March 5" Charm Swap - Color Theme Neutral
 

March 5” Charm Swap – Color Theme (Neutral).
Sign up ends Saturday, March 10th. Swaps need to be in my hands by March 21st, with final distribution by March 24th.

***The Color Theme for this month’s Swap is Neutral***

1. Color theme of Neutral means it needs to read Neutral. This could be tone-on-tone, whites, creams, or very very light tan. If you are unsure, please please contact me before sending.

2. You may swap up to 12 bags with 15 different 5" square charms in each bag. Please fussy cut if your fabric print requires it. Send the kind you hope to receive. Only send 100% quilting cotton squares!

3. This is not to be considered a holiday themed swap. There are many on the board who would prefer for the holiday fabric to be eliminated or kept to a minimum. If you are in doubt, please ask before sending.

Do Not Send: thin fabrics, homespuns, dotted swiss, denim, flannel, polyester or polyester blends, eyelet, wool, linen, fleece, knit, broadcloth, seersucker, Etc. Only send 100% quilting cotton, please.

4. Take your time cutting and be sure you have correctly cut 5” squares. No one wants wonky squares ��

Cutting/Packaging Method:
We will be sending 15 Different fabrics in each bag we swap. All your bags can have the same mixture in them, or different, but you cannot repeat fabrics in any one bag. We will be swapping bag for bag, so there must be 15 different fabrics in each bag. Please put your board name & location on every bag you are swapping. For instance, "Redstilettos, West Bend, WI".

5. Put all your swap bags in one big ziplock then affix a tag on it that includes your name and mailing address, as well as your board name. That will keep them together in your package and if it happens to get torn open in shipment - your address will be there for the P.O. to return to you. Padded flat rate envelopes are the best shipping method, the paper ones have a tendency to break open. You can order the padded flat rate envelops from the post office online, in packages of 10, and they are free. The cardboard type seams to rip too often for them to be realiable.

6. Postage: It costs $7.25 to ship the padded flat rate envelop. Please include a USPS Money Order for $7.25 in your big ziplock to pay to return ship to you. Very well hidden cash or stamps are okay as well. I cannot ship back to you until I receive payment. No personal or company checks, please. Also, Please put your board name on the outside of your package. I don't open these until I am ready to distribute, and having your board name on the outside allows me to keep track of any I may be missing, or allow me to give feedback to you when your package has arrived.

7. If I receive All swaps early, distribution back to swappers will be early, too!
Let’s aim to be early! If I do not receive early, distribution happen by March 24th.



I’m looking forward to having you!


If you have questions, please PM me,
Thank you!
Red

Pretty sure I can do this one, all the fabric is packed up, but my sewing room will be organized right after the kitchen!

Count me in!

I am doing this!

I'm in- this is really fun!!

Are you looking for primarily solids? I use small prints on white or cream or tan or gray for my neutrals. They may be too wild for this group. I'm pretty crazy with my neutrals, a la Bonnie Hunter.... Here is an example of what I'd use for neutrals:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]590031[/ATTACH]

Anything with a neutral background reads as neutral in a quilt. Most of these I pulled from your color swap baggies! I just set them aside in a neutrals collection. Please be honest and let me know if my idea of neutrals is too wild for you. I don't want to ruffle any feathers. And I can send tamer ones....

Got my neutral fabrics pulled. I plan to do the max number of bags. :) That third fabric is showing as a little darker than it actually is in person. I should've used my real camera to take the photo instead of my phone. ;) I'll try to get them ironed and cut by tomorrow evening. Gotta finish another quick project first.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]590042[/ATTACH]

Moonrise, I like your choice of neutrals. Sewbiz, not so much ... many of those are too loud and busy to be used as neutrals. Just my opinion ........

Sewbiz - I think some of your fabrics are okay, but some of them (to me) read as a different color. Like the one with the darker butterflies ... to me, from a distance, I see the dark color of the butterflies before I see the background color.

I've marked the ones "OK" that I would consider to be a neutral. I put "RAC" on the ones that, to me, read as a different color. And I put "??" on ones that, depending on the project, could go either way.

