Suggestions Please
 

I recently purhased a quilting pattern book called Link to the 1930's Making the Quilts We didn't inherit. I want to make this quilt as pictured with various patterns of feed sack materials, but not sure I want the backround to be white. Just thinking about yellowing and getting dirty maybe quicker then say another colour. So not being sure as to what other colour to use besides white I'd like to get some suggestions from you all. Looking forward to hearing your replies.

In the 30's there were some solid colors which were used often, and are now available as reproductions. Any of those which are pale would work, like pale yellow, green, or lavendar. I don't think I'd use anything in the medium value range, though, like the bubble gum pink or that medium blue which was popular in the 30's. That's a nice pattern. I like your choice. Have fun!

Black would make a beautiful and dramatic quilt. Or you could use a variation of any of the colors in the quilt. On my monitor I see a light teal which would be pretty or maybe a red etc.

i agree with the pale green, yellow, lavendar.. :thumbup:

I agree with Tartan about green for the background as long as it stays light and toned down, meaning not bright or minty green. You could also use the white in the blocks and make the border around the blocks in a toned down blue and the HST border with the white. Also have you thought about using a natural muslin as your background?

I love the title of the book you are using.

Natural muslin of a good quality with a high thread count might look nice, as was suggested. It would also be closer to the original look which you stated you liked.

I was thinking of muslin, too, or a bone color, which would tie in with the antique look.

The book actually suggests using muslin. I was asking the lady at the fabric store today about it and she said to make sure to pre wash as it does tend to shrink more so then cotten. Have any of you worked with muslin before? What do you all think of maybe a light grey colour instead of the white or do you think that would look too drab? All your suggestions are great so far thank you for taking the time to answer :)

I agree with nanaquilts44, I think the black would look cool.

I took your picture and inverted the colours. The colours would be a lot brighter than what is showing in the picture.

I don't think I would like a light grey as a background, because the 30's colors were all clear (not greyed) colors, usually paired with some white in the prints. Grey was used in the 30's prints, though. I just don't think a grey background would look like a typical 30's quilt. JMHO. It's your quilt. You can do whatever blows your skirt up.:p

My two cents here --- my family has one or two of the original feedsack quilts running around --- the white fabric was from flour sacks in our case --- sometimes it came in printed fabric most of the time in white. Over the years it has held up well color wise. Yellowing tends to happen if around smoke or not cleaned as often as it should've been. These are utilitarian quilts made to be used. So, I would opt for a natural cream tone on the lightest side if not using the white. If going for a color, go with the palest tint available. We are so fortunate to have fabric choices available and the $$$ to spend on our hobbies.

I love that pattern! I vote for the paler green as well.

thanks for sharing this experience. it's nice to know.

Kona makes a wonderful muslin, in white and cream. I have used it and I love it.

I have to agree with the muslin suggestion - something that would definitely be used in the 30's and a good, sturdy
fabric. I think this would make a better background than any of the colors.

This is striking but doesn't say 1930 to me. However, I really do like it!

If you really like the 30's look, stick with the white or a pale cream. I've recently seen a small mottle in very pale cream and white and thought it would be perfect for 30's or Civil War background fabric. To me, "the look" is more important than the fact that it might need more frequent washing. JMO, of course. :)

I like mixing the white on white or white on natural or white on tan prints with 30's repro's. The WOW is such a subtle print that you don't even really notice that it's a print. The white on natural might be your favorite because there's variation to hide smudges of this or that, but it's light-colored enough to pass for a traditional muslin. Be careful buying this type of print if the design is dense, because it can be a bear to quilt through, even by machine. If you go with the prints made of fine lines and tiny designs, you can't tell the difference when you're quilting.

I hand-appliqued 36 Sunbonnet Sues and Sam's on the WOW backgrounds once for a swap - the densely printed ones made me absolutely crazy. When quilting them, you might get a lot of skipped stitches.

Beautiful quilt - now I have to get that book! ;)

I agree!! I'm doing a Dear Jane using natural muslin and love the "authentic" look! It was my first thought when I saw your pattern.

I made a scrappy 30's Irish Chain a couple of years ago & I used some really wonderful muslin that I got from Nancy's Notions. It was called something like Vintage Muslin or some name similar to that. It was white (not natural) but not quite pure white. It really looked nice with my scraps & I wish I'd bought a bunch more of it! I have used muslin (in fact, I back almost all my quilts with muslin because I like the way it feels after it's washed) & I personally love it. But I would suggest that you buy good muslin... not the 99 cent a yard stuff. I usually use Moda & I love it. I know some of the gals here on the board like Kona but I find it rather stiff. Yes, it does shrink (& wrinkle) but once you get used to that, it's fine.

I can't wait to see your quilt when you make it. I love reproduction fabrics! Good luck!

I am doing a 30's quilt right now and also didn't want the white background. I am using a wonderful light yellow and just love it. Good luck.

Whenever I wanta non white (but white) I use Kona Cotton SNOW...it is the berst for a cross between white and cream. Gorgeous!

i'd say pale green or yellow.

I think jade was commonly used in 30s and 40s quilts. If you prefer a natural color you might try "Super muslin" which I buy at Walmart. I bought a bolt of it but the clerk ripped off the tag. It's made by a well known muslin company, but I can't recall the name of it......dang old age...... It looks like muslin but is much heavier.

If they were brighter colors, I would definitely say black. They're so striking. I think, for these colors, muslin would be a good choice.

Roc-Lon ???

i think i'd go for a nice unbleached muslin. a grey with a tint of a blue would look nice as well. just remember to keep it light value so you don't wash out those other medium values

I'd stick with white, or pale yellow. I have that book and love it.

If you buy muslin, buy good stuff. It shrinks. Black is pretty, BUT they didn't use black in the 30's quilts. All they had was muslin. I love it on the back of my quilts too.

I belong to the "wash before using" fabric club, even though that means ironing, and I've often used muslin for my blocks. I found that some of the higher priced muslin seems to work better and doesn't wrinkle as much or shrink as much as a cheaper muslin would. I also like using tone on tone fabrics, gives the blocks a little life, but muslin would have been the "fabric of choice" in the past.

While visiting the store on the FabShop Hop, I noticed several stores that have free design walls upon which you can audition your color choices.

If I remember, the purpose of using so much white was to counter-act the depression. It was felt that bright, cheery colors would lift people's spirits, so I would be leary of using gray or darker colors, IMHO.

My vote goes to pale green or yellow!

I would also go with the muslin, maybe lightly tea stained?

I am getting ready to make a 1930's quilt and I am using a white on white flower patterned for the background. With all the flowers in the reproduction materials, I thought this would not be like really white but still maintain the basic concept. I have found great 1930's feed sack material and I am so lucky to have one of my grandmother's real feed sack quilt that she quilted with the string from the grocery that they tied up the bundles in paper and the batting is actual cotton balls from the fields of the farm in Bladenboro, N.C. I am 65 and my mother gave it to me this past spring with the strong admonition "DO NOT WASH IT!!! the thing may fall completely apart and cotton balls might just dissolve." Lots of memories in that quilt.

i would go with natural muslin, but do make sure you wash it first some muslin i have used shrinks up big time

That's all I back my quilts with. And I agree... don't ever get the cheap stuff because it's stiff & shrinks like crazy. I like Moda muslin & buy it by the bolt!

I'm so anxious to see your quilt! I love quilts made from repros! This is made fromsome "real" little blocks from the 20's that I had & set together with some Aunt Grace's. I love it (aren't I modest? LOL!)!

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Ty for all your help! I have a question about muslin now though. Does it matter if you get bleached or unbleached muslin?