Saturday, October 26, 2013

Fabric Choices Make or Break a Quilt

I had not really thought about how much fabric choices play into a particular pattern until I made the same "Fat Quarter Frolic" quilt pattern.

My first stack was miscellaneous Kaffe fabrics that were not in a cohesive colorway.  Remember this is a pattern that uses no solids, no sashing, no borders.  It has some large blocks which show off your large prints.


I was not happy with how disjointed and chaotic it looks.  

I tried the same pattern with one quilting line.  This is the result.


This is Reminisce by Bonnie Christine for Art Gallery Fabrics.  It has a much more cohesive look.

The first quilt is a thumbs down for impact in my opinion.  The second a thumbs up.  I am not sure I will make this pattern again just because I prefer a quilt with some negative space.

On the other hand, if the fabrics are more cohesive or the design more regular and less disjointed it can work, like the Barn Raising quilt made out of Kaffe fabrics below. I have learned a lot more about what works for me and what does not.  That is part of the quilting adventure.  


3 comments:

  1. love the mix of fabrics and textures. Also, we might be sew sisters with scraps!
    LeeAnna Paylor
    lapaylor.blogspot.com

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  2. I agree with you about the quilts. I really like negative space. It's a place for quilting and restful on the eye. The top one reminds me of the first time my friend, Rachel, made a nine patch. She selected two lovely soft florals. We tried to explain how it would look without any contrast, but she had to see it for herself to really understand the concept.

    Happy quilting and thanks for visiting my blog,
    Susan in Texas

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  3. That Barnraising has mostly good contrast which can be very tricky with modern fabrics; good work!

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