All of this is, of course, just my own opinion based on how I'd use the different fabrics. :) Luckily we all see fabrics differently, otherwise all of our quilts would be the same. LOL! :D<3

[ATTACH=CONFIG]590052[/ATTACH]

Moonrise - love your fabrics and those are what I would be expecting based on the description in the original post.

Sewbiz - nice fabrics, but to my eye many of those are not neutral, but will defer to Red as it is her swap.

I think my neutrals are more in line with Moonrise's. Different subject...Moonrise, without getting detailed or technical, how did you put captions on your photo? Is that special software or built into your camera?

It's a free computer program called PhotoScape. It has lots of editing features without being excessively complicated. :) Below is a link to it. If you download it, read everything carefully first. Many times, these days, downloads will automatically include extras (toolbars, etc.) that you probably won't want on your computer. You may need to uncheck a box to keep the unwanted stuff from downloading.

http://www.photoscape.org/ps/main/index.php

Ok, thanks for the feedback. It’s good to know what the group expects... safe neutrals. Not edgy neutrals...

Sewbiz, I am always very happy to receive a bag of your charms! There are really only 3 of your fabrics that don't strike me as true neutrals, the 2 center orange ones and the pink/red one on the left. Bonnie Hunter's idea of neutrals adds a lot of visual interest to a quilt. I have tried to expand my color selection in the last 2 years and it is really paying off. My past quilts seemed bland to me, but choosing a broader range of colors has made a lot of difference.

Thanks for the examples of fabrics that have been posted!

I love the neutrals in Sewbizgirl's picture. They are examples that will lend more 'life' and 'movement' to a project. Quilters that like Bonnie Hunter's patterns often use such neutrals because she has made them popular by suggesting to use them.

With regard to the picture of Moonrise, it's hard to see on my monitor, but some of them look like white-on-white or cream-on-cream.

Tone on tone type fabrics often have prints and patterns that make them pretty, cute, or unique in some way-- but with mottled blenders, would there be a lot of point in swapping that type of fabric? Won't such fabric be very similar, with the most difference being just the shades of color of the off-white or cream?

Could it please be clarified if WOW, WOC, or COC types of fabric will be used in this swap? There was a recent thread on the topic of the white-on-white type of fabric, which gave rise to some good points. There may be swappers that want to avoid that type of fabric.

Yes, nearly all of mine are tone-on-tone, with only three solids in the mix, and one cream with little navy flower shapes (far left of my photo).

I had an idea that I thought I'd throw out there. What if we had two back-to-back swaps ... one for "safe" neutrals, and one for more "edgy" neutrals? It's up to Red, of course, but that way everyone could join the one they prefer. Personally, I'd join both. :)

My gut feeling is that this idea may get confusing and crazy for Red, and would also divide the participation into smaller groups. It might be better just to let people send what they want and then the receiver can divide them however they like.

I also don't care for WOW and COC, or any fabric where the design is painted on. And as Givio has said, what is the point in swapping for whites, or anything that is so similar to what you already have in your stash. Maybe we could agree to avoid those fabrics?

Here's a great thread where WOWs and the the like were discussed recently:
https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f...f-t295172.html

I agree with Sewbizgirl- Let's swap like we usually do. Leave it to our "eye." The grays had "charcoal", "steel gray", "silver fox"....all sorts of gray- tinted blue to tan. I had no idea that "neutrals" could have a range as described by Bonnie Hunter.

I caught the thread on white-on-white and have experienced the painted-on design that comes off in the wash. I purchased a Moda WoW recently, and it seemed to be that way, too....just not as obvious as some I bought at Joann's.

Moonrise, thanks for the name of the software!

Sewbiz, I love your neutrals. They are different , maybe that is why I like them!

Whew the flurry of comments, love it!

I'm on the fence. I agree if we stick to only WOW or COC we would really end up with very similar swaps. But I can also see where sewbiz's ideas might be a little out there for some of us newer quilters.

