Monday, March 25, 2013

Using Values in Quilt Design

I've still struggled to be happy with this quilt design.  My goal is to mix music and Christmas prints.  So far, nothing has worked well with the pattern I'm using.
Layout with brown frames

Layout with cream frames  
There was also a disaster with dark green fabrics for a frame, but I missed a photo of that one.
For all of them, the frames contrasted with some fabrics, but blended with the others.

So today, I turned these into black and white images to look at the values. 
Layout with brown frames
It's much easier to see that the frames just don't stand out like they "should."  Also, even though the large snowflakes are on a black background, they still mix well with other darks.  It's an interesting lesson which I thought I'd already learned.

Layout with cream frames ... better, but still doesn't work for me


So since my collection has light/med/darks, maybe I should eliminate the frames for this quilt.




Here's the same layout in black and white.


I think with a little more rearranging, this will work better.  Also, even though I've really tried to make that stripe (left side) work for the outer border, I may end up with the dark pine cones (right side).  I'll make that final decision after the center is sewn.

I know this is Fabric Selection 101, but it was a lesson I needed to revisit today.  Once this quilt is done, I'll select a new set of fabrics to make that framed design.  The frames will either be the light or dark and the rest of the fabrics will show off that contrast in a variety of colors.

Enjoy your day!
- SeeingStars

2 comments:

  1. Am I allowed to comment on my own post?

    My teen thinks this looks completely unorganized and needs the frames. Basically, she recommends starting over with a new collection of fabrics. LOL! I'm fighting this a little bit, but she might be right.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I like it with the frames too.....but how about a double frame on those large block? A very narrow strip about 1/2" all around using the same fabric for all. Then repeat the narrow strip at about 1" size around the whole thing. The stripe might work for this. I think you just need some rearranging to get the balance for the large blocks....right now it isn't consistent. And if all else fails.....cut the pieces up and make a string quilt.
    I've had this happen to me when nothing seems to work like I envision. Then 2 months later I pull it out and add one fabric and bingo...there it is. Besides once it is quilted the whole appearance changes.

    ReplyDelete