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Thursday, August 30, 2018

Grad Quilt Design Evolution + A Fabric Shopping Mission

Okay, so from those initial ideas I showed you last time, this was the color scheme my senior liked best for his graduation quilt design, the one with the royal blue flying geese against chartreuse:
The Chosen Colorway
But of course I can't just leave it at that, because, well, ME.  Once Lars-of-Ours gave me the thumbs up on the yellow/green and blue idea, I went back to EQ8 for some finessing.  

First concern: I don't want the finished quilt to look too juvenile, which could happen if the colors are all too bright and pure.  Yet I don't want it to be sombre and dreary, either.  Solution: the background is going to be the darkest, inkyest purple that I can find, like if the Amish wore purple, this is the purple they would wear.  But the geese are going to be lighter/brighter so they kind of glow and float against the dark background.

Second concern: If I'm not excited enough about the design, I am much, MUCH less likely to actually get the quilt finished -- EVER -- let alone in time for the Quillow Ceremony in June.  The piecing of this quilt is just as straightforward if I'm working with three solid color fabrics as it is if I'm playing with tints and shades...

So here's where I am with the design right now:

Now I Am Starting to Get Excited!
I am loving the three-dimensional effect that happens when I simulate using gradient fabrics for those geese!  Doesn't it look like chain links woven together?

So, how do I pull this off in real life?  Well, looking at my Kona Solids color chart, I selected Kona Midnight Purple for that background fabric:
Kona Solid in Midnight Purple, on Amazon here
Then for the flying geese, I was looking at ombre fabrics over on eQuilter.com.  
Gelato Ombre in Chartreuse
Gelato Ombre in Olive Garden
...And for the geese themselves:
Evening Ombres in Ocean
Gelato Ombre in Ocean Blue
And this is the part where I wish I was shopping in person at the well-appointed LQS (Local Quilt Shop) that exists only in my imagination.  I found six different online sources for that Kona Solid Midnight Purple fabric, and the exact same fabric looks completely different on each web site because each one is using their own photo of the fabric with different lighting, etc.  Yet I'm confident that I've chosen the right color because I have an actual swatch of it in my hand on the Kona color chart.  With these ombre fabrics, they could turn out to be all kinds of darker or brighter or greener or whatever once they showed up in my mailbox.  

And yes, I know I could just select seven different blue fabrics and seven different shades of the yellow-green to achieve a similar effect, but I like the effect of the colors gradually deepening WITHIN each patch rather than each patch being slightly darker than the patch before.

As I've lamented to y'all before, my nearest "local" source for a decent selection of high quality quilting cottons is an hour and a half round trip, or worse if I time it so that I get stuck in rush hour.  I know I have seen a few ombre fabrics there in the past, but I don't remember it being an extensive collection so it's really hit or miss that they'll have what I'm looking for.  

Ugh.

Well, I do have a bit of a shopping list accumulated:


  • I need to find and purchases a replacement green fabric for the leaves on my remaining Frankenwhiggish Rose applique blocks.  I need a tattoo on my forehead that says "ATTENTION FABRIC SHOP: PLEASE SELL ME TWICE AS MUCH FABRIC AS I THINK I NEED BECAUSE IT'S ALWAYS DISCONTINUED BY THE TIME I RUN OUT!"
    I Did Not Buy Enough of This Fabric Back in 2014, and Now I Am Punished!
  • I need the blue inner border/binding fabric, Kona Solid in Denim or something similar, for my pineapple log cabin quilt 
    I've Been Joining These Blocks Into Rows Intermittently...

    ...But I Haven't Yet Purchased the Blue Inner Border Fabric
  • I need a backing fabric for my pineapple log cabin quilt, too.  

