Made with Little Smilemakers Studio Fabric // April 2015

It is so exciting to see a finished project after working hard on a new collection or a series of illustrations for our clients. But with finished fabric designs it is even a bigger surprise to see what customers create. To see how final products evolve when people put their own creative energy in there is amazing. Look at our new April selection here. This is our top five for this month.



We have already seen a lot of awesome sewing projects made by Little Smilemakers fabric customers. This month we made a little selection out of the dozen photographs that were sent to us or that we were tagged in. Cute home decor items. Personalized bedding, scarfs and head bands. So much to choose from!

If you browse around on etsy for some kids fashion you are very likely to stumble upon some Little Smilemakers. The penguins are made by Sharie who has a few more Little Smilemakers Studio designs in her Little Pitterpat etsy shop. Some of these soft sole baby shoes even have matching hats. Adorable! So take a look into her shop if you want to have a pair of these.

It is almost bikini time! Spring has kicked in and we are all looking forward to the summer season. The cactus print has been one of our best-selling designs this year. Looking for a quirky swimsuit? Check the Batoko shop.

And what about these hot pink pineapple head bands. Want to match your outfit with your little one? These head bands are available for both babies and their mommies and are made by Krystle Dawn. Her collection is fresh, colorful and fun. Visit her adorable shop and look what other cute designs she has to offer.

We are already working on a third batch of designs for My Little Hands Australia but we were big fans of this stylish bedroom with the beautiful white Kartell bedside table and adorable bunny that was styled by L'Amour Kids. And yes, we still love our minty clouds blanket. Looking sharp!



Our favorite this month must be this mustard colored deer dress made by Eva Dinis. We came across this finished sewing project when she tagged us on Instagram. Look at this gorgeous woman modeling our deer print. Of course we love the typical Lisbon tiles in the back. Bright, sunny and colorful. She did an great job! Hope to see more Little Smilemakers creations made by this talented girl.

All featured designs are also available via Spoonflower. Some are scaled and slightly different in detailing. Looking for one of the featured designs? Here are the links:

Cute penguin owl illustration pattern
Cactus cacti garden botanical green pattern
Hot summer pineapple pink trend
Geometric pastel sleepy blue sky cloud pattern
Cute uni kids reindeer antlers deer

Happy spring // 5 reasons why spring is our favorite season

It is finally spring! The winter seemed to be endless but finally after all these dark months days are getting longer and sun actually shows his face and warms up the little balcony where flowers are now able to bloom. I love spring. I have to say I love the drama of fall and the cosy winter nights on the couch but there is nothing better than waking up in the morning to see the sun light up the home.

I love the outdoors. I grew up in a little village and I remember playing outside for hours and hours. Picking flowers, yes also from our neighbors garden, collecting ants and enjoy the new signs of life. The very first day outside was usually during easter when little eggs were hidden on our streets playground. We know exactly how many eggs were hidden and only stopped our searching for a quick drink. Months later we would find the remains of eater while digging around the swing or building castles in the sand. I loved those first days outside in the sunshine and I am happy to see spring coming every single year.

Of course I am not digging for easter eggs nowadays but there are 5 reasons why spring should be my favorite season.



1 // Quality time in the sun
Since I work from a home studio I can feel quite isolated at times. Especially during winter I can be in the studio working for days without seeing or talking to a living soul. I love to work outside on a terrace, catch up on some paper work in the sun. But this season is also about finding a new way to spend quality time together with loved ones. Reach out again. Some friends moved to a different city, others suddenly have a baby to take care of. Every spring everything seems different. It is shaping your time again. Meet up with friends and meet new people and of course celebrate the spring sun with a cool glass of beer.

2 // Late night ice-cream
Oh I love those late night trips to the local ice cream shop. I live in a country where ice cream shops close up for the winter. During spring new ice cream shops pop up all over the city and I love to hop in for a little ice cream at night, when the sun sets, to have a little bit of a festive end of a regular day.

3 // Byebye layers of clothes
I am one of those woman that does not like to shop for a new season. I do not really like shopping in general so warmer weather means less clothes! Somehow I always end up with shoes or bags. Those are easy to find but clothes… So yes, staying warm with just one layer, only one layer of clothes to worry about, I love it!

4 // New positive energy
What I love most about entering the warmer season is the fact that everyone seems to be just a little more happy. People are out on the street more, there is more time for a little interaction and a quick chat to your neighbor. During spring the city transforms into a friendlier place and people seem to smile just a little bit more. Enjoy the sunshine and take your camera for a spin. Opening up is what it's all about.