I like the idea of using our best judgement and using our eyes to "read" the pattern of the fabric and see how it goes. I had a sneaky suspicion this could have been an issue when the color was announced.

I'm hoping we can all be open minded as to what people perceive as neutrals. If you get one or two that you normally wouldn't have considered neutral, maybe that is time for us to step back and go...hm....maybe I need to try this as one and see what happens?

Quilting to me is artistic in expression, and sometimes stepping out of a comfort zone is good. I just like baby steps for that. :D

Hope that helps!

I like Red's thinking...as I look at the 2 pics above, I basically have a lot of fabrics the same as or very similar to the ones in Moonrise's photo. Sewbizgirl's photo would be unique and I wouldn't feel like I paid double postage to swap charms identical/similar to what I sent in. Just my 2 cents, but I think pushing the limits a little would make for a much more interesting swap. Hey, it's neutrals, we gotta make them interesting Somehow :) Like the gray swap, I didn't even like gray until I looked through what I received and now I can't wait to use them.

Okay, I will see what "edgy neutrals" I can find.

I already cut, sorted, and bagged my "safe neutrals" early this morning while I had a few extra minutes, however, I'll re-stash them and use them for something else.

FWIW, I haven't had any of the problems mentioned in the WOW/COC thread.

Off to see what I can find in my stash ...

PLease don't feel worried...the more traditional neutrals are more than okay, too!

It was just my .02, and I'll go with whatever the group as a whole decides.

How's that for playing "Neutral"? LOL :D

Yay... glad you are open to some edgy neutrals! I won't go too edgy. :D If you look through the Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt threads, you will see quilts by people who are not comfortable with anything but safe neutrals, and some that are made by those who embrace the "edgy"... Bonnie's concept of neutrals. I find the ones with totally safe neutrals much more boring than the ones with the fun neutrals. I don't love everything about Bonnie Hunter, but the one really good thing she gave me was a much better understanding of "neutral".

The 'Tone It Down' quilt-along that was done by American Patchwork & Quilting a few years ago used the Burgoyne Surrounded quilt pattern. The pattern uses a light background and dark chains and circles. APQ called the background of their version 'low volume.' I think these type of 'low volume' prints seem to be what a lot of people now think of as interesting 'neutrals.' Try hovering your mouse over the quilt to enlarge it to see the background prints. You might have similar prints in your stash. :-) I just love this quilt! It's on my to-do list. https://www.apqshop.com/Tone-It-Down-p/qgr-00125.htm

I love that quilt too, Giv... Low volume is another term for neutrals. And as you can see from that quilt, although they are not WOWs, they do read as neutral.

One way you can tell if you can use a fabric as a neutral is to compare it to a grouping of neutrals and a grouping of colors. It will seem more compatible with one or the other. Sometimes just looking at it by itself is confusing, but the comparison method wont' fail you.

I'm not fond of edgy neutrals. I find that true neutrals to be more compatible and looks so comforting in the finish. I've been called a purist before & I can live with that.
I'll try the next swap color. Y'all have fun!!!
hugs,
dj

I'm right there with you. There's nothing wrong with being a purist. <3 True neutrals let the pattern of the quilt shine. In my opinion, edgy-er neutrals (brighter/bolder/busier prints) tend to compete with the pattern. If I make a star quilt, I want to see the stars shining, if that makes sense. :)

.....

My new packets of squares have something for everyone. There are true neutrals, some edgy squares, and squares that are in between. I hope everyone enjoys them and finds them useful.

.....

Just curious ... how many people have signed up so far?

Long time reader, First time swapper! I am in.. Could someone offer advice? If I Have to go pick up some neutral fabrics, what is the most economical way to go? Or as quilters do we even consider that? :)
Anxious to be a part of the group!!!

Welcome! :)

I like the sale section on Connecting Threads. You can buy in increments as small as 1/2 yard, which is more than enough to cut 12 squares from, plus extras for your stash. Sometimes you can also find FQ assortments that have a lot of neutrals in them. I racked up on FQs when they had their Black Friday sale last year. :D

I'm with moonrise, my trade will also include edgy and neutral. Have many neutral but will have to purchase some edgy. Poor poor me, have to go shopping.

