Many shades of Black

Mom’s Candy Jar

Recently, my mom was working on her candy jar, quilt. It’s a really fun project that she began at the last retreat. Actually, she began it a few months ago when Mrs. Sherrie Carr gave mom a big box of candy fabric in exchange for processing/cleaning up all of Mrs. Carr’s fabrics. We will discuss how mom processes scraps another time. Once she had the candy fabric pressed and organized she bought a jelly roll (2.5”) and a honey bun (1.5”) in black fabric from the same online retailer. The larger blocks were for sashing and borders and the smaller strips were used for her jar lids and to “snowball” the corners of the jars themselves. Imagine her frustration when after piecing all of the blocks and cutting all of her sashing she realized that the jelly roll was a slightly different color black than the honey bun.

Mom came to me for advice. I told her that unfortunately this happens a lot. Not all black fabrics are the same, and it’s important to make sure you check that your colors are the same before beginning. In short, don’t assume that they are the same just because they are from the same manufacturer.

As with most things in quilting, there isn’t an easy answer for what black to buy. Sometimes we want the convenience of pre-cuts and not every pre-cut is cut from the same fabric. Even the same manufacturers can sometimes use different fabrics. This is rare but in my experience, the cheaper your bundle, the more likely it is that you will have blacks that do not match. Below I have listed the brands of black fabric that I use most.

Amish Black:  https://tinyurl.com/4e6dum64

My favorite black is Amish black, by Pineapple Fabrics which is sold exclusively by Keepsake Quilting. At least once a year they have a sale and I try to stock up. It is a very dark black, and the quality of the fabric is lovely. I find that it really does makes bright colors pop and is my first choice when black features heavily in my quilt. It comes in precuts, yardage, and even by the bolt. It’s a bit more spendy than other blacks, but well worth it for special projects.

Dream Cotton: https://tinyurl.com/69tx298c

Rumor has it that the Marshall Dry Goods’ brand Dream Cotton, is made in the same mill as the Moda Bella solids. I can’t confirm or deny, but I can attest that I use Dream Cotton for everyday quilts, small projects, and appliqué. It has a light hand and is very soft after washing. Because it’s not heavy, I use it for most of my laser cut appliqués as it cuts down on bulk. It’s affordable and comes by the yard, the bolt, or even in a 108” wide back.

Kona is another “go-to” and can be found all over the place. BE CAREFUL. Kona makes several colors of black fabric - including colors that look like black when they are by themselves. These lookalikes are often shelved incorrectly at fabric stores, and it’s important that you look at the end of the bolt to be sure exactly what you are buying. Kona Black isn’t the darkest black Kona makes, but it is the most consistent and it’s the easiest to find.

While Michael Miller makes a great “Jet Black” and Bella solids makes a nice “Super Black” I find that they are difficult to find and none of the stores near me seem to have it in stock when I need it.  Batik blacks often have a mottled look and vary a great deal from one another. Given how batiks are made, I buy enough black for the project I’m working on and try to use it up because matching it later might not be possible. That said, batiks magically blend together in the end - so depending on the project, having several black batiks might be just fine.

The question, you have to ask yourself is does it matter? My mom‘s quilt is a take on an “eye-spy” to play with my nieces. The way the different blacks interact almost looks as though it was done intentionally. It gives the quilt, some texture and subtle movement. Sometimes we want this difference, and can use it to create subtle shadowing or to highlight a particular block or motif.  You have to decide if the difference in black fabrics helps or hinders the overall impact of your quilt. My nieces won’t even notice the difference, and mom and I feel it gives the quilt more dimension anyway. The added texture from quilting will help to further blend the blacks together.

Remember that like all high value fabrics, that black is often dyed several times. In other words there’s a lot of pigment in the fabric that needs to be washed out before you use it - especially if you are using it next to a light fabric. I use Retayne or Synthrapol when I wash, along with color catchers to make sure I’ve got all the extra pigment out of the fabric before it goes into the quilt.  I always tell people to treat their black fabric as though it were red- you don’t want your beautiful contrasting quilt to be dingy later.

Mom’s Candy Jar quilt was modified from the MSQC Tutorial. She cut all of her scraps up to make a simple 2.5” x 5” piano key border that really makes the quilt special. I’m sure my nieces will love it.