5 // City trips
This time of the year is amazing for short city trips. The weather is getting better so exploring a city by foot is not the same struggle as during winter. But the cities are not too hot and smelly yet. I love city trips in Europe for this reason. This year I am planning to have a Japanese blossom trip to Tokyo and some closer to home getaway to Milan hopefully. And all these short breaks give me a great boost of inspiration to start my new work projects with a clean slate.

Of course with every start of a new season we have been working on numerous designs. If you can not wait to start your new spring sewing projects check out all new designs in the Spoonflower shop.

Made with Little Smilemakers Studio Fabric // March 2015

It is so exciting to see a finished project after working hard on a new collection or a series of illustrations for our clients. But with finished fabric designs it is even a bigger surprise to see what customers create. To see how final products evolve when people put their own creative energy in there is amazing. Look at our new March selection here. This is our top three for this month.



We have already seen a lot of awesome sewing projects made by Little Smilemakers fabric customers. This month we made a little selection out of the dozen photographs that were sent to us or that we were tagged in. Cute home decor items. Personalized bedding, scarfs and head bands. So much to choose from!

This month we have chosen to feature some pink girly prints, one of our most popular at the moment: Geometric arrows and love triangles. And a sweet pastel colored design with a little owl on a branch. What an amazing result. What do you think about these cute owl shoes for your new born baby to keep those tiny feet warm?

The girl with the geometric scarf is a photo sent out by Swede Pea Brand. A new online boutique with leggings, head bands and much more. Take a look in their newly opened webshop if you are interested. And last but not least. How about this cute aztec cross design pair of shorts?

Fabric links:
Soft flower branch and owls
Plus cross geometric pattern
Geometric arrow and heart



Want to start on a new sewing project yourself and are you in need of some fun fabric. Take a look at the entire Little Smilemakers Spoonflower fabric collection here. New designs are added every month and from this month on we have lot's of new spring and summer themes. Pineapples, ice cream and popsicles, teepee tents, camper van vwbus and many more. If you would like to send over one of your finished baby fashion or home decor projects send us an email!

Sources of inspiration: Fresh whites // contrasting black and 50 shades of gray // pale nudes and beige.

Little Smilemakers designs usually are colorful prints on a white surface. The past few weeks we have been redecorating the Little Smilemakers Studio office and put up some pale nude powder tone prints. Whites make colors pop and there is no other color that creates a more peaceful environment to work in. I was inspired by numerous visits to art galleries and museums that always present art on clean fresh white walls. But the winter also brings a clean crisp vibe into the office. The powder white snow, the softened sounds absorbed by the thick layer of snow. During the winter I always feel the need to make my surroundings more calm.

After redecoration the studio I felt like holding on to the new calm color scheme of the work place. I decided to make an entire series of designs that would be gender neutral. The prints and patterns that are being sold as gender neutrals are usually based on soft pastel tones of green and yellow. Since I am not a big fan of both colors I decided to make an entire series of with fresh whites contrasting blacks and shades of gray and beige. Little Smilemakers designs usually contain numerous bright colors. It has been a challenge but also very mindful to work with only white, black and shades of earthy tones. Imagine the number of colors that usually are used in the prints. I did not have to worry about a color scheme for a change. It was all reduced to the basics and focus was on the composition and detailing more that on working with a certain color scheme. A relief!

This month I was also arranging a baby shower for one of my best friends and it strikes me that gender neutral prints, wallpapers, home decor items and fabrics are so hard to find since there are enough creative artists working on the theme. I hope with this series of designs there is enough to choose from for decoration your soft neutral nursery.



Reducing colors might be useful in the gender neutral theme but I still love to work with bright strong colors. But if you are looking for more beige and gray tones, we have an entire collection ready to be produced on fabrics. Geometric abstracts, woodland animals, Indian summer themes and many more. So check out the shop. All designs will be added to our collection first week of March so stay tuned!

Little Knights - Winter Woodland - Police & Thieves // Little Smilemakers for Made By Ann - Baby goods

This summer we have finished our first series of designs for Made by Ann. A small start-up in baby accessories. This winter we finally could see the result: the cute winter collection of blankets, pillows and small baby goods.

Made by Ann is a small company located in Poland that specializes in baby textiles but also sells numerous handy items for your friends baby shower. Perfect gifts for your expecting friend or family member. For the winter collection we have been focussing on cool boy prints. Right now we are already finishing up the new spring/summer collection that also include new girly patterns but these oldies are too cute not to post here up on the blog. Are you curious about Ann's shop? Take a look at her Facebook page and check all amazing stuff she has to offer.