Art Gallery Fabrics - The Creative Blog

Welcome back, fabric friends!

I just want to quickly say thank you for everyone’s kind comments and feedback on my last blog post, Matching Fabrics Part 1: Color, it makes me so happy that you found it helpful. Which brings me to today, with PART 2, talking all about scale on fabric. Now you may ask yourself, why does the scale of each print matter? Well, you have to think about it like colors, the busier a print is, the more dominant color will be visible, which means you have to visually balance it with another fabric print that complements it. In every AGF collection, there’s always a good balance of scale, for example below, we have Trouvaille, separated from large, medium, and small prints.

Whether you have a full collection or not, It’s important to learn how to differentiate each fabric print in order to choose how to use them together. So, I broke it into categories below with some pictures to help! 

Large scaled prints

* Featuring collection: Dew & Moss, Her & History, and Enchanted Voyage.

Ok, starting off with the largest scaled prints, which I would consider the “main star” of the show! It’s usually the print in the collection that tells a story, the print that makes the loudest statement, or in simpler terms, the design or design group that measures about 5 inches or bigger. These prints are great when used as the focal point of the quilt block, and in order for them to stand out it’s best to sew with them with blender fabrics, or smaller scaled prints to create a contrast. Check out the example below! 

Make This Block

Medium scaled prints

* Featuring collections: Hello Sunshine, Oh, Meow, and Spooky ‘n Sweet.

Now to talk about medium-scaled prints, and I will admit this is a little more complicated to point out, but here are a few tips to help you. First, consider all the prints you are working with, is this print smaller than “main” print and is it larger than the blenders? This is the best way to point out the difference, it’s all relative to the largest scale print! Most of the time these prints usually have a very simple repeat, meaning they are very evenly spaced out or clustered together but not so much that you can’t identify the print from far away. Medium scaled prints are great for fussy cutting smaller shapes like squares or hexies! Use them for a pattern that requires small pieces larger than 2 inches, or sew them together with the larger scaled prints.

Make This Pillow

Small scaled prints  

*Featuring collections: Pacha, Meriwether, and Rosewood Fusion.

 Last but not least, the easiest print to identify is the small-scaled prints! These prints act as blenders, they have very minimal designs, the repeat itself usually smaller than an inch, and in many cases just as important. Blender fabrics are great because they are non-directional prints, meaning you can cut them in any direction and it won’t affect how the pattern looks. This is a great advantage when sewing with fussy cut prints and large prints because it won’t distract the viewer from the main designs! These fabrics are best used when you are working with small pieces or heavy patchwork patterns because you won’t be losing any design elements but still keeping the texture that solid fabrics can’t provide. For example, whether you are doing some applique or reverse applique, these small-scaled prints would be ideal to show off the cutouts.

Make These Pin Cushions

Now, who's to say you can’t use these prints by themselves! It’s all about balance. It depends on the pattern you’re working with, finding what may appeal to your eye. Large scaled prints are great for the backing of quilts, and if you want to cut it to smaller pieces because you like a certain element, do so! Even with small-scaled prints, if you pair them with some solids, you can change the game and make them the star of the show. At the end of the day, do what makes you happy and listen to what the fabrics are telling you to do. 

Fortunately, I am surrounded by creative people every day and I’ve gained so much knowledge after seeing the beautiful projects that are being made right here at the office. I hope this information is useful to you and it can help the next time you’re standing in front of your fabric stash. Stay tuned in a few weeks I will be writing a Part 3, all about BLENDERS! 

Until next time,

Happy sewing! 

- Jannelle

Hi makers!

I’m excited to share with you the newest collection from our own AGF Studio, called Flowerette! First of all, I must say I honestly adore the name of this collection. Flowerette sounds like a cute small delicate flower that you just want to pluck from the ground cause it captures your attention with its beauty. Its use of bright blues and reds gives it that nice pop of color in the prints, the same way having a vase of fresh-cut of flowers does to the atmosphere of your home.  

