Spent the morning at a local quilt shop in Mississippi and met some wonderful woman who asked me to join their guild (sp). I was so excited I purchases my supplies needed to finish my rookie quilt, but of course who could stop there ....I bought 2 jelly rolls from Fabric Central called Neutral Mediterranean. I loved the color at the shop. I got home and opened them up...WOW! The fabric is soooo UGLY. I planned on making a tube quilt now Im scared to waste the time...I guess I could finish and always give it to my mom...Moms love anything. Then I got ready to free motion my Rookie quilt and Im so scared I think Im going to toss my cookies. Every time I put it under the foot of my machine I take it out and put it back on my bed. I tried a glass of wine and that just turned me into a bigger chicken.
Thanks for listening

Sew up the ugly fabric and use it to practice your quilting! That's what I did, and low and behold, I ended up liking my UGLY quilt! LOL

That is the best advice anyone could give you.

You are now a true quilter! And I know you'll find a way to make those fabrics and that quilt look beautiful. Remember, it's all in fun, so relax and have some fun. There are plenty more projects to conquer. And more fun to be had.

I agree with UglyCook! :thumbup:
... or ... practice on some scraps!

Good advice fromyour fellow quilters. There is no such thing as an ugly quilt. It will surprise you.

Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid.

I'm with StitchinJoy!!!

"Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid!"

I agree. Practice on the ugly jelly rolls. You will be surprised what a nice quilt it will make. Besides your ugly could be someone's beautiful.

Ungly can become pretty with a little help. Smile and laugh at yourself, then look at everything with a new outlook. You can do it.

Let it rest a while, and come back to it later. Then do the above! It will all be okay!

There is no such thing as ugly fabric! Make it work and post pictures when your done.

Maybe if you put some other fabrics with the 'ugly' ones you would be happier with them. I have a number of neutrals in my stash that by themselves are nothing to write home about, but as part of something else are the perfect touch for a particular spot.

Put a quilt together with them and you may find yourself falling in love with it. If not, give it to mom. She will love it.

I've had some ugly fabric around here and finally combined it with other scraps to make a scrappy quilt....it's AMAZING how some of that ugly fabric has turned out beautiful!!!!

Have fun, make your quilt.....if you REALLY hate it when done, you can use it on the floor of the trunk of your car for a mat or for the dog!!!! :)

A practice quilt is a great idea, or you could get some other fabrics to blend it with? Or some fancy stitches along the seams
Been there, done that!

I say go for it.. At the very least you will get more practice quilting!!! Who knows you may LOVE it when its finished..

I received some fabric when I renewed a subscription to a magazine. my first reaction was "YUCK". I have just about finished the top where I have some piecing and applique blocks.I have only introduced one other fabric from my stash
(a white print that I tea dyed) and guess what it is really growing on me.I feel that it will only improve when I quilt it! All is not lost - it might also grow on you.
Colleen

Put the pedal to the metal and just let go. You cannot mess up. Just enjoy every turn and curve and motion you can create. Stop stressing once i did I made an a mazing quilt for my neighbor he loved it so much! It was fun to just let go and forget about making mistakes. This is your quilt.

Just go fer it! Live and learn is my motto.

Put the ugly fabric in your stash. Someday it may not look ugly. Or, someone may see it and fall in love with it. Then you can give it to her and be blessed by doing it.

You need more wine. Then you need to watch a girly movie. I say Pride and Prejudice or The Joy luck club. The more wine and then practice your free motion quilting.

Relax, eat some chocolate, have some wine, you will love the material once you get going!

I cannot imagine an ugly jelly roll. Have to google it and take a look. LOL

Maybe you just need to add one extra colour for a bit of zing...then get going and create. Don't stress - it stunts creativity. We love pics. so don't forget to keep us posted. Happy quilting!

All of the above. You are a quilter all right!

Is it possible that the colors of the jelly roll are too neutral for you? In that case, get a more vibrant jelly roll and mix them both up. You'd be amazed what gems can come out of a lump of coal.

As for the FMQ - boy do I understand that. I am enrolled in a class right now, and week by week I get better at it. I would suggest that you find a pattern you like, practice on some scrap blocks and bite the bullet. You will improve with practice.

As for moms liking EVERYTHING.....I think moms bend the truth a bit at times. lol

I was looking at my glass as half empty and taking it out on my poor jelly rolls...lol
I have lived in Memphis for three years without meeting anyone and finally a month before Im moving I meet some great ladies that I would have loved to get to know better.
I was a tiny bit "butthurt" by the time I got home and instead of kicking the cat (just kidding-I don't have a cat) I took it out on my jelly rolls.
I did make a tube and cut out a few squares and I think it will make a beautiful quilt.

For the rookie quilt....it was a lot easier then I thought. At first I was scared to mess up something that looked so prefect...boy as I looked at it closer those seams didn't line up at all! It sure made it easier to just free hand all the little flowers I wanted.

Thanks for the support...you guys are always right!

I agree, practice different designs to try some different squares and finish it up and then look at it and see if you like it. You may be surprised and like it and if you don't really still enjoy the colors, you are a more experienced quilter

When I get ugly material I cut it into trianglea and somehow it makes the ugly go away.

I wonder if that works on nasty people!
How many people does it take to make that quilt?
Depends how thin you slice them! :lol: :lol:

these ladies are right on.
Sew it.
Quilt it.
Love it.
Even ugly children are loved by their mothers
!!!!!!

How about an Irish Chain stitch quilt....using a lot of fabrics & some neutrals......or a log cabin.Type in the name of a quilt you like in search & you'll get lots of ideas. BTW....the 2 1/2" strips are perfect for the free strip runner on quilt bug.

ugle fabric will look different in a tube. Put some strips together and cut a triangle out of paper and lay over and take a look. I had the same problem recently in a jelly roll exchange. It appeared those sending in just cut up all their ugle fabrics. I sorted them into reasonable color or pattern groups and sewed together and they really look good. So don't discard yet. You can mix some background colors in to soften or livenly up the other fabrics.

the first time that I was ready to attempt freeMotionQuilting, I felt overwhelmed. The very thought made me dizzy. A teacher at my LQS gave me the best advice. At least it worked for My brain. She told me to use my finger in the Air, and draw the fmq. So I did so, many times. I finally sat at my machine, quilt under the needle, and fmq'd the air for a final time. Voilla! When I started quilting, it was as though my brain knew just what to do and my hands obeyed. I cannot Wait for your "I Did It" post. :-)

I don't think this is ugly fabric. I did a search and come up with a quilt make using those fabric. Looks nice. http://hearthcrafting.com/blog/

I found the same website and I also thing the fabric looks nice! Have confidence!

There is no such thing as ugly in the quilting world. Look at some of the fashion statements today----now they can be ugly. I once kiddingly reached into the scrap bag with my eyes closed and vowed to sew together whatever came out. I handled it as a joke, but in the end it turned out really okay. Keep sewin'

Make yourself a practice sandwich. Practice on that before you go the the actual quilt. Then when you feel a little mor confident, you can go to work on the actual quilt. :-D

Wow, I just looked at and I like it. But we all have different tastes. I agree with the other that if add a fabric or two that is more to your liking, you will probably put together a quilt that you love.

If all else fails, put them up for sale here and someone will take them off your hands. :D