I had a similar experience. The fabric I really liked was lost in the colors of the rest of the project. Learned a little about light medium and dark, how important it is to select according to the shading of each piece involved. Everyone else really liked the result, but of course I was disappointed.

The nature of Mystery Quilts and why I don't do them until I know what they will look like.....kind of looking at the end of the book before you read it.

I've seen many quilts made with the same Mystery Quilt pattern, some just look faded because the fabric chosen just blended in too much and the pattern was lost, others a bold fabric in the wrong place wrecked it. All of them call out lights, mediums and darks....but some of that can be a matter of what you think are enough contrast between them...and the inability to make a sample block so you can see if you like the look or if a different fabric choice would work better can make or break a quilt. That being said, I've seen people who knew what the pattern was and would have chosen the same fabrics regardless.

I've only done one Mystery Quilt, and the one teaching it used our small group (she was a member of it) to test out the pattern to see if we would have any problems with it at the retreat. She looked at my fabric choices before hand and suggested I might want to replace one or two of them....I did and the quilt turned out fantastic.

Very mean spirited of the instructor to just smile and turn away. I think that I would never take another class or do a project with that kind of a teacher. The aim is so that you have a successful project, not to give her ammunition to point out where you could have made a better choice for fabrics.

I'd like to see all Mystery Quilt instructions suggest that you might want to save your "favorite or featured fabric" to use for the #____ (fill in the blank here) fabric to showcase it best.

Sometimes we aren't throwing away the quilt - or whatever it is. We're throwing away the feelings. Good for you.

I never threw away a quilt:: OHHH MY - NEVER: I might not like some of things that I do but I just take it out and start over. If the colors do not Blend - So Be It: This is something I made and I used patience and tried my best. I'm sure some homeless family would be so gratful for a warm quilt - no matter how it looked. Donate these un-loved items::::

I sent off a quilt to a quilter I had used before. When it came back it looked a mess. Called her and she explained she had been ill and her husband was quilting for her. Told her how I felt and how upsetting it was. She apologized!!!! Whoe cares about her apology my quilt was ruined for life. Tried taking out stiches but got fed up and donated to a thrift store. Nice faberic down the drain. I felt bad and disappointed after I put work into making my quilt. Know how u feell :thumbdown:

I never have thrown a quilt away.....I drape it on the arm of the sofa and I give it to who ever comments they like it when they visit.......

It's not my nature to be happy when a quilt gets tossed out but I'm glad you did it!
The aggravation just wasn't worth it. Glad you have peace of mind now :D

I took beginner lessons at one of the local quilt shops and was very excited to begin. First the teach cancelled the first day due to snow. Ok I get that but then she cancelled another lesson due to a quilt shop hop. I don't know why, she has plenty of room and knew that there was a possible schedule conflict anyway.

So that was two lessons cancelled. I thought we would make them up but she refused to. In addition when I signed up for the classes I paid in advance, received the list of supplies needed so we bought material then. You guessed it, the list was from the previous class so I did not have enough material and of course it was all gone by then. Nope they did not accept responsibility for giving me the wrong list of supplies so I was out that money and had to buy some different fabric to make it work.

That quilt is still not finished due to the memories of being screwed. I will never go back to that shop for anything again and I spent lots of money there prior.

It took a long time (2 years) decide what to do with them!
I can not pull fabric ... for many reasons!
But if it was good for you ... okay!
A hug! :thumbup:

Color in quilts is tricky! I have learned a lot from Ginny Beyer. She shows a trick for picking coordinating fabric. What I was doing wrong was to match other fabrics exactly by color. She goes tones up and down, then adds a darker and a brighter and it is like magic what happens to the quilt. I believe you can find her at GinnyBeyer.com