Welcome Fizzle, I'm sure you will find this a happy group!

In my opinion, 'neutral' ought not to be really classified as a color, per se. It's a concept that involves a variety of colors, most often in pale shades involving a mix of white, black, and/or brown. If the pale shades involve other colors such as red or purple (resulting in pink or lavender) then they are often called 'pastels.' For example, you can use house paint to paint your room a neutral or a pastel. You can say, "My room is a neutral color," or "My room is a pastel color," but the sense of what you are saying is the concept, not the actual color. "What neutral did you paint it?" "It's a pale gray and I'm using an accent color of teal." "What pastel did you paint it?" "It's a lovely shade of mint green that reminds me of grandmother." However, with fabrics, there are solid colors and prints.

The colorful prints are not so easy to classify in a certain color. A print loaded with blue and green motifs might seem to one person to be blue, to another green, and to a third turquoise. Sometimes a multi-colored print with fairly equal amount of several colors defies being put into a color category!

Also, the prints are not so easy to classify as a certain value-- is it light or dark? That really depends upon what other fabric the print in question is paired with. For example, if you are using black, then a camel fabric may seem like a light in the finished product. But if you are using white, then the camel fabric may seem like a dark in the finished product. So, depending on what fabrics you are pairing, and depending on your point of view for color and value-- you may decide that a camel fabric may or may not be neutral.

When a print has a pale background and includes some motifs of one or more of perhaps a rainbow of colors there will always be various opinions about how to classify it... Imagine it hanging on the clothesline, standing back 30 feet from it, taking off your glasses, and looking at it. In that case, it might be neutral by anyone's definition! lol

There is no such thing as true neutral... it either is or it isn't. And we have differing opinions on what is neutral, so lets just send according to our best understanding and graciously accept what is sent. It doesn't mean you have to use the ones you get as a neutral in your quilt. It's still fabric, tho, and can be used somewhere! I did this with every single color swap I participated in so far, when people sent what I consider neutrals in with the mix. I just picked them out and put them in my neutral pile. The picture I posted is them, plus several more. No reason to sit out. You may miss out on some great squares!

Red - I'd like to join in on this swap!

Another place one can order fabric beginning in 1/2 yard increments is quilting fabric closeouts. They get end of season and small quantity closeouts and often have great prices.

https://quiltfabriccloseouts.com/?gc...RoCDQQQAvD_BwE

Oh pinkflowers, I am so glad you joined us again! We've missed you! :)

rb: oh you are a naughty girl after my heart. I just looked at that site....what wonder prices on their closeout fat quarters. Where was this when we first started our color themed swaps!

I have a feeling this is going to be a Great Go-To site for me!!

**happy dances all the way to the site to check it out more....my poor husband** LOL

Okay, folks,

I just checked out the site RJ gave us a link to. I ordered several pieces for an I-Spy swap I just joined, as well as a a few fat quarter bundles (comes to $2 each....nice!). I also ended up finding a few things for my Secret Pal swap for the month. Great bargains. And I like that I can order 1/2 yard of something. That way I can check things out before committing a huge amount of money.

Oh...did I mention the closeout sections where they have yardage for $5/yd? Nice!

Just purchased a new dishwasher (yikes did they go up in price since the last one!),....and now this purchase. I need to log out of pay pal and hide my credit cards for a while. LOL

About buying cheap fabric: I have a hard time finding fabric on sale that I don't have to buy 1 yard or more. But the Heirloom quilting company in NJ is the only on line store that I have found that sells sale/clearance fabric in 1/4 yard increments. They specialize in civil war reproductions and some of their neutrals are known as "shirtings". http://www.heirloomquiltingcompany.com/shoppe.htm
If you know of another on line store that does this, please PM me, because I love high quality fat quarters, cheap!
As for the neutral discussion, send me anything. I am not fussy or judgmental. I never met an ugly fabric I didn't like or couldn't use. Jane Q