Pair that Fabric - Retro Kid Cowboys

Can you tell I'm really excited about this fabric?, a photo by badskirt - amy on Flickr.

One of my favourite things to post about when I first started out blogging was buying new fabric and how it worked with my current stash. Rather than letting it weigh me down, I saw my stash full of possibilities. My stash was tiny then but full of hope. I really liked that way of looking at things.

I liked to mix and match and see what worked. I liked thinking about fabric outside of the collections. I liked posting and sharing my ideas with you. Somewhere along the way I stopped doing those sorts of posts because a close friend told me it was rude and boastful.

Yeah, whatever...

On with the rodeo!

• Retro Kids Cowboy - Spotlight exclusive
  
• Wee Wonderland pinstripe - Keiki for Moda
  
• Gold houseplans - Suzuko Koseki
  
• Lush Woodgrains - Erin Michael for Moda
  
• Pink Crossweaves - Moda
  
• Teal Pindots - Yuwa
  
• Picnic/Fairground - DS Quilts for Fabric Traditions
  
• Pezzy - American Jane for Moda
  

Because the background of the cowboy print is so light, I wanted to pair it with saturated prints with minimal whites and lights. I think that will make the cowboy print more of a focal point and help the illustrations pop out. I started with a pair of golden colors with Suzuko Koseki house plans and the Wee Woodland stripe. Both reminded me of the saddle, hair and accents. They give the pairing the warm sunny feeling to start us on the right foot.

Then I moved on to the woodgrains. When I think of cowboys, I naturally think of the wild west and wood saloons. I wanted to pair it with a softer woodgrain that didn't overwhelm the cowboy print. I weighed up Aviary and Lush and decided the Lush was a much better pairing because of its softer nature. I couldn't decide on a color and would probably mix and match all three in a quilt.

When making quilts or cushions, I like to give eyes a place to rest. So my next dive was into the solids. I pulled out two shades of Moda crossweaves in bright pink. The bright pink is a bit of an unexpected pairing with cowboys and indians, but pulls out some of the accents in the print like the neckerchief and flowers. I felt the crossweaves helped maintain visual texture and would keep things from looking too flat.

I moved onto the teal trees and birds in the retro print. Again, I wanted simple basics which didn't compete too heavily with the foundation fabric. Then finally, for just a hint of playfulness and a dash of bright, I grabbed some of the new pezzy charms.

A rather swimmingly good combination, I think. I'm happy again knowing my stash is full of possibilities. How about you? Can you think of any prints that I've missed that would make this combo zing?