I have finally received the fabric that I ordered almost a month ago. Today I went to my favorite quilt shop and picked up enough fabric for the quilt. So that project will be underway shortly.

One thing that I do want to remind everyone of if that you don’t have to pick an elaborate quilt pattern. You just have to pick a pattern if block that is right for the fabric that you plan to use.

I am asked frequently how I decide on a pattern. To be honest, I don’t always have a method for this. Sometimes there is a pattern that I see or dream up that I just have to make, and sometimes I find a fabric that I just have to make something out of. 

If the pattern comes first, I then decide what general colors I’d like to see in it (unless it’s an order and then its a matter of making the colors they want look good together). The style of the block will play a large part in helping me determine tones, light, or dark. I have been know to play for hours at the quilt shop with several different fabrics until I find that right combination. Sometimes it takes me minutes. It just depends.

If the fabric comes first? When I find a fabric that I absolutely must have, with no clue what I might possibly do with it, that’s a different story. First off, how much do you buy? I tend to buy more than I need, because I like having the scraps to play with. However, I have found that if I purchase at least 2 yards of this wondrous fabric, that that is usually enough to fit it into any pattern that I might decide to use it in. If I’m still unsure, I’ll go for 3 yards. But, like I said, I like to have scraps.

My process for finding the perfect pattern for my fabric? Well, sometimes I see a fabric and I automatically think, wow this would look great in an evening star quilt. Or, this would be perfect for a log cabin (which by the way tiny prints are my favorite for log cabin quilts :)).

So, the quilt fairies haven’t spoken in my ear about what to do with this fabric yet? Well then it’s time to hit the books, and magazines, and random patterns. Sometimes the drafting paper. Like all self respecting quilters/crafters, I have an extensive collection of these things. Post-it arrows are great to use to tag possible ideas and then narrow down from there. I highly suggest that you use the kind that can be written on. Make a little note as to who the quilt is for or a pattern style to make it easy to find again. I go through a new book or magazine when I get it hime and immediately tag every pattern that I think I might like to try. If I have something specific in mind for it, then I write it on my arrow. Keep in mind, even if a pattern is shown in a certain color scale, or motif, doesn’t mean you have to make it that way.

This is the basis of my next project…