Flowerette is a collection filled with summery hues that set the mood straight with grounding emerald greens, blue tints, and vibrant reds. Bring the garden into your home with delicate and cheerful florals that will inspire you to create a myriad of dashing projects.

*Available in 12 Cotton Prints 

Flowerette comes in 12 cotton prints. Making it the perfect choice for sewing projects that can accent your home into feeling more unique and brighter with cheerful flowers. Which also means endless combinations for cheery quilts, table runners, and more. For more project inspiration that complements this collection make sure to check out our Flowerette Lookbook below!

DOWNLOAD FREE QUILT PATTERN HERE

Enter for a chance to win a fat quarter bundle of the "Flowerette" collection by signing up to our giveaway:

To enter our giveaway, just click here and enter your info!

Giveaway ends Friday, August 7, 2020. 

THE WINNER IS Nancy Page!! Please check your email to redeem your prize! 

Winner will be emailed and announced right here on this blog. Good luck! 

*Once you have entered the giveaway it's normal for your information to disappear. To confirm your entry check your email for a confirmation and approve it. By entering our giveaway, you'll be automatically signed up for our newsletters. Don't worry, we don't spam!

Welcome back, fabric friends! 

One of my favorite things about my job is being able to step into the warehouse and grab a variety of different prints to create a new group that excites me to sew something together. I'm lucky enough to step into a warehouse of fabrics, but I’m sure everyone here has their fabric warehouse of their own (haha) and you may be struggling on how to use it up together. 

Being able to work here at AGF, I’ve gotten the opportunity to work with such talented people and watch a collection from start to finish has taught me many things about how fabrics should be used together. Making a collection requires a specific color palette, a variety of scales, and blenders for the perfect balance when used in a sewing project! I've applied those skills when I walk into the warehouse, and today I'm excited to share with you the first part of my series, all about matching fabrics by color! So, the next time you go into your fabric stash you know exactly how to put them together to create something beautiful. 

The easiest way to pair up fabrics by color is by simply understanding how the color wheel works. 

Starting with Primary Colors (red, yellow, blue) is a great way to start a project if you plan on just using one color. Maybe you want to go for a monochromatic look, you can use either color but in different shades. You can also use them together, as long as they are the same hue to avoid them clashing.

*Featuring collection: Silkroad Fusion, Floralish, and Sisu.

Next, we have complementary colors, which are the colors on the opposite side of the color wheel. For example, red and green, blue and orange, and purple and yellow are complementary colors. This is helpful to know because these will provide the strongest contrast. Let’s say you really want to use your favorite print in your stash, and the main color is yellow, you would want to give that print the most attention by pairing it with purple prints. 

*Featuring collections: Marrakesh Fusion and Dew & Moss

Finally, we have Analogous colors, my personal favorite way to combine fabrics together. They are the colors next to each other on the color wheel! Like blue to purple or purple to red, these are the best to create quilts with color gradients. The next time you are choosing fabrics, think about which complementary colors you like, maybe you enjoy warm colors, so you choose all the fabrics that are red, yellow and orange for your next quilt! 

*Featuring collections: Matchmade, Nuncia, Spices Fusion, and Sisu. 

BONUS: Here’s a helpful tip if you’re trying to create a bundle around the one print you enjoy most, look at the colors that may be a part of that print! If there is more than one color on the design, use that to guide you for the rest of the selection of your bundle. Check out the example below: 

Here we have one of my favorite prints from AGF, it has these lovely floral designs but with a lot of other textures with different colors on it. From here, I will choose different fabrics that coordinate with these colors, and just to match the theme, they will be florals too. 

*Featuring Trouvaille fabric collection

That is all I have for you today, I tried my best to simplify it with the color wheel and I hope this can help you the next time you choose fabrics on your next sewing project. Please stay tuned for the next couple of weeks on the second part of my series, where I’ll be talking about matching fabrics based on the scale! Of course, if you have any questions about anything I said above, please let me know in the comments below and I will be happy to help.

Until next time,

Happy sewing! 

-Jannelle