well, i did it. i ripped a quilt top (waiting its final border) apart! it had been sitting around for 2 years and i could not find a fabric for the final border and i did not feel inspired to quilt it. the more i looked at the top the more it said somethings wrong with me--it looked sick. i thought i would 'heal' it by taking it apart.
i need some other opinions. i now know i should never have used that yellow/gold fabric for a background but this was only my second quilt!
any ideas out there on how i can make this 'bonnet' look better?

i love it. and the light purple (looks like that color) you have in it. perhaps you could get a light yellow and do another border or pick out one other of the colors in there for a border if you plain don't want more yellow in the quilt. don't give up. it's very pretty and lot of work went into it so far.

I think its adorable.. I like the idea of a yellow border though... something to pull it all together. Let us see it when its finished.

I like it too.

Gee wiz! The quilt I see is adorable. Did you take a picture of the wrong quilt???

I love it. Quilt and bind it, it is adorably cute!!!

I agree with putting a yellow border on it. The yellow will help pull it together and give it a more finished look. Or put a yellow binding on it instead of a border. I think it's as cute as can be.

I like it just the way it is, but I agree that a yellow border would help tie it together. If you feel it needs a bit more, possibly put some flowers on some of the bonnets.

I love the idea of the flowers on the bonnets. I would finish it with a border the same shade as the bonnets also. I always feel that a border as dark or darker than the darkest color on the quilt helps frame it.

I like that idea too. It just seems like the current borders are disappearing. A dark border would calm down the yellow and help to draw the eye to the whole quilt instead of just the center.

You did a fantastic job on the bonnets! I really like it. And agree with the yellow borders. Please post when you finish it.

I too think you posted a picture of the wrong quilt. It is adorable.

I think it is pretty. I agree with adding flowers on the bonnets.

Sue is always a cutie. Flowers on the bonnets might be nice and some kind of a yellow border would be good No matter what you decide, it will still be cute.

Everybody is telling you they like it, but I got the impression that you've already ripped it apart! Am I right?

If you have, tell us how your pieces are now so you can get the suggestions you want for alternative placements or additions like solid squares, borders, or something.

I think it is an adorable quilt top :D:D:D

If the yellow is a bit to much for you, you could quilt around the Sues with a darker yellow, which would help tone it down a little. You could also add some appliqued flowers around the corners of some of the blocks, too.

I agree with the majority of adding a yellow border and then put on the binding and quilt it!

yes, i have ALREADY taken it all apart. the Sunbonnet Sue's are still on the yellow/gold material. i don't have the nerve to remove all the stitching on them.
so now i have the blocks to work with-again. any suggestions on how what to use to 'tone down' the yellow/gold?
i am glad that some of you like it the way it was but come on it really does need some help-right?

you tell us.

That was my thought also, Add a border in the bonnet color,

So now all you have are the blocks? Which by the way are very nice, love them.
frame each block in a dark color to match the bonnets, sashing; add corner stones in a color to match or blend with the yellow/gold background.
Then you could add a narrow border out of the cornerstone fabric, and a final, larger border of a multi color or print with the colors in the bonnet and background.

Personally, I would go for a narrow yellow border and then a dark blue border like the hats to frame it. I have found that a darker border frames better. Just by 2 cents.

I don't see anything wrong with it. I think it's adorable. I Like the idea of a yellow binding.

thats a lot of sues...something light blue to frame the whole thing????

Ebony
I have the perfect solution to your problem!! Send it to me!! :lol: I keep trying but nobody ever wants to send me their quilt!! :cry:
I think it is adorable!

Ditter

I would replace the print sashing with a bright white and no borders. I'd use the yellow for the binding.

