crafty pat

I sometimes have to shop several places to get all the colors I need. I usually find fabric and go looking for a pattern but if I have a pattern and am not sure of my color choices I draw out several and color them in until I find the color combinations I like then I go fabric shopping.

SusanErler

Color wheels and charts are good, but sometimes it's hard to get the inspiration to put different colors together. When I am in a color funk, I like to go to FatQuarterShop.com and look at the pictures of the fat quarter bundles that they put together. On the left, click on "fat quarter bundles." You will see pics like these:

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They give me a lot of inspiration and there are tons of different color combinations. I usually do a "View All' and just scroll down the page of all of them. Something usually jumps out at me...

From that, then I can go to my stash and start putting things together.

Kitty10628

Thanks for the suggestions. It sorta sounds like I am not the only one that spends too much time picking fabric!

It doesnt come naturally to me and probably never will..

I have trouble with clothing also.

:-)

Jeanne S

I just spend hours looking online at fabrics, trying to get the right mix. It can be frustrating as sometimes the color hues don't seem to match what I see on my computer monitor when it comes in. But if you don't have any large shops locally I don't know what else to do. Unfortunately I am building a stash of "not quite right" fabrics for current projects, but hopefully they will find a home in a future one !

Nammie to 7

I guess that is why I like to subscribe to magazines. I like to see the color combinations they come up with. I also hang out at the LQS to see what people are putting together. I will often ask what they are working on and they show me the fabrics they have already picked out and what they are considering and why. It always helps to have dark, medium and light fabrics. It also works to have a large print, a medium print, a small print and maybe a solid. I've heard it said that color gets the credit when value does the work.

Mdegenhart

I love picking out fabric, but my local quilt shop is small. In addition, the owner's taste is very different from mine. If I find something I like there often I can't find anything I like to go with it. She can only afford to buy several of the fabrics out of a new collection. Her selection of solids is pretty limited too. I'm happier shopping online, much as I would love to give her my business.

Susy

I know that feeling, not even just the colours but the fabric patterns together, I have turned out some horrors!

NJ Quilter

I am a project vs stash shopper. I will normally pick my focus fabric first and then pull from that what other colors/fabrics I want. I usually have a photo of the project with me. Once I've gathered what I think I want, I try to lay them out with the appropriate percentage of the bolt peeking out from the others in the order of most to least.

Can be a tedious process but it's what works for me. Sometimes the focus fabric changes either along the way or even at the end. BUT by then I've at least gotten the bulk of the fabrics I want for that project. Might have to shift which one is getting used for what part of the project or trade something out but the bulk of it is there.

susie-susie-susie

I have found that certain shops do not compliment my tastes. I rarely shop in them. Occasionally I can find something I am looking for. I can almost always find what I need at my LQS. Recently, I was looking for a very dark blue batik for a background, and couldn't find it anywhere, even on line. I finally found it at a nearby shop, that usually isn't my favorite shop. You just never know where you will find what you need.
Sue

Barbj

Terri's right! A good quilt shop will have employees who know what they're doing, and can guide you. A few tips and tricks and you'll be off and running! Good luck!