Questions and Answers - Vintage Fabrics
Part II
by Patricia L. Cummings
Q. How do I know which fabrics go well together?
A. Fabric designers today design coordinate fabrics. This can be a great help. In any particular new "line" of fabric, there is usually a main fabric and others which would coordinate well with it. Watch for the name of the designer on the fabric bolt end. Some designers, such as Judie Rothermel, Nancy Kirk, and many others specialize in producing fabrics that are either exact replications of a pre-existing vintage cloth design, or are suitable for use in reproductions because of the small scale of the print, and/or its colors.
Many old quilts are from the quilt maker's scrap bag. Knowing this, I began collecting small amounts of fabric that I liked, as I came across it at quilt shows. The end result is that I have many fat quarter pieces and some half yard units. If I am really taken with a particular fabric, I will buy one or more yards of it. That practice has stood me in good stead, because many of the quilts that I make, require just a small piece of this and that. I let the quilt that I am reproducing, dictate the colors I choose for the new one.
Shop owners are usually more than happy to direct you to sections of their stacks where reproduction fabric is to be found. For several years, 1930s reproduction fabrics have been readily available. However, do not count on them being there forever. Shelf life (and availability) of any specific fabric is only about six months. So, if you are planning a large project and do not want the heartache of running out of a certain fabric, buy extra yardage.
The black background fabric, a new fabric print in 2006 from Hoffman, was available for only about six months and then, no more was available. Always buy plenty of fabric for any intended projects.
I hope that this is at least a bit of an overview to what is really quite a broad subject. Have fun learning more about antique quilts and vintage cloth. There are many more books on the subject. A trip to your local library should turn up lots of possibilities.
See the directions for making the Christmas Stocking on another page of this website. As always, Happy Quilting!
Patricia Cummings
©Copyright 2002-2007. Patricia Cummings, Quilter's Muse Publications, Concord, NH. Write to: pat@quiltersmuse.com