The Zen of Black and White

There's a magic (zen-fullness?) to black and white. It's both classic and trendy, both chic and simple. 

Cathy Miles used our Black and White collection to make this little beauty, featured in Simple Quilts & Sewing magazine. What a great design, and so easy too! We asked her to share a bit about the design process with us, and she did!

"Black Tie Affair" by Cathy Miles
featured in Simple Quilts & Sewing magazine Spring 2013

Q. How did you come up with the design?

Cathy: This elegant fabric reminded me of formal attire, so it was a natural for bow tie blocks. I shifted them around until I liked the effect.

Q. What attracted you to the fabrics?

Cathy: I am usually drawn to bright colors & lots of them, so I was surprised at the appeal of this black & white group. It is frosted with pearl and the artwork is really something special.

Q. What is your favorite print from the collection?

Cathy: It's hard to choose a favorite. I like the teardrop-shaped black bits on white, but the random white drops with strings of pearls on black is also very appealing, and the large print that is on the back is worthy of a frame to hang on the wall. I know I already mentioned the glisten of pearls on the fabric, but we see a lot of gold accent on fabrics these days and the pearl effect is a much more subtle way to add interest to the fabric.

Q. What do you like best about the quilt?

Cathy: It reminds me of men in tuxedos & white dinner jackets- like those great classic movies with stars like Cary Grant & Bette Davis.

Blog editor's note: So more like this...

Image: www.weddingplanninginstitute.com

and not so much like this!

Image: www.inknburn.com

Q. What prompted you to design the quilt?

Cathy: Some days I just feel like whacking into great fabric and doing something that is finished quickly- this was a project completed on a rainy Sunday.

Q. What do you envision it being used for?

Cathy: Beyond gracing a table or buffet, it could be used for a dresser scarf, or an accent piece across the back of a chair or couch.

Q. Can you talk about the machine quilting?

Cathy: I free motion quilted it on my home machine. I wanted to keep it simple and let the bow ties dominate, so I used black thread. I did avoid quilting in the white spaces, and those were small enough that just quilting through the black pieces was enough for the kind of use this runner will have.

The editors of Simple Quilts & Sewing included a great tip--since black and white go with everything, consider using a "surprise pop of color" for the backing or binding!

See the entire Black and white collection here.

Find the kit for this project at Canton Village Quilt Works.

Find Simple Quilts & Sewing here.

p.s. If this fabric line looks familiar, that's because it's also being used in the Maine Shop Hop, running all through the month of April. Find out more here.