Japanese Fabrics – New Fabric finds from Autumn Magazines

September 26, 2013

I have been getting a lot of queries about where to buy the magazines, and I have not replied some of you yet. Sorry about that, but what I am going to do is to compile a list of sources for purchasing Japanese sewing books and magazines. That will be ready next week! In the meantime, for those of you who are not able to buy the magazines easily, I wanted to share some of the new and exciting fabric finds in the latest Autumn magazines.

First on the list has got to be this Moomin panel fabric. I first discovered the Moomins on a trip to Finland many years ago. But it was only in Japan that it really caught my eye because it seemed to be wildly popular in Japan, with all kinds of merchandise being sold in the Zakka shops. A quick search on Wikipedia reveals the reason for this

The Moomin Boom

The Moomin Boom (muumibuumi in Finnish) started in the 1990s, when Dennis Livson and Lars Jansson produced a 104-part animation series in Japan named Tales From Moominvalley, which was followed by a full length movie Comet in Moominland. Moomin books had always been steady bestsellers in Finland, Sweden, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, but the animation started a new Moomin madness both in Finland and abroad, especially in Japan, where they are the official mascots of the Daiei chain of shopping centers. A large merchandising industry was built around the Moomin characters, covering everything from coffee cups and t-shirts to plastic models.

source – Wikipedia

There are a number of Moomin character fabrics available, but this particular panel print series was made for Kokka, and the prints are just like large pieces of art. In fact, you can even frame the panels up for display!

Remember the dress on the front cover of the Cotton Friend Autumn issue I just reviewed? I didn’t notice it till today while searching for the featured fabrics. It is no ordinary check print. It’s actually a digital inkjet print with the simulated bleeding effect of printers. Whether or not this was a “printing accident” I shall leave it up to your imagination 😛 but it certainly makes it an interesting fabric.

Next, we have the Corduroy quilted fabric. Perfect for Autumn and Winter months. The bedroom slippers look super cosy!

The next two fabrics were featured in Female magazine which I will reviewing next Monday.

The first one is another digital print, but on polyester. I am not the biggest fan of polyester, but I can’t deny that sometimes it is really convenient to have since they require no ironing. This fabric features a galaxy print, or as the designer named it, a Macrocosm print. Honestly, I would not have liked the fabric if I had not seen the picture of the completed dress. I’m just not about the quality of the print though, as it looks quite pixelated in the close up picture.

The last fabric I wanted to share with you is this Cotton lyocell blend in sateen weave, featuring a petit paisely print. Once again, sold by the completed product picture 😛 I think all fabric sellers should do that. It makes the fabric irresistible ! I have not tried sewing with this particular blend before, but it looks quite smooth, probably really comfortable to wear, but will it be easy to sew? If you have sewn with this type of fabric before, let me know!