Hello all, Mary Ellen here.

When you were a kid did you find that certain crayons in the box got worn down and broken very fast, while some of the colors still had the pristine unused points from the factory? I sure did. And that sharpener built into the back of the box did not do the trick–AT ALL! I would want a new box of crayons when my favorite colors were wearing down.

Did you see the article in Friday’s Buffalo News about color combinations? What combinations say summer to you? What combination is your go-to when you are making a new quilt? I find that if I don’t force myself to get “out of the box” that I will always be drawn to something with purple, and hot pink in it. I used to be drawn to shades of blue, as would be evident if you could see my stash, but I’ve moved away from using that so much. In 2015 I set a quilting resolution for myself to use more orange in my quilts. I would find when I went to quilt shows or new quilt shops that I would be drawn to the quilts using shades of orange. Not always as the main color, but at least a splash. So I decided to try it out for myself. And I would count that resolution as a success for me. Many, not all, of the things I made in 2015 had bits of orange and I really like the “pop”  that orange gave to those quilts. This year my resolution is to stay away from white and cream backgrounds and go for either other colors (gray is my current favorite), or to have pieced backgrounds. My most recent project completed (except for the quilting) is a log cabin topper which is in shades of orange, red, lime green, and turquoise-Pat Sloan’s line- and I love the cheery summer look it has. The light half of the log cabin had no completely white or cream fabrics. I either used other light colors, or prints mixing cream with one of the main colors. This is the third topper I have made from the same pattern. The first one was in darker green and red tones, the second in blue, cranberry and ivory. This third one is my favorite by far.

What is your go-to color combination? I challenge you to add a new color to the mix, or to step away entirely for a project or two. Please leave a comment and tell us your favorite combination, or how you plan to give yourself a challenge.