If you know me at all, you know that I’ll be making the upcoming Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt En Providence. I hadn’t thought much about colors. I often go with whatever Bonnie’s doing. I might change a color but I typically don’t do something completely different.
My friend Connie and I have been chatting about the mystery and she brought her fabrics when she came and she shared them with me. She used a piece of fun fabric a friend had gifted her as her base. She’s really changing things up and even using a black as the background. Wow…she brave…I saw her fabrics and they look awesome together. I can’t wait to see it finished.
I was tempted and actually ended up with a bundle of fat quarters from Whittles Fabrics. Last year I got fabrics for the mystery from them and loved it. So this year I opted to do the same. Whittles puts together a nice bundle of fabrics specifically for the mystery quilt. Check it out here. I love it. It made shopping and selecting so easy.
To add to the fun, this year they even did it so that there are two different options. This one is a brighter version…..
and this one is more towards a Civil War Version.
My house is more antique-y so I went with the Civil War Version. I often keep Bonnie Hunter quilts and these colors are my preference.
Another neat thing Whittles did was make it so you could order only the pinks, only the purples, only golds, only greens or only neutrals. That way if you already have plenty of one of the colors in your stash you can order only the colors you need. I’ll admit, I likely had plenty of all of the fabrics but I ended up with all of them. I like things super scrappy so these plus what I have are going to give me the look I like. There is enough to make the quilt with only the fat quarters in the bundle but…I want to through in some stash fabric too.
The price for the fat quarter bundles was great too. It ends up being only about $1.50 or so per fat quarter….Awesome Price!
Before I put in my fabric order I checked to see if I had something for a constant…Nope. That the trouble with my stash…it’s mostly fat quarters and fabric in my scrap users system. I rarely have any piece over a yard big. So I ended up ordering fabric for that from Whittles too. It was more of a reddish but I’m totally okay with that. TOTALLY.
It’s always a big of a mystery what fabrics are going to come and whether I actually love them or not…so here’s what I got…
I love it. I ended up getting a little extra of the constant. I guessed that I might want to bind it in the same color as the constant so I got extra fabric to do that. I’ll throw in some of my own to make it truly-truly a scrap-paloosa but what I have here is my start..and should I run out of time to pull fabric, there’s plenty right here. PERFECT.
Let the mystery begin….
Your fabrics are lovely. I don’t jump in the preparations for any mystery quilt, I guess I’m not a mystery person. I want to see the quilt before I jump in. I’ll follow along through you. Blessings, Gretchen
Your fabrics are very pretty ♥
Wanted to thank you for Whittles. They are in southern KY and a “drivable” distance from me or on the way to Nashville. Loved their website and prices. I am doing a totally scrap from my stash version and also choose a red for the constant because that is what I have and red is a garden color.
I may not do the mystery, or I may do it at my leisure, but I’m going to have talk myself out of ordering those fabrics! My birthday is just after yours. The fabrics may be my birthday gift to me!
I order from Whittles and think they are fabulous.
Love Whittles fabrics and the staff are great! Best customer service ever. Love your mystery fabrics. I was on the fence, but may have to jump in!
Gorgeous fabrics!! All my colours too! Sure wished Whittles took Canadian orders…:o(
I LOVE your colors so much more. More to my taste too! I was going to change up the colors cause I didn’t want to do brights. So this is a great alternative. Plus, I have a lot of civil war fabric. Thanks for posting!
Jo, Thanks for the fabric info! Have been meaning to contact you to let you know how much I enjoy your blog. I am a Civil War fabric lover also! Congratulations to you becoming a grandparent. Our first, also a boy was born in February. It is amazing how quickly they grow. Enjoy!
Thanks for posting about Whittles! I was wondering if there were any shops doing this.
Jo – If I wanted to make the quilt with brights, would I just need the first bundle on the page and then the constant fabric? Just wondering, Mary Jo
YES Mary Jo. I think that’s all you need!
Thanks for the info. I am not able to do the mystery right now because I have three quilts with deadlines hanging over my head. I will print out the directions, however. I love Bonnie’s designs. Some of the bundles they showed did not seem very close to her colors. Did Bonnie give actual numbers for the paint swatches this time?
The fabrics are gorgeous.
Through your previous postings, I also purchased my fabrics from Whittles. They have great customer service and the prices are very affordable. As I am a repro girl the colors they chose were perfect. If I need more, I can search my stash. Love your blog and what you share with us. Your grandson is such a cutie.
Jo, you are SO BAD to have made this post!!! LOL!
I have so many projects in the works and even more projects where I’ve got the pattern and fabrics, that I definitely don’t need to add to either pile. So I had already decided that I wasn’t going to even try participating in Bonnie’s mystery this year (after all, I’ve never really gotten beyond the first step in the past), but I would collect all the steps as they were released. And then she posted the colors and I had to speak very sternly to myself that I WASN’T participating so I didn’t need to get fabrics; that could all wait until sometime in 2017. And now you’ve done this post.
Can I blame you and not my weak will for my purchase of the Bright bundle from Whittles? LOL!!! Nothing is still going to be sewn before 2017, but at least now I have the fabrics! If Bonnie uses any 2.5″ strips of green or yellow, I might even be able to pull from my stash and save some of the fat quarters I’ve just bought! LOL