Join the Mystery Quilt Discussion, in the Quilting Forum. Members always share construction tips and photos of their projects.
Fabric Suggestions
Yardages for a 50 x 70 quilt, backing and binding not included. Yardages are generous, but plan on more if you want to make a larger quilt.
- print fabrics will work best, avoid solids
- colors are mentioned only to help explain contrast; your "dark" could be a fabric that might typically be regarded as "medium" -- it's all about how fabrics contrast with each other when placed side-by-side
Very dark print, such as black with a small amount of neutral, 1-1/4 yards
Very dark, but with warm color prints, 1-1/4 yards, (or a dark warm overall)
Medium neutral-to-slightly warm, 3/4 yard
Medium dark, like a tan or a brown, 1 yard
Multicolor print, not huge in scale but not tiny, should blend somewhat with others (in other words, doesn't jump out and hit you in the face), 1 yard
Deepest red/maroon print, 3/4 yard
Dark blue (cool), 1 yard
But Consider this When Choosing Fabrics
Your quilt will (and should) look very different from mine. That's part of the fun with a mystery. So choose fabrics you like that will also work together in the yardages above. Nothing should be a huge scale print but prints should vary in scale. At least a few should "read" as solids.Use my "warm" and "neutral" and "cool" designations if you prefer, and forget about the colors mentioned.
It's difficult to give guidelines for a mystery quilt, and this one's a bit varied. So choose what you like and have fun with it.
You also have the option of going very scrappy with the mystery quilt.
It might help to read:
Color Value for Quilters, and
Color Wheel Basics
Past Mystery Quilts
2010 New Year's Day Mystery Quilt2009 New Year's Day Mystery Quilt
2008 New Year's Day Mystery Quilt
Our Mystery Quilts get better every year -- I think you'll love the 2011 version.
