• What is a Patchwork Quilt?
• Patchwork Quilting Tools
• Patchwork Quilting Guidelines
• Patchwork Fabric
• Anatomy of a Patchwork Quilt
• Patchwork Piecing Methods
• Quilting Techniques
• Rotary Cutting

• Buying Patchwork Fabric
• Choosing Patchwork Fabric
• Patchwork Fabric Properties
• Quilt Wadding Materials
• Jelly Rolls and Layer Cakes

• Introduction to Foundation Piecing DVD
• Cathedral Window & Secret Garden DVD
• Making Kaleidoscope Blocks DVD
• Trip Around the World & Bargello DVD

Choosing Patchwork Fabric

This can be one of the hardest things when you are starting out, but it will get easier as you become more experienced.

A good guideline is to choose at least three fabrics. Start with a fairly large pattern - a design that incorporates a number of different colours. Then pick two other fabrics to match the colours in the main fabric - one of these could have a small ‘textural’ design and the other should be fairly plain or a ‘marble’. Between the fabrics you should have a good range of Tonal Value; a dark, a medium and a light.

If you want to include further fabrics, don’t choose too many different patterns or the finished quilt will look too ‘busy’, and keep a good range of dark to light, which will help different parts of your quilt or block design to stand out.

Another option is to choose a monochromatic colour scheme, i.e. various shades of the same colour. Tonal Value is particularly important if you decide to do this.

Use pictures in books or magazines, photos from your travels or scenes from nature to inspire you with combinations of colours that work well together.

Look out for bundles of fabrics that were designed to blend together and then add in one or two extra fabrics of your own choice.