This is the last designer profile in our series of profiles on the eight finalists in the Fabric8 contest, a competition from Spoonflower and Robert Kaufman Fabrics to discover a handful of the world's best amateur textile designers. Today we hope you enjoy reading about designer Andie Hanna. Voting on the eight Fabric8 finalists' collections begins next week!
Painted Petals by Anderson_Lee, Andie Hanna
I was born in Greenville, South Carolina but really grew up in Columbus, Ohio. As an adult, my career has taken me all over. I've lived in Los Angeles, New York, Dallas and Minneapolis. Now I'm back in good old C-bus and I'm glad to be home.
For the past 13 or so years I’ve worked as a fashion designer of apparel and accessories and have always had a passion for color and print and pattern. Throughout my career I've had textile designers on my team to handle print and pattern development but about 7 or 8 years ago, I learned how to create my own textile designs when the workload became too much for my textile designers. I fell in love with it and have been doing it ever since. I currently work as a design manager and have an amazing team of designers. I've taught all of them how to design their own prints and create repeats and they love it, too! 
When I’m not designing fabrics, I love to play with my 5-year old son, work on my photography, play the piano, draw, and sew. The last big project I completed was making seven roman shades for the breakfast nook in my kitchen. It really changed the space and I love them! I also like to read and cuddle with my hubby while watching a movie. I have a hard time picking favorites but right now I’m really into reading Lisa See. One of my favorite movies is American Beauty. (It makes me feel so normal!)
As creatives typically go, I’m kind of a weirdo. I'm very analytical and very much a planner. I have to plan things out in detail. I’m also a list person. My husband thinks I’m crazy because I’m always making lists and analyzing the options.
When I first saw the ad on Spoonflower about the Fabric8 contest, I thought it looked interesting and thought I should check it out. When I saw what the theme was, I was hooked. I just love pen and ink and watercolor and couldn’t wait to work on my modern interpretation of those techniques. I’m very inspired by nature and also by travel and culture and discovering new places. I’ve been fortunate enough to travel all over the world for work and it's always extremely inspiring. A recent trip to Florida and my obsession with flowers were the main influeneces behind my “Painted Petals” design. I spent some time sketching out a few flowers before I started drawing them in Illustrator.
When I first heard that I'd been chosen as one of the Fabric8 contest finalists, I was completely shocked. I really didn’t think I’d make it to the top 8 because there were so many amazing designs. I was in a meeting at work when the email came through. I about jumped out of my chair!
I have my collection somewhat planned out at this point. I have about seven ideas and will probably work them all up before trying to narrow them down. I know I want to have at least one bold black and white print. I love black and white and I think it would sit well with “Painted Petals.” I also want to do a tonal print with the citrus green color.
