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Splendid colour tips for quilting: Using black in quilts

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This post is one of my Splendid colour tips series, where I share information to help you choose fabrics and colours for your quilts with more confidence. In this post, I’ll share: My thoughts and helpful tips about using black in quilts What to watch out for, and ways to use black to effect in quilting Practical examples from my own quilts and quilted items  Black is categorised as an achromatic colour together with grey and white. They are void of colour, and we quilters usually call them “neutrals”. Psychologically, black represents power, luxury, sophistication and elegance. Luxury brands use black to convey an image of professionalism, strength, and precision. An interesting possibility to consider: since black projects an image of professionalism, a stylishly black quilt might be a smart choice for a professional quilter’s advertisement. What to watch out for when using black Contrast does the work in quilts even though colour gets the credit. One might think t...
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How I turn a pile of scraps into an intentional-looking quilt surface

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This is a modern quilting blog focused on patchwork, scrappy quilts, zipper pouches, quilted bags, colour theory, and practical quilting tutorials. I share finished projects, design processes, tips, and lessons learned. Today’s post gives you three ideas for improvising with your scraps so that you will end up with an intentional-feeling quilt surface. Many people still associate the term “scrappy” with a result where anything goes. This is of course one way of approaching a pile of scraps that may have accumulated from a dozen projects or more. It is an easy way and can be relaxing. Because a quilt surface tends to benefit from a bit of order, structure, or rhythm, I’ve developed my own approaches to scrappy quilting. One is based on colours, another is based on shapes, and the third applies the “jelly roll race” or “quilt lasagne” method to scraps. Scrappy improv quilting – repeated shapes creating order This method is based on improv piecing square-in-a-box blocks. The proc...
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My most memorable quilt portraits (and the stories behind them)

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When you've been blogging about quilts for as long as I have, some photographs stay with you long after the quilts themselves have moved on. Since November 2009, I've shared nearly two thousand blog posts and taken at least ten times as many photos of my quilts, scraps, quilted items, and my scrappy quilting process. This collection of most memorable quilt portraits is not a list of my best quilts. Instead, these are the five quilt photos that earn a special place in my memory. And then there's one photograph that doesn't feature a quilt, but a series of luggage tags that I make of scraps. I can’t tell why I like this photo so much! Consider it a bonus photo on my list. Here are the 5 quilt portraits and one surprise favourite photo of quilted items, and the stories behind them. 1 – “Heading North” on a pier For more than 20 years, my family has had a favourite holiday place – a rented cottage on a Finnish lake. Many summers, we’ve stayed there for a week or two, ...
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