Custom Labels with Spoonflower

Here is an attempt at my first tutorial of sorts.  I recently found Spoonflower - a fantastic way of printing your own fabric.  My first thought was to try and get some labels made to sew into my kids clothes...  I make a lot of things for them, and getting my four year old to realise front from back will be a LOT easier with some labels!

Step 1 - Design

To start - I created a template in Photoshop.  I allowed a 1/4 inch all around each label for a seam allowance, and decided the finished (folded) size would be 1 3/4 x 1/2 inch.  So each "label" to print would be 2 1/4 wide by 1 1/2 long.  Make sense?  Here is what it looked like.  The little blue lines don't print - they are the guides I used to line everything up.

I did put some light grey lines in between each label to make it easier to cut - but note to self - next time use a DARKER grey.  They were so light they didn't print!

Step 2 - Order

I uploaded the file as a jpg to Spoonflower.  Very easy.  I chose to have it printed as a swatch which gave me 20 labels - which I thought was a good start, and a good test of my label designing skills!

Step 3 Wait!

Wait for your fabric to arrive, nicely wrapped in tissue with a cute little Spoonflower label.  That's the hard part!


Step 4 - Prepare the Fabric

This is what arrived...  I was very happy with how they looked!

I took the photo after washing, drying, and ironing.  A good thing to do with any fabric is to prewash before you use it...so I did!

Step 6 - Cut

Next I cut the fabric to size using a rotary cutter - but if you can cut a straight line with scissors - go for it!

This is where my cutting lines would have come in handy!  Next time - darker grey!  See how there is more space under the design - that is the back of the label...  It will be come clearer...

Step 7 - Sew and trim

Next, I fold each label in half - rights sides together, and sew a 1/4 inch seam down the two short sides...

I made sure I backstitched so they wouldn't unravel when turning.
Trim the seam allowance down by about half.  You could sew a smaller seam to skip this part - but I find it easier to work with 1/4 inch


Step 8 - Turn and Press

Turn your label out - and use something like a knitting needle to poke out the corners.  Give it a quick iron and you are done!  You have an open end complete with 1/4 inch blank fabric at the top - ready to sew into a waistband, neckband, etc.

So - the progression:

Now go and sew it into something nice :)