AGF Look Books are virtual publications that thoughtfully showcase the fabrics in a collection through real projects—clothing, accessories, and quilts—giving clear inspiration for how the prints and colorways work together in finished pieces.
Designing prints for a collection is my favorite part of being a designer. I love creating a fabric story that didn’t exist before — a mix of pattern, color, and mood brought to life. Read a little more about this collection’s creation in the Charming One Look Book pages, where I discuss several of the prints pictured above. You can also watch an Instagram Reel where I’m asked 3 questions about this collection.
The second best part of what I do is to sew with the fabrics I’ve created! Fabric lines are often planned and designed sometimes up to a year before they become available to consumers. So when I finally receive my advanced yardage to begin sewing, the collection can feel entirely new to me, as if I’m seeing it for the first time. The upside of that long wait is that when those advanced rolls of fabric at last arrive at my doorstep, it truly feels like rediscovering the designs all over again — the wonder and joy of sewing with the collection are completely genuine, and I’m just as excited as you to make quilts, home accessories, and other projects from the prints.
The “Road Traveled” quilt is the Charming One quilt kit I designed for the collection. At this time the pattern is available only as a printed pattern, sold through shops that have ordered the pattern or kit from Art Gallery Fabrics. This is a beginner-friendly, easy strip-roll–friendly quilt pattern that pieces together quickly; it makes a charming, scrappy quilt in which no two finished quilts will look exactly alike.
Check the Charming One Look Book to find shops that carry this kit and the printed pattern. After six months, a Road Traveled PDF pattern will also be available for purchase from my shop.
This 56-1/2” x 72-1/2” throw quilt is a wonderful stash-buster pattern that uses nearly an entire strip roll in the blocks and the scrappy binding. I backed the cover quilt with the warm flannel print from the Charming One collection and used Hobbs Batting Polydown inside to create an extra-cozy fall throw quilt. The beautiful long arm quilting was done by Joyce Ulm of Eva Mae’s Custom Quilts using the Everyday Daisy design by OESD.
Since the Charming One Look Book included so many gorgeous contributions from other designers who stitched beautiful quilts and accessories, I ended up making only two additional projects for the collection—which was very unusual for me, as I normally sew a far greater number of items for my Look Books. You really must see the Charming One Look Book and view the 11 different quilts!
I have stitched the Sweet Scallops Mat by Sweet Little Quilts placemats before for my Heirloom collection Look Book and loved them so much that I made a fall placemat and napkin set for my table with Charming One prints!
Sewing your own table decor gives you the freedom to mix and match pieces for any season or celebration. And if, like me, you collect small sets of different vintage dinnerware for various occasions, making your own place settings lets you tailor each look exactly the way you want—down to color, texture, and little finishing touches.
Warm up the cold, hard surface on your island with cozy cloth placemats!
Reduce paper waste by switching to reusable cloth napkins. They’re simple to sew yourself—follow my Mitered-Corner Napkin Tutorial for clear, easy-to-follow steps. I chose the Mud Cloth Wheat print from Charming One for my napkins because the warm, versatile pattern complements a wide range of dishes and looks appropriate through every season.
The final project I stitched for the Charming One Look Book were these Little Birdie Pincushions. This pattern was the third design I ever wrote and published on my blog nearly 16 years ago, and it still holds a special place in my heart. For many years the Little Birdie Pincushion pattern was offered as a free download, but unfortunately it was later reused and sold by a number of “designers” who claimed it as their own. It’s a bittersweet memory, yet I owe a great deal to this little pattern for giving me the confidence and the push to begin writing patterns in the first place. Now, for a modest cost, you can find the Little Birdie Pincushion and Nest pattern in my Shop. Use them as a pincushion, or add a hanging loop and turn them into ornaments — they’re charming either way.
Be sure to visit Art Gallery Fabrics to explore all the lovely Look Book projects from my newest fabric collection, Charming One, and see how each design can inspire fresh sewing ideas. For additional inspiration, join me on Instagram @sharonhollanddesigns from October 9 through 23 for my annual Gifting Handmade event, where I and my talented team of testers will share two full weeks of creative sewing projects, thoughtful handmade gift suggestions for the upcoming holidays, and exclusive Instagram-only giveaways you’ll not want to miss. If you’re not on Instagram, don’t worry — I’ll post weekly blog recaps of the Gifting Handmade projects so you can still enjoy ideas and motivation to inspire your handmade gift giving.
