Steve

Sew… I picked out the fabrics and proceeded to cut and baste my first Hawaiian quilt yesterday. This morning I got up opened the shades and low and behold the orange that looked a rich mineola shade under artificial light looks, well, quite orange but not the same. I read in one of the books to ask the store clerks about stepping outside briefly to see what the true color is; now I know why. Then too, I imagine that most quilts aren’t to be exposed to sunlight and will be viewed in artificial light for the most part anyway. Grrr… the colors still match but talk about learning a lesson!

Anyone else have a similar experience?

SandraJennings

Well Steve :? .....if it is any consolation.....it will fade with time. :lol: Don't forget stitching has an effect on the look of it as well. Have you thought of turning it over? It has two sides you know. If it is a solid...would sunbleaching a leaf or something work? Even the pattern itself in mini form???

Steve

That's true as well, fading is a natural process. For now, I'll just closed the blinds and pretend. :roll:

Steve

Equally true, the wrong side is often right with fabrics. Quilting is fun even when the lesson hits like a brick.

SandraJennings

Good to see you don't live in a glass house :lol: Will love to see it
8)

ShellyQ

Yessss, learned this one the hard way too, like most of my lessons :lol:
If it's important always try and pick your colours during daylight hours. Have also found in day light that all blacks are not created equal, you wouldn't think that there wouldn't much diff would you, but there sure can be, oh well it's meant to be patchwork.

Never mind it will prob fade with time and in a few years you may be quite pleased that you picked a stronger colour than you origionally intended :-)

Steve

Learned to slip stitch today (thanks Leslee) and am trying to figure my way through valleys and points at the moment. It seems labor intensive, but I imagine it's a lot like the hand quilting; once the stitch is down correctly speed increases.

Taking it outside and looking at it celery color is a bit darker in natural light as well. I still like the colors though it's very interesting to see how the type of light plays an important role in a quilt.

lin

I found it to be exactly like hand quilting Steve. I was soooo sloooowww in the beginning, but now I can applique a piece fairly quickly. You just get the rhythm going and you'll be amazed how fast it goes.

Leslee

Steve, the first quilters in the islands had only the fabrics the New England ladies brought with them on their voyages. From every story I've heard told, the plain cottons and calicos were puzzling and foreign to people who lived surrounded by vibrant, tropical colors. When bolts of bright turkey reds and deep rich golds were introduced, these were the fabrics of the first Hawaiian quilts.

The most fun I ever had in a fabric store was in a tiny quilt shop on Maui, where I was helped by several ladies who were yanking entire bolts of fabric off the wall and happily pairing royal purples with dazzling yellows, or a brilliant shade of emerald green with a blazing orange! The "oooh-ing" and "aaah-ing" and broad smiles that went on in that room was contagious! So does a lime green applique belong on a shade of blue the color of a peacock's tail? No worries! The only color that might still be considered an no-no is black, and some quilters are even shrugging off the taboo on it as well.

Enjoy your color match; Have fun, make the quilt your own!

Norah

We girls do that every day, Honey. 'Specially as we get older.
Shelly and Leslee have the true spirit of living with what you got and learning to like it. It will be beautiful. You wait and see. And most strong colors do fade over time, making it everchanging, therefor everinteresting.