For Quilters Only...

See Quilting album at

Quilting

For my quilting friends

Throughout this trip, I have been on the lookout for quilts, fabrics, ideas, and inspiration. The colors combinations have been astounding. Complementary color combinations are really common; red/green, blue/orange. Another really common color trend that I see is using a very bright, vibrant color and pairing it with a duller shade, for example, a bright chartreuse green with a dull rust. Some of these combinations are really stunning. I can absolutely see where Jinny Beyer got the inspiration for her color palette. The colors are very dense, deep, and saturated. You see very few pastels.

Fabrics have been a little disappointing, actually, mainly because I want quality cottons. The sari fabrics are fantastic colors, but are chiffons, silk, and blends. As beautiful as the color combinations are, I wouldn't use these fabrics. The cottons don't have the color vibrancy of the saris, and high-quality cottons are rare. Maybe the good stuff has been exported, hard to say. I have found very nice fabrics that have been block- printed by hand, so I do have a small Indian stash now. We're at the end of our trip, now, so I'm not too hopeful about finding anything else that calls to me.

 The stone carving, and to a lesser extent, floor mosaics, have amazing designs that can be used as blocks, borders, appliqué, and quilting designs. Check out the photo album. I'll probably try playing with some of these ideas to see if I can translate a few to fabric. Some are beautiful and very complicated, but a lot of these are doable. Let's think about a quilting retreat after I get home....I'm ready!