Designing toile with a twist

Anyone who spends time creating will realize the benefits of designing within constraints, and I'm no different. I love a good challenge that makes me step outside my comfort zone while designing for a specific brief. So when Spoonflower hosted the Toile with a Twist design challenge, I jumped at the chance to explore this classic pattern style. Because I have a six-year-old and my design aesthetic skews toward the whimsical, I decided I'd design a dinosaur toile that kids and adults would both appreciate, and I love the result.

Some of you may be wondering, what is toile? Well, toile de jouy fabric patterns were popularized in the mid 18th century and consist of complex monochromatic patterns of landscape or pastural scenes on a white or off-white background. The illustrations on the fabric often use hatching and stippling, accentuating the detail of the pattern. Traditional toiles feature people and landscapes, but modern toile can encorporate any subject matter that still adheres to the pastural layout, monochromatic scheme, line work, and detail of the original style.

I started by drawing the most popular dinosaur in our household, the T-Rex, and I put him into a landscape with volcanos and a big lake. I then created another vignette with a stegosaurus surrounded by plants. I also created a small prehistoric plant motif that could be repeated between the two larger vingnettes.

This challenge really pushed me outside of my usual style and I enjoyed trying something new. I'm now definitely interested in trying more toile patterns with other non-traditional subjects. Imagine the possibilities . . . bigfoot, aliens, unicorns, or even a Halloween toile.

My final toile design is part of the Toile with a Twist design challenge at Spoonflower, and you can vote for it or purchase it here.