A Light, Playful Print for People Who Love to Sew
Hand Made Notions Cloud Cotton is a quilting cotton from the Hand Made collection by Amber Kemp-Gerstel of Damask Love for Riley Blake Designs. It is 100% cotton, measures 43"/44" wide, and is sold by the yard. The print features assorted sewing notions — buttons, embroidery floss, pins, thread, and more — scattered across a light cloud ground. It is a conversational print: the individual sewing tools are the design, so the closer you look, the more familiar details you spot. Riley Blake Designs describes Hand Made as great for quilting, apparel and home decor, and this print fits all three uses.
The light background gives this colorway its character. A pale ground feels fresh and open, and it lets the colors of the buttons, floss, and thread stand out clearly. It is busy in motif but quiet in overall value, so it does not fight with stronger prints placed next to it.
What This Fabric Is Best For
This print shines anywhere a love of sewing is the theme. In the sewing room itself, it suits machine covers, project bags, fabric baskets, and wall hangings, where the subject matter matches the setting. In quilts, it works well in feature blocks, borders, and sashing-adjacent roles in a quilt made for a fellow sewist — the recipient reads the theme at a glance.
It also works beyond the craft room. The playful motifs suit aprons and apparel accents, and for home decor it brings a handmade note to cushion covers. Because the notions are recognizable rather than abstract, this is memorable gift fabric: a tote or throw made from it tells the recipient their hobby was part of the choice.
Cutting, Piecing, and Color Pairing
Before cutting, press the fabric and lay it out flat to see how the notions are distributed. For larger pieces — a bag panel, a border, or a cover — position your cuts so a pleasing mix of motifs lands in the visible area, and try not to slice a favorite button or spool in half right at a focal point. For patchwork, choose pieces large enough to keep at least a few notions whole. Simple squares and rectangles show a conversational print far better than tiny triangles, which chop the motifs into unrecognizable fragments.
Let this fabric be the feature and pair it with calmer companions. Solids and small-scale basics in colors pulled from the print itself — the reds and bright accents of buttons and thread, soft neutrals that echo the cloud ground — let the notions breathe. Because the background is light, it pairs naturally with white and cream solids for a clean, airy look, and a single stronger accent, such as a red or navy solid, adds contrast without competing. Avoid placing another busy novelty print of a similar scale right beside it; two competing conversations in one quilt top leave the eye nowhere to rest.
For binding, a solid in one of the print's accent colors frames the pale ground neatly and keeps the edges from fading into a light-colored batting or backing.
Project Ideas and Care
Try this fabric cut into large squares for a simple patchwork throw that lets every notion show, sewn into a project tote for carrying supplies to class, or used as a cheerful machine cover in your own sewing space. It also makes a sweet lining or outer fabric for zipper pouches that hold — fittingly — your notions.
Care follows the instructions given for this fabric: machine wash cold and tumble dry low. Washing cold and drying low helps preserve the printed colors against the light ground, which is especially worth doing in projects that mix this fabric with deeper colors you want to keep from fading onto it.
Shop the Hand Made Notions Cloud Cotton 43"/44" Fabric Per Yard at Linda's Electric Quilters.
