Annnnd we’re off!!

And with a bang, I might add! Because who doesn’t love picking fabric?

As quilters, we love it!

Some even thrive on it! And others make a full-on sport out of going on the fabric hunt and supplying their stash.

But what is often never said, is that picking fabric for a quilt can be scary too.

Committing all that pretty (and often expensive) fabric to a quilt can be daunting.

I've been there!

*This post contains affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, if you click through and make a purchase, I may receive a commission. 

Here are just some of the thoughts I’ve experienced during a fabric selection process:

• Eek – what if I end up wanting to feature that very print in another quilt?
• Is this really THE quilt this fabric should be featured in?
• Will I still love this palette 5 years from now?
• Will I be able to look at this fabric for the entire quilt duration – ha! (don’t discount this one!)
• Why do I seem to have every shade other than the one I neeeeeeed?
• Do I want to break up that FQ bundle just to get that one print????
• Better yet, do I even want to untie that FQ bundle? She's so pretty as is.
• I love this print – but what the heck am I going to pair it with??
• Is this too crazy? Too buzy? Too bland? Too bold? Too boring? Too similar?

The list of “is this too…?” could go on forever.

Let’s face it, the questions we ask ourselves resulting in hesitation are real, but we need to work through that hesitation and bring it back to some guidelines.

WHERE I START MY FABRIC PULLS

Here’s where I like to start.

With the pattern.

Simple enough but looking at the pattern and seeing first what the fabric requirements are and then looking at the design to see what speaks to me the most.

In this case, the great thing about Shattered Star is that you only have 5 colours to pick (unless you go with the holiday version - more on that below).

Easy enough, right?

Ok, so back to the pattern design.

What element stands out the most to you? Captures your eye? Draws you in?

Is that something you might want to feature? Then go with a nice bold colour or print.

One of the elements in the Shattered Star quilt pattern that I love to play with is that little strip (Fabric C). It’s such a fun little moment in the quilt design that you can play with.

PLAY WITH COLOUR VALUES

One of the ways I love adding dimension and interest to my quilts is to play with colour values. To really enhance the Shattered Star design, here are some recommendations you could consider:

• Fabric A - Light or medium
• Fabric B - Dark
• Fabric C - Light, medium or dark
• Fabric D - Light
• Fabric E - Medium or Dark

These are 100% just suggestions. For the Ruby & Bee solids version, I went with Medium, Dark, Medium, Light, Dark. 

Feel free to deviate and play around. That's where the colouring page helps you out. Print it out as many times as you want.

You could also use the additional colourways included in the pattern as is, or as a jumping off point to spark your inspiration.

HOLIDAY VERSION          

If you love working with fat quarters then the Holiday version of the Shattered Star quilt pattern is for you! 

This one is all about featuring your favourite FQ bundle paired with some solids for a nice balanced finish.

This is a free pattern extension for Shattered Star QAL newsletter subscribers (sign up here)  and gives you an overview of how you can make your Shattered Star quilt scrappy or FQ friendly.

 

I’m going to be working with this gorgeous Little Town fat quarter bundle designed by Amy Sinibaldi for Art Gallery Fabrics and I’ll be pairing it with these scrummalicious AGF PURE Solids.

Each one of my Shattered Star blocks will be unique (just like stars!) and you can find the exact fabric pairings in the pattern extension.

MATERIALS IN HOLIDAY SHATTERED STAR QUILT

Here's a full overview of the fabrics I'll be featuring in my Holiday Shattered Star quilt:

• Little Town FQ bundle 
• *Crystal Pink 
• *Flamingo 
• *Smooth Pebble 
• *Icy Mint 
• *Spruce 
• *Zambia Stone 
• Shattered Star Quilt Pattern Extension (exclusive for Shattered Star QAL newsletter subscribers) 

TIPS ON PICKING COLOURS

When it comes to picking colours, my honest answer is always to follow your instincts.

In fact, when I shared the Shattered Star quilt featuring the Ruby & Bee Solids on Instagram, several quilters commented on how happy they were to see purple and red together in a quilt. Apparently, some had been taught that pairing is a no-no. I’ve had a similar experience with black and blue -- I choose not to listen 😉

Instead, I play with the colours that make me happy, get me excited, look pretty together.

For the Holiday version, I wanted to up the colour factor and highlight some of my favourite hues featured in the Little Town bundle. Little Town has quite a few low volume prints, but they have subtle little pops of colour. I wanted to enhance and highlight that and chose 5 PURE Solids to help me achieve that. Each of these colours are featured in the Little Bundle prints, each to differing levels of intensity. I chose the colours that spoke to me!

That's all there was to it!

At the end of the day YOU need to be happy with your quilt and the colours you pick. So, pick what speaks to you.

You can’t go wrong! 

QUILT KITS

If picking fabrics is just not your thing, then quilt kits are your friend! Here are a couple of options to consider:

FabricStork has this gorgeous stack of Bella Solids with a pop of Blue Ruby Star for the binding – available here

Stacked Fabric Company has this warm neutral Bella Solids with a little pop of turquoise – available here

 

MY BEST FABRIC SELECTION TIPS

To sum it up, here are my best tips: 

Get some colour cards!

I know I share this tip often, but I’ve found it to be a game changer when planning my quilts out, especially when ordering fabric online. You get to see the true colours you’ll be working with and makes it a breeze to match a colour within a print you want to feature. Here are some of the colour cards I have on hand:

Consider who it's for:

Think of how/ who/ when you'll use this quilt. If it's intended as a gift, what are their favourite colours.

Go with a theme!

Holidays are coming, create a holiday quilt with me! Or, go with autumnal colours to highlight the season we're in! 

Above all:

Don't over think it. Go with the one you can't get your mind off of.

 

 

WEEK 1 GIVEAWAY

To kick things off with a fun quilty bang I’m so thrilled to have Art Gallery Fabrics as our Week 1 sponsor. I’ve featured AGF prints, solids, denim, linen and canvas (wow!) in quite a few of my quilts and adore how they feel. Which is why I'm so excited for you to get your hands on some too!

Art Gallery Fabrics is generously giving one lucky winner a fat quarter bundle of the entire Little Town collection designed by Amy Sinibaldi. This fabric line has lots of low volume prints with little pops of traditional holiday elements in modern colours. It's beyond adorable!

Photo courtesy of Amy Sinibaldi.

HOW TO ENTER

To enter the giveaway, you must:

• Be a Shattered Star QAL newsletter subscriber
• Be following @artgalleryfabrics and @shannonfraserdesigns on Instagram
• Post a photo on Instagram of the fabrics you plan to use in your Shattered Star quilt during the QAL between October 12, 2020 and October 18, 2020 at 11:59pm.
• Instagram account must be public.
• Tag @artgalleryfabrics and @shannonfraserdesigns
• Include the hashtags #shatteredstarquilt #shatteredstarqal #littletownfabrics #artgalleryfabrics

Week 1 giveaway is open internationally. 

Winners will be announced every Monday following that week’s challenge. So, for Week 1, I’ll be announcing the winner on Monday October 19, 2020. Winners will be randomly selected from the #shatteredstarqal hashtag on Instagram.

I’ll be popping into our private Facebook group on Wednesday to chat all things fabric and answer any of your textile questions. Feel free to send me your questions in advance or join the quilty chat live and ask me then!

Happy quilting!

xo,

Shannon

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