TIP: Coordinating Fabrics Online....Before Buying!

Let's face it - today's fabric buying options are quite slim...quality fabric shops are hard to come by (I don't consider Jo-Anns a quality fabric shop) - so unless you are one of the lucky few who happen to live near one, you are pretty much limited to purchasing your fabric over the internet.  Unfortunately, it is not ideal, since most people want to touch, compare and experience the fabric (impossible online).  So, today I'm going to share with you a few tips on how I manage this not so ideal situation.

Have you ever wanted to make something that requires two or more fabrics and you just weren't sure how to go about doing so when you can't put the fabrics side by side?

Option 1: Purchase from within the same collection
Okay, this is the obvious choice.  Designers collections are made to coordinate.
This is the easiest way to go by far, but maybe you aren't crazy about the collection, or you are just looking for something "different"....if that's the case, keep reading....

 
Option 2: Use Retailer Tools
Some of the larger fabric retailers have created some awesome tools to help....Here are some of my favorite:
Fabric.com
Design Wall

This tool lets you put any of the site's swatches onto a design wall where you can move the fabrics around to see what you like.  Then, when you decide, there is a quick order tool on the left of the wall where you can input your yardage.  Couldn't be easier!

 "You May Like" suggestion bar:  When you click on any fabric it will make some suggestions for you.  I've found many fabrics through this bar!

Hawthorne Threads is another great site with awesome tools.
When you click on any fabric, the site shows you:
Coordinating Prints from the same collection

The collection in other colorways:

If available, handmade items made with the fabric:

And you can then click a bar with the color from the print you want to coordinate with and it will bring up fabrics with that color (NOT just from that collection)

And even better, if you click on one of those color bars, you can search colors by dominance in the print!

This offers the best tools for coordinating that I have come across....If they offered a design wall, it would be perfect!

Option 3:  Do an Etsy search
This is another great option.  There are so many creative folks out there....see what they are up to!  Simply head over to Etsy and type in the fabric name or color (under handmade).  Hopefully some images will come up and you can browse the creative minds of others.  The only challenge with this is that you may find a fabric combo you love, but the seller may not have listed the names.  In this case, you may want to contact the seller and politely ask what they used....compliments go a long way!

I hope these tips help you out with the task of online fabric purchasing.  Good Luck!