Meet Gaia Marfurt, Fabric8 Finalist and Children’s Book Illustrator

This year's Fabric8 Contest is well under way, and our community has chosen the 8 finalists who will have a shot at signing with Moda Fabrics to release a beautiful, botanical collection! As finalists work on completing collections based around their winning design, we're getting to know the top 8 a bit better in a series of interviews with each of our finalists! Today we meet Gaia Marfurt, the illustrator behind the incredible and detailed Botanical-Sketch entry.

GAIA: Hi! I was born in Rome, Italy, and I'm living in Belluno, at the foot of Dolomites. I love drawing and sewing. I'm a Gemini, and I haven't a favorite color…I love them all!

How did you get started in design? Is this your full-time gig?

I'm a children's book illustrator. After graduating at the Design European Institute in Rome, I started working as a children's comics drawer and screen player.

I'm married and have four kids, making me very, very busy, and I'm working as freelancer for school children's books.

I was fascinated by Spoonflower and all the pattern design world… but I have never yet worked as a pattern designer.

 

What inspired your Fabric8 design?

I took a look at very old and vintage illustrations. I really appreciated their accuracy and the scientific sections of the flowers. They were not made to be just decorative, but also to teach and learn.

What has been the biggest help in promoting your work?

I think the best way of promoting my work is entering the weekly contests as often as I can. This way you can gain and enhance visibility. I find posting in Instagram very useful, too… with the #spoonflower tag!

What is your best advice for fellow designers?

Remember to be happy while drawing… sometimes you can forget it… when you begin to think drawing just as a way to earn money!

What inspires you now?

Many things inspire me, but I particularly love folkloristic, Scandinavian art and old historical patterns from Renaissance embroidery to William Morris patterns.

Illustrator or Photoshop?

I use two similar but open-source softwares: Inkscape and Gimp. I usually draw with Inkscape and paint with Gimp… but for the Botanical contest I made all the work in Gimp, sketching with my Wacom tablet.

Cats or dogs?

I love all animals but now just have two cats at home!

Stripes or Polka Dots?

Stripes! I particularly love chevron patterns too!