For the last few weeks, I have discussed clothing, interfacing, and layouts, so I should also talk about the fabric I use in my quilts. Beyond the T-Shirts and clothing, most memory and T-Shirt quilts require other fabric, too. The sashing, cornerstones, borders, and backs are 100% cotton fabric usually, and I only use 100% high quality quilter’s cotton. My favorite brands are Kona Solids and Art Gallery Fabrics Pure Solid lines. Between those two companies, I usually have no problem finding the right color to meet clients’ needs and desires. Bella Solids also have lovely colors.
Quilting cotton typically come 40”-45” wide on the bolt, but sometimes I can use 108” wide cotton fabrics, too. I tend to keep black, charcoal gray, light gray, white, navy blue, royal blue ,and red in stock because those are common colors requested. I also meet local customers at local quilt shops like Cary Quilting Company in Cary, Bernina World of Sewing in Raleigh, Sew Happy Fabrics in Clayton, and Sew There! Quilts and More in Angier. These shops have excellent fabric and staff who make shopping wonderful, and they are kind enough to share my information with their customers, too. Not local to me but worth the trip, I also love The Mountain Thread Company in Boone, NC…I could go on and on about fabric shops! A blog is definitely in order!
Chocolate Cuddle back…look at the way the quilting looks so lovely, and it feels so soft.
This lovely blue bird fabric in the style of Chinese pottery is gorgeous, and I ordered it for a customer from Spoonflower.
I can also use flannel fabrics for memory quilts. And sometimes customers want an extra soft back, so I use Cuddle fabric for them. I also love ordering fabric from Spoonflower. They are an on demand fabric printing company. They print my labels for me, and I have ordered fabric for customers several times from them. Spoonflower has a huge catalogue of surface designs or you can create your own design and have it printed, like my labels. I find Spoonflower particularly helpful when customers want more niche novelty fabrics.
I have also used sheets provided by customers for parts of quilts, too, and now digital printing allows for so many beautiful fabrics—there are so many options! And I am fond of saying that just about any fabric combination can work for a T-Shirt quilt. Most T-Shirt quilts, unless they are thematic in some way, have a lot of colors and graphics represented. The shirts themselves may seem disparate and eclectic, making choosing fabric seem difficult. Honestly, the borders help pull everything together. The shirts or clothing represent a life lived and living, and the fabric merely acts as a frame for those memories.
108” wide back fabric bolts stacked against the wall. They will go on the shelves when they are built in the studio hall.
When choosing fabrics for quilts, I usually start with what customers want. Is it a memorial quilt? Are there colors that represent that person or some aspect of their lives? Do you want to use favorite colors or do you have a room with particular colors where the quilt will live? Mostly customers already have an idea in mind when they commission a quilt, but sometimes they don’t. In both cases picking out the perfect fabric is a fun challenge for me, and I really don’t tire of looking at, touching, and exclaiming over fabric. Can you tell I love my work?
Happy Quilts!
Ginger
Reading Now: I’m am further along in You Can’t Go Home Again, and I finished the Louise Penny mystery I was reading. Now I have to choose a new book…like fabric, I have so many tantalizing choices!
Real, honest, fact based reporting is more important than ever, and I find NPR offers me the best news source. Everyone if welcome here. Kindness is everything. Fabric makes beautiful rainbows.