Table Of ContentW
CRAFTS/Quilting Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr
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SEE COLORS IN A NEW WAY a Q U I L T S
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Master the illusion of transparency with ten quilt projects, r
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each with instructions for three sizes—wall, lap, and bed
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Design experts Ringle
and Kerr show you
how to select fabrics for
striking, modern results
These quilts have sophisticated style with a soft, graphic
look to update any home décor
C
10812 US $27.95 &
ISBN 978-1-60705-354-5 T 10 Modern Projects
52795 P
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Keys for Success in Fabric Selection
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9 781607 053545 IN From the Modern Quilt Studio
Also available as an eBook G
Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr
Q U I L TS
TRANSPARENCY
10 Modern Projects
Keys for Success in Fabric Selection
From the Modern Quilt Studio
Text, Artwork, and Photography copyright © 2011
by Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr
Photography copyright © 2011 by C&T Publishing, Inc.
PUBLISHER Amy Marson PRODUCTION EDITOR
Alice Mace Nakanishi
CREATIVE DIRECTOR Gailen Runge
ILLUSTRATOR Bill Kerr
EDITOR Lynn Koolish
Style photography by Jim White
TECHNICAL EDITORS Helen Frost
and Gailen Runge Flat quilt and sample photography by
Christina Carty-Francis and Diane
COVER/BOOK DESIGNER Kristy Zacharias
Pedersen of C&T Publishing, Inc.
PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Jessica Jenkins
Published by C&T Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 1456, Lafayette, CA 94549
All rights reserved. No part of this work covered by the copyright hereon
may be used in any form or reproduced by any means—graphic, electronic,
or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or informa-
tion storage and retrieval systems—without written permission from the
publisher. The copyrights on individual artworks are retained by the artists
as noted in Transparency Quilts. These designs may be used to make items
only for personal use or donation to nonprofit groups for sale or for display
only at events, provided the following credit is included on a conspicuous
label: Designs copyright © 2011 by Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr from the
book Transparency Quilts from C&T Publishing, Inc. Permission for all
other purposes must be requested in writing from C&T Publishing, Inc.
Attention Copy Shops: Please note the following exception—publisher and
authors give permission to photocopy pages 108 and 109 for personal use only.
Attention Teachers: C&T Publishing, Inc., encourages you to use this
book as a text for teaching. Contact us at 800-284-1114 or www.ctpub.com
for lesson plans and information about the C&T Creative Troupe.
We take great care to ensure that the information included in our products is
accurate and presented in good faith, but no warranty is provided nor are results
guaranteed. Having no control over the choices of materials or procedures
used, neither the authors nor C&T Publishing, Inc., shall have any liability
to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused directly or
indirectly by the information contained in this book. For your convenience,
we post an up-to-date listing of corrections on our website (www.ctpub.com).
If a correction is not already noted, please contact our customer service depart-
ment at [email protected] or at P.O. Box 1456, Lafayette, CA 94549.
Trademark (™) and registered trademark (®) names are used throughout
this book. Rather than use the symbols with every occurrence of a trademark
or registered trademark name, we are using the names only in the editorial
fashion and to the benefit of the owner, with no intention of infringement.
Ringle, Weeks.
Transparency quilts : 10 modern projects : keys for success in fabric selec-
tion : from the Modern Quilt Studio / Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-60705-354-5 (soft cover)
1. Quilting--Patterns. 2. Patchwork--Patterns. 3. Color
in textile crafts. I. Kerr, Bill, 1965- II. Title.
TT835.R556 2011
746.46--dc23
2011026616
Printed in China
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
It’s a standard thing to thank one’s editors, gracious enough to let us take over their
but we’d like to say something different. beautiful homes for our photo shoots. We
We’ve been just amazed by all the people at are indebted to them for their generosity
C&T Publishing. In addition to our wonderful and support.
editors, Susanne Woods (acquisitions editor)
Our fabulously talented intern, Jane Arvis,
and Lynn Koolish (developmental editor),
a student at Dominican University, is a
we’ve been so impressed with everyone else
whiz at both sewing and graphic design. In
we’ve dealt with at C&T. Kristy Zacharias,
addition to cutting countless yards of fabric
our book designer, has been so enthusiastic
and piecing some of the quilts in this book,
about our work, and we are grateful that
Jane also helped with yardage calculations
she designed a book that shows our quilts to
and color variations in the pattern section.
