Inspirations Of Gail Pan Designer For Henry Glass Fabrics

Artists & Designers, Fabric & Sewing

Tell us about yourself.

 Hi, I'm Gail Pan. I have been sewing and crafting for most of my life, and I love it! I live just outside Melbourne Australia with my husband Bart. I started my business Gail Pan Designs in 2003.

What inspires you?

I started designing fabric in 2013 after being asked to do so. It was a bit daunting at first, however, it's now one of my favourite things to do.

I start the design process by drawing. I like to have a theme in mind (sewing, Christmas etc.) and go from there. I like to make sure that all my fabric lines consist of my drawings, so I sketch a lot. I then scan them into the computer and play around with the drawings until I am happy with the end result. Sometimes I will change my mind after working on something for a while, it sort of evolves and will often end up being different from what I had in mind at the beginning. I also colour all my design ideas to get a feel for what it will look like.

Tell us about your fabric.

My newest collection is called Butterflies and Blooms and is shipping to stores now.  My previous collection Birds of a Feather was a red bird-themed fabric line, so with my collection after that, I wanted to use my favourite colour blue. Butterflies were a natural progression from birds. I used a lot of flowers from one of my Block of the Months in this line, which is a nice change from what I normally would use.

I think what makes my fabric so unique is that I draw all of it myself. Since I also sew, embroider and applique, I am looking at all the ways to use the fabric while I am designing it. I love to see quilts, bags and table runners and quite often will design a new embroidery pattern to match the fabric.

What advice do you have for the new maker? 

What really worked for me was to be my own person and not get caught up in trends and what is popular. I like to do what I like to do! If you love what you do and are a bit unique then I think that helps a lot. Don't try to be someone else.