Ripple – the purple pillow – Penny Spool Quilts

So far this is one of my favourite Ripple versions of the new Ripple & Swirl pattern.

I love how the ripple effect is visible simply by choosing light and dark values of the same colour.

When choosing colours for a pattern like this one that relies heavily on contrast, it can sometimes be difficult to see whether a particular colour reads as light or dark. Here’s an easy tip: take a picture with your phone of all the fabrics together, then select grayscale in the photo editing options. It will be quite easy to tell which fabrics show up as light or dark, and which ones don’t provide enough contrast, once your eyes are no longer distracted by colour.

two stacks of purple fabrics, one light and one dark — My two piles of purple fabrics. I was pretty sure I had them well separated, but a couple of colours were still a bit iffy.

the same two stacks of purple fabrics, but in a black and white photo to show the contrast between the darks and ligths — Seeing them in greyscale shows the value so much more clearly.

Of course, I had to snap a picture of the little pile of trimmings. Someone once told me that if the trimmings look good together, the colour combination is bound to look good in the finished quilt, too.

a stack of purple half-square triangles and a little pile of offcuts from trimming the blocks on a white background

Pattern: Ripple & Swirl by me
Fabrics: Kona Solids by Robert Kaufman
Lights: Lavender, Orchid, Petunia, Princess, Amethyst, Lupine, Lilac and Pansy.
Darks: Velvet, Heliotrope, Tulip, Mulberry, Dark Violet, Purple, Crocus and Midnight.