their best advantage. The marketing people,
We are grateful that Dominican University
the publicity people, the people who ship
made it possible for Jane to work with us.
our books, and of course Amy Marson, the
Thanks also to the always hardworking
publisher, work hard to make us look good
Sandra Vega, who has been particularly helpful
and create opportunities for us. We are truly
with cutting and preparing kits. In the midst
grateful for their energy and intellect.
of this book and a myriad of other projects,
We also feel lucky to be able to work with
Sandy has been a calm and reliable presence.
our photographer, Jim White. Jim’s attention
Our daughter, Sophie, has become a great
to detail and lighting is evident in the styled
helper in our studio in addition to being a
shots in this book, and we are grateful for
delightful energy in our lives. Sophie also
his expertise.
generously lent us her pink bedroom for the
Mickey Sweeney and Thom Barthelmess,
Sweet Talk photo shoot. Thanks, Sophie!
along with their respective sweet dogs, were
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 3
4 TRANSPARENCY QUILTS
7 INTRODUCTION
9 TRANSPARENCY
10 Understanding Color
12 Creating Transparencies
Yellow Plus Blue Doesn’t Have to Equal Green • Color
Balancing in Transparencies • Dominant Transparencies
• Case Study: Developing a Color Variation
15 Fabric Selection
Using Prints • Choosing a Field Color
16 What Doesn’t Work and Why
Sample Palettes
21 QUILTS
22 Mint Julep
CONTENTS
30 Share and Share Alike
38 Whisper
46 Hello Sunshine
54 Madras
62 Bungalow
68 Small World
76 Next in Line
86 Sweet Talk
94 Tartan
102 QUILTING AND BATTING OPTIONS
104 BINDING
108 TEMPLATES
110 RESOURCES
111 ABOUT THE AUTHORS
CONTENTS 5
6 TRANSPARENCY QUILTS
INTRODUCTION
We love color, but we love the visual relationships
among colors even more. At workshops we teach,
we sometimes ask students to choose their least
favorite color; then we watch in fascination as
they come to love that same color when it’s in a
palette with other colors. Developing palettes with
which to make beautiful quilts does not require
fancy gizmos or prescribed formulas. It takes a
basic understanding of color theory and a bit of
focus when buying fabric. Our hope is that with
this collection of quilts, you will begin to see color
in a new way and grow in your understanding
and appreciation of color in the process.
INTRODUCTION 7
Many quilters associate quilting with individual blocks. They
love a particular block pattern, so they make a lot of blocks
from that pattern and sew them together to make a quilt top.
We have always had a different method of designing. We focus
less on the individual blocks than on the relationships among
all the pieces of the quilt. You’ll notice that some of the quilts
in the book use block construction and others don’t. Going
back and forth between design, color theory, and construction
is endlessly fascinating to us. It was through this interest that
we began creating designs with pieces that, when viewed as a
whole, give the illusion that one color is overlaid on another.
We refer to these quilts collectively as transparency quilts.
Making
In architecture, interior design, and product design in
transparency quilts the past half century, there has been a focus on making
materials seem lighter and more airy. Houses that used
requires time to to be constructed from stone and wood can now be built
as glass boxes that appear to float on the landscape.
think about color in
Televisions that used to be massive pieces of furniture are
now thin enough to hold in the palm of your hand.
a new way.
Similarly, the color options for quilting textiles were extremely
limited until the mid-twentieth century. Advances in printing
technology and textile production have given twenty-first-century
quilters color choices unimaginable to previous generations of
quiltmakers. Without such wide varieties of fabric available, we
would never have been able to conceive of transparency quilts.
Making transparency quilts requires time to think about color
in a new way. We hope this book will help you refine your
understanding of color theory and give you a new perspective on
how some of your favorite fabrics might be used in a new way.
We also hope that you might rethink some of your assumptions
about fabrics that may appear to lack potential but in fact can
play an essential role in achieving the effect of transparency.
Mostly, we hope this book will inspire you to take a little time
to play with color options before you start your next project,
because every project is an opportunity to learn something new.
8 TRANSPARENCY QUILTS
TRANSPARENCY
