Thursday 2 June 2016

out of the wardrobe {finally}

... somehow I deleted yesterday's ramblings!
So here, briefly, is version #2 of 'the lost post'




'Throwback Thursday' on the first Thursday of each month is a chance to link up a blog post about a project from your dark, quilty past. So I thought it was time to get this quilt out of the wardrobe for a bit of an airing.







It's a traditional quilt I made a while back, maybe almost 10 yrs ago. I remember buying the fabrics from Cheryl at 'allthingspatchwork' my not-so-local patchwork shop. They were a range from 'In the Beginning' and I think it was what we called a 'blended' quilt, where the colours all kinda merged.

But the overriding reddish-brown look of the finished quilt dominated too much, it just didn't do it for me, and the quilt ended up on the shelf in the wardrobe, unused. And I must say, over the following years, I tended to avoid using many brown fabrics.  











Revisiting older quilts can be heartening though. I can see real changes over the years in my colour choices and improvements in my piecing skills.
And, the good news is that this quilt isn't going back into the wardrobe! I'm gifting it to my 90yr old aunty, who earlier this week passed on several vintage pieces to me after cleaning out her cupboards. She can rug up warm with it while she watches T.V. sitting in front of her very old Conray heater!











AND, I'm also rethinking brown these days too. Little bits of brown are slowly creeping back into my quilts more & more, it seems to add a warmth, a good down-to-earth feeling.  Really, it's not 'just brown' is it? There's chestnut brown, creamy caramello brown, purple-y eggplant brown, tawny brown, cocoa brown...

... do you use the colour brown in your quilts?


Linking up this week with Lorna for 'show & tell' over here at sewfreshquilts
And linking up for 'throwback Thursday' here at quarterinchfromtheedge

12 comments:

Mystic Quilter said...

I too have a few fabrics pretty similar to yours tucked away! I'm sure your aunty will love it, there's nothing nicer tun being able to gift a quilt to someone you love.
You ask about using the colour brown in our quilts, well as you know I do have a few KF fabrics - most of those though have lots of other colours in there to break things up, but in general I have gone off brown in a big way! My husband loves brown, chairs, tables, chests - you name it - so because we have so much brown furniture in the lounge/dining area I now can't stand to use it in my quilts!! If I had my way I would paint most of it and do a Freddy Moran!

the zen quilter said...

the diamond pattern really utilizes the fabrics well. It's a lovely piece, even though you're "rethinking" brown. I find myself using lots of browns in my more artsy pieces - the ones that are more organic looking. But it can definitely be a tricky color.

Bonnie said...

I like the design of your quilt but I'm with you on the brown. Not my favorite color. The browns I have in my stash tend to stay there while lots of other colors get pulled and put to use. I can't seem to keep red on the shelves -- I'm always putting red in things!

Linda said...

No. Brown is a colour I don't really use and was always a colour I never wore as it didn't "do" anything for me. Now, however, because my hair is heading for mostly white, I find brown looks better on me and I am now the owner of a brown winter anorak and brown shoes. Perhaps brown will start to work its way into my quilts as well. I have found that the colours I choose for my quilts have become brighter and brighter over the years and that scrap quilts( the scrappier the better) are my quilts of choice.

Nifty Quilts said...

It's a beautiful quilt! I'm sure your aunty will enjoy it.

Linda @ kokaquilts said...

It’s interesting isn’t it... in traditional quilting brown was considered a neutral colour, but I think ‘modern’ quilters on the whole don’t seem to embrace it!
Now I think about it, I don’t wear brown either!
And I too love making scrap quilts, you can get away with popping in all sorts then, the good, the bad, and the brown!

Linda @ kokaquilts said...

Thank you LeeAnn!
I was beginning to feel a bit sorry for this quilt, nobody loves it!
But now there’s you :)
and Aunty Freda (She loves anything I make!)

helenjean@midgetgemquilts said...

Strange you mention brown . On the face of it I don't do brown but I seem to had accumulated rather a lot of brown . I'm using it up slowly , with my dad and a year or two ago with my elderly aunt !

Lena Pugacheva said...

I like your quilt and the fabrics it's made of, it's got a vintage feeling that would not match every room, but for some it may just the thing. I myself don't use browns a lot in my quilts, but these are very much the autumn colors I like to wear))

Lisa J. said...

I'm glad you found someone to gift this quilt to. I'm also not crazy about brown, but I do know some modern quilters who love it. I also agree that it is a nice design.

JanineMarie said...

Oh, I am sure your aunty will love this quilt. I don't usually use brown, but I recently made some quilts from gifted charms that had a lot of brown in them and I loved the vintage-y result. I just don't use it in my own decor, but I found that the browns were cozy and warm. I really like your quilt because of the combination of prints and variation in values. That is what stands out to me--not the brown.

Jenn @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge said...

I'm not a fan of brown... but it has its place from time to time! I'm happy to hear that TBT has inspired you to get this lovely out of the cupboard and to a loving home. Your piecing is awesome! Thanks for linking up with Throwback Thursday @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge.