Clara can now add “fabric designer” to her resume. With her 23-month photo wrapped up, the next milestone is the big 2-4—age two—and we decided to mark it with another custom fabric backdrop for her monthly photo. After making a personalized fabric last year by scanning her name and tiling it, we wanted to continue the tradition for her second birthday. This year, though, we made it even more meaningful: the design comes from Clara herself.
We began on Easter afternoon with a big sheet of paper and a handful of markers. Clara’s current favorite colors are orange and pink, so we handed her those first. She later requested a black marker, which we gave her, and then she was completely in the zone. We deliberately didn’t interfere so the drawing would be entirely hers.
Her artwork ended up including her party colors and, hilariously, elements of the party theme she had requested: “worms.” She loves worms so much that she talks about them all the time, which made the final design even more personal and charming.
Because the paper was too large to scan, we photographed her drawing straight-on and imported the image into Photoshop. To clean the image, we increased the contrast and removed the paper background so the marks sat on a plain white field. The black marker shifted slightly toward navy in the process, which we liked, so we left it as-is.
At first the isolated drawing didn’t look much like patterned fabric, but we knew repeating the artwork could create an appealing abstraction. We duplicated the drawing, rotated copies 180 degrees, and layered them to experiment with seamless tiling. After some trial and error we found a crop that stitched together cleanly, creating alternating shapes—orange circles with navy squiggles and dark pink splotches—that felt unexpectedly ikat-esque and delightfully abstract from a distance.
Once we were happy with the repeating tile, we uploaded the file to an online custom-fabric printing service and selected a basic repeat option. The basic repeat gave the pattern a balanced, wearable look that wasn’t obviously kid-scribble until you got closer. We ordered two yards to use as a photo backdrop for Clara’s upcoming two-year portrait and so Sherry could sew keepsakes from the cloth.
When the fabric arrived a week later it was even bolder and brighter than the photos suggested. It may not win design awards, but it’s a unique, sentimental piece that captures a moment in our daughter’s life. Sherry already has ideas for sewing projects using this new fabric alongside last year’s design—birthday banners, quilts, or a simple pillow would all make lovely mementos.
We still have a few weeks to wait until Clara is officially 24 months old and ready for her birthday photo session, but she couldn’t resist her creation. We had a little impromptu playtime in the guest room where she crawled under the fabric like a blanket, hid beneath it, and insisted it was perfect for a nap. She loved gazing at her own artwork and even asked to take a nap under it—though she balked at the idea of closing her eyes for an actual nap.
The fabric quickly became a prop for silliness: pillow play, peek-a-boo, and lots of enthusiastic “Clara popping out!” moments. Seeing her interact with the fabric made the whole project feel worth it: it’s not just a backdrop, but a tactile expression of her personality at this age.
Designing fabric from a child’s drawing is an easy, creative way to preserve a stage of childhood. Photograph or scan the artwork, clean it up in an image editor, play with repeating tiles, and order a swatch to see how the prints translate at scale. The results can be used for photography backdrops, sewn keepsakes, and everyday items that celebrate the little artist who inspired them.
Receiving Clara’s scribble-turned-fabric has made us even more excited for her second birthday. It’s a sweet reminder of how quickly she’s growing—last year we were designing fabric for her, and now she’s designing it for herself. It’s a small, joyful milestone we’ll enjoy for years to come.
Psst—check out Clara getting her Rihanna on here on Young House Life.