The Violet QAL - Picking Your Rainbow Fabrics

I was excited to hear that some of you are going to be making the rainbow version of the pattern! Since I couldn't resist, I will be making one too. The pattern only has instructions for the lap size for the rainbow version, but if you want to make one of the other sizes, it isn't too difficult to figure out using the lap size instructions as a guide.

My original plan for the rainbow version was to go crazy with neon, but since I am trying to keep to using the fabrics in my stash, I decided to go with an Anna Maria Horner rainbow. The cover quilt is made with AMH fabrics so obviously I am a fan, but her fabrics make SUCH a good rainbow (see rainbow AMH quilts here, here, and here). 

Since the lap size is what the majority of people are making and that is the size of the rainbow version in the pattern, I am going to talk specifically about the lap size but you could extrapolate this information to the other sizes. Make sure to read through yesterday's post for more general information about picking your fabrics.

Making Your Rainbow

You are going to need 12 different colors here - so the goal is to find 12 colors in rainbow order that you would like to use for your quilt. You can start on whichever color you would like and include (or not include!) the entire rainbow. Here is how I broke mine down:

1. Red (in this case, my red was more purple so I put it before the pink - if the red was more orange, it would go after the pink)
2. Pink
3. Orange
4. Yellow
5. Yellow/Green - yellows that lean green
   
6. Green/Yellow - greens that lean yellow
7. Green
8. Blue/Green - blues that lean green
9. Blue
10. Blue/Purple - blues that lean purple
11. Purple/Red - purples that lean red
12. Red (which got lost somewhere and isn't in the photo) - I circled back to red since I didn't have enough options

My rainbow is made up of scraps and was based on what I had on hand. A scrappy rainbow is very forgiving! 

Other options

Now the rainbow option doesn't have to include the entire rainbow or even be rainbow at all - you could totally mix up the colors or go for more of an ombre look. I'm going to give you some examples below that would be a lot of fun.

I used Kona swatches to make the mockups and am going to list the colors that I used. Remember that swatches on the computer aren't always 100% accurate - I  hesitate to give exact fabric recommendations when I haven't made the quilt by myself so use your best judgement!

Cool Colors

1- Grass Green

2 - Fern 

3 - Holly

4 - Bluegrass

5 - Ultra Marine

6 - Glacier

7 - Breakers

8 - Caribbean

9 - Oasis

10 - Celestial

11 - Regatta

12 - Cadet

Warm Colors

1 - Azalea

2 - Punch

3 - Melon

4 - Dusty Peach

5 - Peach

6 - Creamsicle

7 - Mango

8 - Goldfish

9 - Amber

10 - Sunny

11 - Corn Yellow

12 - Citrus

Black and White

1- Shadow

2 -  Ash

3 - Pewter

4 - Medium Gray

5 - Coal

6 - Charcoal

7 - Black

8 - Charcoal

9 - Coal

10 - Medium Gray

11 - Pewter

12 - Ash

Pink Ombre

1- Sangria

2 - Azalea

3 - Camellia

4 - Melon

5 - Bubble Gum

6 - Baby Pink

7 - Pink

8 - Baby Pink 

9 - Bubble Gum

10 - Melon

11 - Camellia

12 - Azalea

Isn't it amazing how many different things you can do with the same pattern? Hopefully this doesn't overwhelm you with choices - I want you to be assured that many, many different fabric choices will work for this pattern and you should go with what you love!