Lets Talk About Quilt Background Fabric.

I have an affinity for gray or back background quilts. Initially, I had seen a black background quilt with bright bold colors and I thought it just absolutely made the quilt pop. So I made one. And I fell in love with it! I made the Breezy Windmills pattern by Missouri Start Quilt Company. It was a simple and quick quilt to do. Years later it still sits on my couch and it is the one I grab to take a nap or just get cozy. What I found with this quilt is I don't have to worry about spills. It stays on my couch fall, winter and spring, And I looks just as good as it did the day I finished the binding on it. I have since made another black background quilt, but I made a few other choices with that one that keeps that one on reserve. While it is still also on my couch for looks, I really only use it when it is really cold because I used a minky backing and a really thick batting and it is just to hot and heavy. So that's a topic for another day. Solid fabric has been slightly less expensive then other backing fabric options. Even if you use quilt shop solids. When I incorporate a solid fabric, I usually use the big box store fabric. I would guess about half of the time the big box store solid fabric works nicely with the fabric I am using. I grew up fairly poor and to this day I am extremely money conscious. My daughter calls me the "Clearance Queen". You can see I didn't even spare the left over bits, I just added them to the quilt which made it that much larger.

There are certain quilts that just call for a small pattern background fabric. If I am using an entire line and there is just the right background fabric that calls to me. Then I use it. Usually Moda gets me. They just always seem to have at least one really cute ditsy pattern screaming to be used as the background. It very much depends on the pattern I have chosen and the cost I am willing to pay. In the quilt below I was so close to using a fabric from that line for the background. You can see there were several from that line that would make a great background fabric. I did not use a pattern for this quilt, I just had an idea and started sewing it up. In the end, I knew I didn't know how to actually get those pieces outside of the star to form a square and I knew I didn't want to pay to get more fabric when I messed it up. Good choice, because I did end up needing a couple more yards of fabric from a few mistakes. I could have used a gray or back background for this quilt, and I'm sure it would have been fine. I believe this was Kona Snow. And it just felt right for this quilt to me. If memory serves me right this line was All Hallows Eve by Fig Tree & Co. This quilt has a matching pumpkin wall hanging and they come out for fall season. The wall hanging has the same background fabric and the same quilting design was used, so they are definitely a pair.

There are some fantastic "texture solids" or "blenders" that would make fantastic backgrounds. The past few years there are some really great ones. My all time favorites is Thatched by Robin Pickens for Moda. A close second to me is Speckled by Rashida Coleman-Hale for Ruby Star Society. But I am not sleeping on Stonehenge by Linda Ludovico for Northcott.

I feel like the only off limits background fabric is a large print, or a "focus fabric". Except If I ever invert a pattern. A concept I have briefly entertained. This seems to be a universal rule in general. I am a fan of trying new things. If you would like to share a story about your background fabric choice, you can email bre@breezyquilts.com.