Wednesday, January 16, 2013

When in doubt, wear red . . . .

That's a quote from Bill Blass.  Did you know Elizabeth Taylor loved red? The one thing we have in common, oh there is that diamond thing, who doesn't love a good diamond or two, but I'm not in Elizabeth Taylor's league when it comes to diamonds, but I digress, as usual, this post is about red.

Last fall, Kimberly at the Fat Quarter Shop asked me if I would be interested in creating a Blogger's Choice fabric bundle.  Sounded like fun to me, who wouldn't want to create their own bundle of fabric?

I thought I had it made whenI saw this fabric, Sweetcakes, by Doodle Bug Designs for Riley Blake.  Have you ever seen a more perfect fabric for someone like me, who loves red AND cupcakes!!  All I needed was a few pinks, reds and grays, maybe something with some dots,  and I would be done with my perfect little bundle.


Well a funny thing happened with my first bundle choice, Sinta selected her fabric for her bundle, a January bundle, and picked this fabric!  So if you want a bundle with this fabric in it you need to buy Sinta's bundle, click here.  (Sinta's bundle is adorable, you'll love it, and we're speaking again, at least we were before I wrote this blog!)

So on to plan B, and here's what I came up with.



My bundle is available in February, so between my love of red, and February being the month for red, I decided to put together a red and cream bundle that would work for any month and a variety of projects.

My bundle is made up of these fabrics:

French General Favorites - 13552-14
Old Glory Gatherings - 1077-15
Cinnamon Spice - 2701-12
Seeing Stars - 7811-88
French General Favorites - 13526-22
Cinnamon Spice - 2706-12
Somerset Shirtings - 35201-5
Prairie Rose - C3105-RED
Padstow Range - 35227-16
Homeschool - 35179-3
Chateau Chambray - 5921-R
19th Century Backgrounds - 0173-11
Muslin Mates - 9930-14
Primitive Muslin - 1040-38
La Crème de La Crème - LH03035-CROCR

I've yet to see the actual bundle, I selected all my fabric off of swatches from my computer.  I hope they look as nice in person as they do online.

I thought I would give you some ideas on what to do with my bundle of red fabric, 
how about "T Stands for  Thelma" (aka in some circles a Bibelot by Carrie Nelson for Miss Rosie's Quilt Co)


This pattern is made using 75 charm squares, I'm guessing you could easily get 75 5 inch squares from 11 fat quarter bundles.

How about Scarlet Letter by Sew Unique Creations?


My bundle would get you over halfway through the center of this pattern, it calls for 1/4 yard cuts of 8 red fabrics.

Here's a quilt on my To Do list that would be a good use of those reds, Scarlett Queen by Carrie Nelson for Miss Rosie's Quilt Co.



This pattern needs 18 red fat quarters, so you would need to add 7 fat quarters from your stash to have enough reds.

This pattern is also on my To Do list and another reason why I need some reds, Madder Stars from the Elegant Quilts, Country Charm book by Leonie Batemn and Deirdre Bond-Abel.



11 fat quarters from my bundle doesn't come close to making this top, but it's a good start.

Finally, here's the project I intend to make with my bundle, Chip.



It finishes at 36" x 36" and needs 80 2 1/2" squares.  This is a smaller version of Hubble/Hubbel, my Lifetime Quilt Number 91.  The whole time I was making that quilt I kept thinking, "this pattern would make a wonderful red and white quilt".  Now I'm going to give it a shot.

If you would like more information about the Bloggers Choice bundle or be notified by the Fat Quarter Shop when it's available click here.  

Maybe this would be the perfect little somethin' somethin' to put on your list for Valentines Day, it's not chocolate, but maybe it would last longer and look better on you than chocolate!



20 comments:

  1. It is a beautiful bundle! I have been checking it out for a while now. I can't wait to get one!

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  2. oh my I need this bundle for sure, I could whip up another quilt like I just finished in red and white OR a crumbler in red and white????
    now that would be perfect
    kathie

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  3. Love your bundle. Great choices of reds and neutrals.

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  4. dang it, Thelma - you know me and red!!! pink or purple or green or orange - anything but RED!!!

    HOWEVER, if i DID love red, your bundle is beautiful...

    and i love Sinta, but i'm holding out till you give me the pinks, reds, and greys that were your original choices because Sweetcakes is just too perfect to not come and live here with me, and i am far too color-challenged to pick my own accompanying fabrics...

    just sayin'...

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  5. How fun to be asked to do a bundle! Your taste is terrific, and I'm sure this will be a winner.

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  6. and by "give" i mean the numbers, not the actual fabrics ... i'm not quite THAT greedy...

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  7. Love this post, love red fabrics, and just bought the book with the star quilt, online, thanks to you :-))

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  8. your bundle is delightful and so you!

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  9. Way to go, Thelma! How exciting for you to be included in the Blogger's Choice.

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  10. Okay...so some of these would be really nice in the number #80 quilt you did and I have already received the pattern....nicce choices Thelma and looking forward to your "chip" quilt.
    Gail

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  11. Something else we have in common--I love red too! A beautiful bundle and, especially for February with "Red" as the theme for heart health, I am going to be ordering this, XOXO

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  12. I stroll the "coming soon" section weekly and saw your bundle. I immediately nodded my head up and down and said to myself, "That's so Thelma!" Yay! Love your bundle!!!!

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  13. Chip and Hubble are on my list for 2013 finishes. I love both of them and Chip in red/white would be stunning. Your bundle is very YOU. :)

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  14. You are so funny! I love the pattern variety that are possibilities for your gorgeous bundle! Too bad about Sweetcakes... I saw it first!!! LOL
    I love Madder Stars:) I still need to figure out which pattern I would use for my bundle (out of the contenders). Then I can wrap my head around the beautiful bundle you picked! Everyone should have at least one red and white quilt in their collection don't they?

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  15. Just this past Monday evening, the local quilt group I'm a member of decided that our 2013 project would be heart blocks, using red, pink, and cream fabrics! After reading your post today I decided that your red bundle will be perfect for this project! My name is on the list at FQS for notification... I'm excited!

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  16. So beautiful! What a great combination!

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  17. How exciting! I'll have to sign up for a notification. One can never have too much red in their stash!

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  18. Congradulations! To be asked to put a bundle together is quite an honor for sure. I am all excited for you. And you did a very good job at choosing the fabrics. Too bad for that Sweetcake fabric, it is so you!
    I have recently discovered your blog and I really liked what you were doing so I went back to your very first post and read them all. I feel like I know you now. You put so much of you in every post; you are not afraid of sharing your experience and how you feel about the quilt you are putting together (or the tool that doesn't working for you) that it is also a lovely experience for the reader. Thank you for that.
    I had my heart set on a Jewel Box quilt all with red scraps. Your bundle is what I've been waiting for. Thanks Thelma.
    Chantal

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  19. Beautiful fabrics, and so many gorgeous patterns!

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  20. RED IS BEST! Surely it suits everybody, well, it suits me. Words to live by: when in doubt wear red. And congratulations on being asked by the Fat Quarter Shop. I would do nothing they asked me to! They're so good, especially for us international customers who have to pay $22 per metre for quilting fabric.

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