So that probably warrants a journey down to Sew Much Fun, don't you think?  Today and tomorrow it's their End of the Month/End of the Bolt Sale, 25% off any regular priced fabric if I buy whatever's left on the bolt.  The dark purple and the pineapple quilt backing are each going to be over 10 yards of fabric, and check out this photo from their shop that they just posted on their Facebook page a few minutes ago:
This Fabric Is Waiting for ME at Sew Much Fun!
I spy with my little eye some deep, dark PURPLE!  You guys, this fabric is calling to me and I have to go purchase liberate it from captivity immediately.  Wish me luck!

But first, I'm linking up with:


16 comments:

  1. All of your dilema's definitely call for a drive to your not so local quilt shop. Have fabrics to match in hand and head that way. Enjoy!

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  2. the circular flight quilt will be astounding! The shading makes it very graphic. And the pineapple... love love love

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  3. The geese look like they are diving down in tightening circles, an extremely cool effect! You definitely need a trip to the LQS to see those fabrics in person. I mean, c'mon, this is for LARS :)

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  4. You’re getting closer! I have to travel great distances for fabric, too. Loving those pineapple blocks. Did you make them all at once, or a few at a time? They are gorgeous!

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  5. I love the design changes you made! This really makes the quilt interesting. I think the ombre fabric will be great. Have fun making this special quilt.

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  6. Looking spectacular! And thank you for the info about Sew Much Fun’s sale. It’s about 2 hours away from me but my daughter just requested a Lone Star quilt for her bed-and my stash only provided the bare bones.

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  7. The hardest part for me has always been the fabric and shopping! Your design is amazing! I love how the geese look against the dark background. Good luck!

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  8. wow! On the fiddling of the basic design. I’d never even thought to change the colors that ways. What a dramatic difference in feel. Is that part going to be a surprise for Lars? It appears you might need to go on a trip to a city that has a ton of quilt shops so you can shop hop. I’d offer to go for you but I don’t have your eye for color and would be an utter failure in deciding if the evening ocean is the right choice over the other ocean ombré. We are talking about subtle differences in tonal quality that my eye would find daunting. I hope your LQS is full of all you choices. The quilt will be stunning.

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  9. From past experience, I can tell you that working with a gradation will make your quilt hang together much better than trying to choose 8 or 10 fabrics that will play nicely with each other. I'll be rooting for you to get this done for graduation. Road trips are great.

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  10. It's so hard to find 'just the right fabric' in a LQS whether you have to drive a distance or not. It's like looking for 'just the right shoes' to go with a special dress. You have a picture in your mind what you need, but finding it is a different thing altogether. I love your pineapple blocks - so big!

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  11. Oh, I like the shading on those geese! it will be a stunning quilt.

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  12. Love how dimensional your flying geese design looks. The pineapple blocks are so yummy! Good luck on your shopping trip!

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  13. Oh my! I just found your website from Kelly's My Quilt Infatuation link up! I love your circular geese! Beautiful and the colors you are looking for will be perfect! One question, did you design that quilt in EQ8?! I am new to EQ8 and just curious if it can do what you did! Super cool! Your pineapple blocks look so good and will make for an awesome quilt!! Good luck on your fabric search!!!

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  14. Yippee jumping up and down that you are continuing to sew on your pineapple quilt.
    Love the Lars quilt design
    I'd have a difficult time with the ombré fabrics trying to cut the piece from the correct section and not waste fabrics

    To be honest I was so disappointed that you put away the pineapple 🍍 block fabrics I so wanted to use them myself.....it only I was closer oh and in your spare time I think you should consider making some more pineapple blocks to make square (I think they are referred to as European pillows) pillows
    My idea is the block then a border of blue same as your denim small inner border back the same as the large border.

    Colleen of the left coast
    A small town on San Francisco Bay

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  15. I love you and I love your work. So please do not be offended by my honest opinion that follows. The block design and the color scheme are terrific. Just one thing - do you really need all those circles with all those geese? I mean give the eyes some place to rest. Get rid of a few circles and scatter the rest. OK, I am done. If you disagree with my suggestion, toss it. No worries at all. I will still love everything you do. Have an awesome weekend!!!

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