A La Moda

Making a start on a new project is one of my favourite things. I love the stages of the process, from the initial concept, through the head-scratching part (avoiding the prototype bit - they're the ones I keep for me!) & onto the glory of the finished item. aah heaven!
New ideas pop into my head all the time but the part of the process that eats up most of my time is the selection of which fabrics/colours/beads/yarn to use. Don't get me wrong, I love this whole 'hmmm, does the mother-of-pearl button look better on the charcoal or the chocolate cashmere?' type of question. In fact I could dedicate a full day to this kind of questioning but then I wouldn't get much done!
I know that many people find this stage a real hurdle - there are too many variables involved & they can lack confidence in creating colour palettes, hence the popularity of ready-to-go kits. The tricky bit's been taken care of & you are free to skip along the path of creativity without the heavy burden of wondering if you should have chosen the cream rather than the white. I've been thinking a lot about creating kits lately.
So I discovered a great website this week; it's by Moda Fabrics & is so much more than your average 'look at our yummy fabrics' kind of website. It's interactive & allows you to view projects with your colour/fabric choice! The FabricMatcher allows you a crystal ball preview of your finished project... simply select the project & play around with the fabrics; hours of fun. No seriously, you can take my word for this.
The site also offers a selection of free patterns, a list of websites for 'giving back' and a great resource for colour theory. Everything you could need to gain confidence in putting your own palettes together & a whole lot of inspiration at the same time. Enjoy!