I agree with the others on tips. My avatar is my first one I love doing them.

I love your avatar. Do you recall the name of that pattern?

Dina

Dina,
I also bought that book and planned my first bargello to also be that Surf Song pattern! great minds think alike. I also like your placement, and think that would be good first practice for me as well. Now if I can just decide on colors......
Thanks!
Jeanne

Your avatar quilt is breath-taking! is it your own design???

I went back and forth between colors. At first I wanted to do blue and turquoise, but I couldn't find enough turquoise. My favorite colors are purple and blue, so that is what I decided on...finally. I took my time with fabric section, and even after I had my mind all made up, I had to switch one because it turned out I didn't even have 1/4 yard of it. It was from my stash, as were about half of my choices. I started off wanting batiks, but didn't stick to that. I think one of the ones from my stash was a batik though. I decided I could get a batik look if I selected tone on tone fabrics or fabrics that "read as one color."

I also got a lot of help from quilters on this board. When I was trying to arrange the fabric from light to dark, I took pictures and got a lot of good suggestions.

Enjoy the process though. It is fun.

Dina

EVERYTHING that was mentioned is correct. And yes, it is best to start with a smaller quilt such as a wall size, Don't start out with anything too complicated. Start out with something simple. I always pressed my seams one up and the next down. That might be confusing but it even worked out with 4 of the quilts I have made from "Twist and Turn Bargello Quilts" by Eileen Wright. Just bought her new book and I am collecting fabric for one of them. Just enjoy yourself during the process. That is WHY we all quilt, for the enjoyment.

What a great inspiration you all are. Can't wait to be retired and have more time to do this.

I have one question: Doghousemom said her avatar was a one color and there was a difference for a two color. DHM looks lik it it shades of beige plus black. I'm confused on the color counting.

Marcia

Thanks for the great tips.....I have to admit that I have been wanting to make one for a long time but am completely intimidated by the process. Its safe to say that if one is buying fabrics for a bargello they should always stay away from prints and gradients???

I think it is up to the quilter. When I started asking questions here about fabric selection, I got lots of answers, some contradictory. For example, I was told to never use white or to always include white. :) I was told not to use a solid fabric. It was suggested by the author of my book to use batiks, which I thought about but didn't do...couldn't find 8 shades of purple. :) It was suggested not to use large prints. I appreciated all the suggestions I got and all the help. (I had a great deal of trouble arranging my fabric from dark to light.)

Some of the fabrics I chose were small prints. Let me see if I can find a picture of my final selections....as I changed my mind lots of times. What I did when I got close to deciding was cut one inch strips and lay them beside each other to see how I liked them.

I have to admit that I don't know what a gradient is. (I have only been quilting 4 years...still learning lots.) My guess is that it is a fabric that has several shades of one color? If so, I used several of those.

It sounds like a lot of fabric, 20, but the pattern I made only called for 1/4 yard of each and most of mine came from my stash, though I did go buy some fabric. I had a great deal of trouble finding lights, but someone on this board told me not to be afraid to use the back of a fabric. That worked really well for me, as I couldn't find a light purple, lavender, orchid, etc.

Hope this helps. I certainly enjoyed the whole process and I hope you try it and like it too. It is nothing like anything I have done before, though I understand some Trip around the World patterns use a similar technique.

Dina

Ha! As I look at the picture as it came up, I realize this was not my final choice. I rearranged a few of the blues and I left out one of them...:)

Dina