Blacktown Arts and Crafts Group Inc.

Choosing colours to use in your quilt is another opportunity to observe the similarities that the craft has with “fixer-upper” projects undertaken by do it yourselfers. In this case, quilters can use a tool that has been employed by painters and decorators for many years; the colour wheel.

What is the colour wheel?

The colour wheel is a circle-shaped piece of equipment that depicts several different colours that the quilter or painter can choose from. These wheels are printed on many different types of surfaces; in fabric shops there may be wheels made from solid wood or even metal; they are very durable and can withstand numerous touches and spins from all the people that handle it. Paper colour wheels are less durable and are meant for personal use.

Some colour wheels have more colours on them than others, but all colour wheels will include the primary colours; red, yellow, and blue. These colours will be separated by an equal amount of spaces. The spaces in between the primary colours are the colours formed by mixing varying amounts of each colour together; secondary colours )orange, blue, and violet) are located halfway between each primary colour combination, as they are the result of mixing equal parts of each colour.

The colour wheel as a quilting tool

In any quilt there are going to be sections that draw the eye and stand out, even if the quilt uses only one colour (monochromatic). Monochromatic quilts can use shades and tints to make particular pieces stand out, highlight, or recede.

As the most dominant of the pure colours, yellow is placed at the top of the wheel. The dominance of the colours is also determined by the amount of gray added to each colour. Along the right side of the colour wheel are the warmer colours. These colours will naturally draw the eye to where they are placed on a quilt, while the cooler colours on the left will complement and help to highlight dominant colours in a quilt with a multi-colour scheme. Warm colours can even mean that darker patches on the quilt will recede, due to the natural progression of the eye.

The best use of your colour wheel in your pattern will happen after you determine the type of quilt you want to make. Monochromatic quilts are the easiest; one colour means that all you are dealing with are shades and tints, none of which are depicted on the colour wheel. A colour wheel is not really needed when it comes to these designs.

On the other hand, a colour wheel is pretty important when it comes to analogous or complementary quilts (unless of course you are naturally gifted at colour determination!). Complementary quilts utilize colours that lie directly opposite each other on the wheel; an example is a primary colour with the secondary colour created by mixing the other primaries. These colours can be used most effectively as borders.

Analogous quilts use colours that are located beside each other on the wheel. They create a natural blending, as each one has a colour in common with the one beside it. The colour wheel in this case is crucial in determining which colours are analogous with each other.

There is a lot of confusion when it comes to using a colour wheel. It is simply a tool that makes choosing different patterns and colour schemes easier for the individual quilter. Using one does not mean that you have to go out and buy a whole bunch of new fabric, and it certainly does not mean that you have to dye your own fabrics in order to use it. Instead, just think of a colour wheel as a way to cut a lot of guesswork and time out of the process so that you can jump straight into the quilting without fear of the final work appearing out of synch.