I am making a strip scrap quilt with flowered pattern scraps. Altho' flowers are beautiful, for some reason or other this is coming out rather dull and boring. Any ideas to brighten it up? Maybe I should just add some bright batik??

Maybe applique some flowers aNnd vines? I love mixing scrap and applique.

Try tossing in some solids (especially white or black) to give the eye a rest. Sometimes that helps colors pop.

Is it totally scrappy? Or is there some rhyme or reason to the placement?

What about if you placed the strips/scraps from light to dark?

This is just my opinion - but I find that if a totally scrappy quilt has no theme - whether it's color or shape or value or texture - iow, just a bunch of scraps sewn together, my eye is roving all over the top looking for some sort of pattern. Something to focus on.

Otherwise, it looks almost like one big piece of multi-colored fabric. And that's fine, if that's what you want. But it doesn't sound like it is. ;-)

So maybe if each block went light to dark, or the whole quilt top did (3 bunches each of light, med and dark blocks), the eye can focus on that.

Or if it had one unifying fabric - perhaps half the block was a coordinating fabric, then the blocks can be arranged in some sort of pattern (actually, any log cabin layout).

The blocks don't have to be perfectly split, just giving you the option of multiple layouts.

I actually came across a scrappy quilt the other day - queen size. And I could appreciate all the sewing and cutting that went into it, but, like I said above, it looked like one big piece of fabric. I had nowhere to look for something - anything- to be going on design-wise.

Make any sense?

good idea...had not thought of that...thanks

thanks for your idea...I think I will border the squares in black....as you said, I think that will make it pop..

yup, makes a lot of sense....I have already started several blocks but I think I will put those aside or maybe cut them up for a border. I will start again (plenty of flowered fabric) and do the one strip light and one strip dark and mix in mediums....that should do it. I was looking at the blocks I had made and that is exactly what it looked like...one piece of multi-colored fabric, no where for the eye to focus...gosh, you helped me a lot...thanks so much

White makes things pop.

wow..that white really does make it pop...thanks so much for sharing...is that hand quilting? wow again !! beautiful

No it was machine quilted