When a new collection of fabric ships to the shop in Atlanta, I have a tendency to check over and over and over again to see when it arrives. I have been known to make a special trip over to the store the minute it comes in to make sure that I grab a little bit for myself. Not every fabric, obviously, but the ones that I've really been craving, the ones that I've seen in advance and have been dreaming of running my hands over. The two most recent of those are sitting on my windowsill right now, waiting for me to find a minute to play with them.


I super love 1001 Peeps, the new line from Lizzy House--not only because the designs are awesome, but also because I love that Lizzy always THINKS about her collections. This one is intended to flesh out the colors of Castle Peeps and broaden the spectrum so that the two collections work together, which I really love. I love that the prints all revolve around the tales of Scheherezade, and that Lizzy has spent so much time incorporating the feel and time of the stories into the prints. I love that she's written an entire book based on these fabrics full of amazing patterns and ideas so that you can work with them right away to make something beautiful (naturally, we're carrying the book in the shop, too, so you can grab one as you're browsing the fabrics--I know I have a copy, and I luuuurve it).



The other stack I've been really eyeing and anticipating is Children at Play from Sarah Jane. I get an email from the manufacturer alerting me when a shipment is headed my way, and when I got the UPS notification this time, I just knew it was Children at Play. I was actually counting days until this was in the shop--and it's been flying out the door so fast I was a little concerned I wouldn't get any for my very own! Seriously: the web shop has been blowing up with orders for this line, and I hear that it's already being reprinted by the manufacturer for those shops who ordered late and didn't get their shipment the first go-round.



Easy to see why: the prints are individually charming and collectively cohesive and delightful, with no filler or throw-away prints to be found. Each one is really strong, and I can imagine using every single one to make some treasured toy or garment for my own kids. My biggest struggle was choosing a single print to get in yardage for a dress for my girls--naturally, that means I got a half-yard bundle of everything so I could "audition" each print. Because that's reasonable.

I'm holding off making quilts or larger projects from either of these collections until I choose just exactly the right Kona solids to go with them:



I think I might have mentioned my love affair with Kona solids before. Have I mentioned it? Because I love them. Love them, love them. So as I'm working with these newest collections, I'm digging through my Kona stacks to choose just the right Konas to complement the other prints. I like to make sure there's some negative space, some restful place for the eye, in each of my larger projects, and I find the saturation and richness of Konas always does the right trick. I would be ashamed of how many colors I've collected--if I wasn't so busy congratulating myself over them. Woot!

::Giveaway::

In honor of my Kona passion, Whipstitch is giving away a bundle of FIVE half yards of Kona in your choice of colors from the Whipstitch shop to Stitched in Color readers!

Just leave a comment here telling me how you decide what colors to use in your projects--do you use an online tool?  your eye ball?  always natural lighting?   your mom's advice?  What makes you certain that a particular shade is the right color for your project?  I jump around and use so many different techniques, and I'd love to hear from you how you make your decisions!

Giveaway is open through noon (EST), Saturday the 23rd. and ships anywhere in the world.