ArchaicArcane

A few days ago, someone posted a link to a pair of glasses for seeing color value in your quilts.

Here's a trick you can use with something you might already be carrying with you:
If you have an iPhone or an Android phone, download the free app called "SnapSeed"
Take a photo of the fabrics with your phone.
Open Snapseed and select the photo you took
Tap "Black and White"

This will give you a really good idea of what the color values are.
I just tried it with the quilt I'm making for DH and I know now why I felt like the colors didn't "pop" enough. There's a light and 2 darks. The darks are too often next to each other.

Tfch8184

I don't know about android phones but the new iPhone update 7.something allows you to change colors in your pictures without an app. Just in case someone was a whackadoodle like me and hates downloading apps lol.

BellaBoo

I was amazed at the difference my quilt really looked in B&W compared to the color picture in terms of value. What I thought was med against the light was really two lights.

Cornishlass

What a great idea. I need all the help I can get with colour selection and especially values so have taken your advice and downloaded Snapseed onto the ipad. Now to get on with those quilts! Thank you for this information.
janet

ILoveToQuilt

If you are at home and have a printer, you can copy your fabrics in B&W to see their value. I don't have a smart phone, and I carry a small piece of red acetate film when I go fabric shopping - turns colors into shades of grey.

Anita

BellaBoo

I use the see through red film when I buy fabric. An old red file folder is excellent if you are lucky to still have one or find one. It's big sheets of the red film. Green film is for finding value in red fabrics together.

mighty

Awesome, thank you!!!

grammy Dwynn

I have a android phone and I have the option to take photos in black & white.

Jingle

I don't worry about color values. I just use colors I like together.

ArchaicArcane

Ha! I bet I'd know that if I hadn't ignored that update and wasn't still on the iOS 6. I was waiting for it to be stable then promptly forgot about it.

Snapseed does come highly recommended for those who don't like "sparse" phones.

The thing about printing them is that they are very expensive to print (toner or ink). If you're going to have the photo on the computer anyway, try opening them in something like Irfanview and select "grayscale" and view them on screen.

I've also used an old red filter for a camera from my B&W photography days. I'm pretty sure that's where the original version of this must have come from. The filter I can forget or break though. I also ended up with the red and green acetate sheets in a pattern I bought (New York Beauty) but they're bigger than my purse and I didn't get around to cutting them down.

I think I remember this too. I have an "old" Android tablet that doesn't see enough use, but she does take a good picture and I remember some options.

Either way, there are options while at the fabric shop, as long as they'll let you take photos.