From Janet Wickell,
Your Guide to Quilting.
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Altering Color Value

Change the color value of fabrics in your quilt blocks and you'll see a difference in the quilt's layout. The quilts in our online quilt show are wonderful examples of what you can do by varying color value placement.

Remember that the fabrics you choose determine the dark and light value starting points. Put medium blue next to a white patch and it's a dark. Sew it adjacent to black and it becomes a medium--you are in control of the quilt's layout.

Optical Illusions

Understanding how color value and colors work with each other also helps quilters create optical illusions. Gloria Hansen's quilt, Squared, has a central area that looks like it extends well above the rest of the quilt. Karen Combs is another quilter who likes to use color and color value to create optical illusions in her quilts.

Look at this storm at sea quilt by B. J. Reed. Careful placement of lights and darks makes the design almost appear to move.