I thought of some embroidery or applique too. Then the bonnet would be more 'dressed up' and the bright yellow wouldn't be the first thing you see.
You could do a pieced border with some of the yellow in it, to bring it together, but not all yellow.
It has an old fashioned appeal, don't scrap it, you have way too much precious time and lovely work into it.
I suggest a lighter flower on the bonnet, maybe a lavender?
Is that what that strip, or ribbon is in the sashing? I'd use a print though.
This top is way better than you think :wink:

cute quilt

How about a nice bright purple and yellow print, like pansies print, or something like that for the border? That will help tie everything together. Then maybe a really deep purple solid for the binding. Just MHO

i was loking at your top maybe if you look at the butterfly fabric look for a color in there that will make the quilt top pop in color ,i can,t see to well but dose the butterfly fabric have like a brown or rust try putting those color against it from border and stand back and see it makes it look better to much yellow or purple will not make it pop in color

I really like where you're going here. I'm just thinking, EMBRACED THE YELLOW

I really like where you're going here. I'm just thinking, EMBRACED THE YELLOW! I think if you went with a soft yellow in the sashing and the darker bonnet blue in the cornerstones it would help tone down the yellow that you aren't satisfied with. I think the blocks look awesome. Sorry you had to take it apart, that's so frustrating. :-(

NO more yellow. Yellow is a color that you need 1/4 of what you think you need to get the effect. It can truly take over the quilt and I know what your feeling because I learned a hard lesson with it myself That Said.. its a pretty quilt kind of colored like a pansy and everyone loves pansies so you should finish it with what you have and find comfort in the fact you can now start something NEW.. it helps to lay out the colors you bought in a swamp pile on the bed or floor. If you think one color is used more than the others leave a much bigger piece of that unfolded and then fold the others to the approx preportions they would be used. Stand back, squint with your eyes and look at what you have.. does it blend? does something yell at you when you look at it? does something that worked when you picked it not work at all when you view it this way in regards to the other items sitting with it? There is probably a good word for this, I however dont know it. I know there is a fancy mini reverse magnifier that you can use to view through that does a similar thing.. I like to squint. Excellent at it. And I can afford the tools required. Be easy on yourself and the quilt.

love the quilt,also like the suggestion of a yellow border to pull it alll together, vey beautiful nice job.

I would definitely add some white - perhaps around the blocks, then use a dark color for the binding. One thing I often do is to add a small ( cut 1") accent strip in the border. Pick a color from one of the prints - but NOT yellow or purple. It is amazing what 1/2" will do to set a quilt off!

I love your Sun Bonnet Sues!! But I would get rid of the sashing, and maybe go with a dark blue , calmer sashing. And I don't like the purple.The sashing just seems too busy to me. But that is just my opinion, and I am envious of your Sun Bonnet Sues, they are adorable. I think you need plain between them so they can really shine.
As with everything, you will get lots of opinions, but you should finish it, they are just too cute not to!

I think Sue enjoys butterflies but this print may be too busy for the sashing. Since you've already taken this apart, you are ready to try again. It looks like her bonnets are dark blue and it might be that the same "color" will highlight Sue instead of distract from her. With all the work you've done on that, you want people to see Sue, not the sashing. Try taking a couple of blocks to the store and put them on some fabrics there and see what the possibilities are. Remember the color wheel when choosing something. You've got blue (I think) and yellow--where to go from there? Sometimes I pick out fabrics and put them on the living room floor for a few days to walk by it to see if I like it over and over--and with the changing light of the hours. Just tossing out an idea--to tame that yellow that you don't like now, what would it look like to put some triangles on the corners?--snowball blocks? But you may not have enough room to do that? Just play with it but you have some really cute blocks. Don't give up! From here I think I might like to match the sashing to the bonnets.

I liked the idea of the rust or soft brown to match B.F.'s too much yellow is a bad idea

I like it! Add yellow to border? YES!

Please tell me you did NOT rip that quilt apart???? I love it . I had one I felt the same way about, but I do not rip out. After all that work I would just give it to my sister who rips out everything if it is not just right. I loved the colors. I loved the quilt. Maybe we could post pictures of the quilt tops we have that we hate and trade for someone elses they hate. LOL

I am always amazed by how colors can "change" dramatically according to what fabric you put next to it. I think you can tone down that bright yellow if you find a different sashing fabric. If it were mine and I had nothing suitable in my stash, I'd take a block with me to the fabric store and see if I could find something that would make the yellow more subdued while miraculously showing off the bonnets to their best advantage at the same time.

Sometimes a quilt block looks great all by itself, but a whole quilt of the same block is sometimes overwhelming. I like your Sue block and think she's well worth saving.