Fabric 101: Best Fabrics for FPP Projects

There are so many amazing fabrics to choose from when planning your next quilting project. When it comes to foundation paper piecing (FPP) some fabrics work better than others. Now I’m not a card-carrying member of the Quilt Police, so if there’s a fabric that brings you joy and you want to use it when you FPP, go forth and spread joy in your sewing space!

But if you want a few hints and tips on fabrics that work really well for your next paper pieced project, then read on!

First things first. You don’t have to limit yourself to using one type of print in a foundation pieced project. Mix those solids with a small scale. Use low volume with tone on tone. Mix and match all of the above. The following just talks about how some of these different types of prints work best with foundation paper piecing. 

Let’s start with the easiest! Solids!

I know, I know, I can hear some of you saying “solids? That’s boring, Kristy!” But let me tell you, if you’re new to foundation paper piecing, solid fabrics can be your best friend. The reason is simple – there’s no right or wrong side to the fabric, nore is there a set direction that it needs to be placed. That means when you’re foundation paper piecing, you can just grab that fabric and get right to piecing without too much thought. Much less seam ripping! 

I’m also a huge fan of using a range of colours in solids. You might have noticed I like rainbow – it’s easy to create a big rainbow with solids and use alllll those beautiful colours in your project. Pair them against a dark background and those vibrant colours will pop – and more importantly, let the piecing speak for itself. 

Next best choice – tone on tone prints.

Tone on tone fabrics are those where the motif/print design matches in colour to the background. They’re not the exact same shade (obviously or you won’t see the design), but they’re similar. From a distance, the print may even read as a solid. This is what makes it work well in foundation paper piecing. There’s no particular motif or design that has to be centred perfectly to work well in your piecing.  The colours in a motif won’t jar against the colours in a fabric sitting right next to that particular section in your block. More often than not, tone on tone prints aren’t directional either which is easier in paper piecing as you don’t have to line up which way your fabric is placed when piecing. They can also add just a little sense of texture to your piecing that solids can’t quite bring.

Here's an example pieced in rainbow but with all tone on tone prints.

And another using a textured line print – you can see in this one how it reads as solid from a distance.

A close runner up is low volume prints.

Low volume fabrics are those usually printed on a white or cream background. Sometimes you’ll find them on a coloured background – though in a pastel colour. They usually feature a soft and muted palette. The motifs tend to be small and usually scattered across the fabric, or printed in a pale shade that isn’t too stark against the background. Low volume prints may be directional so that’s something to keep in mind. This sort of fabric works beautifully as a background, particularly when the main part of the block is pieced with contrasting colours.

Prints!

Okay here’s the big one. Most fabrics are prints. The difference is the scale of the design of the print.

A small print is best for foundation paper piecing. This is mainly because foundation paper piecing tends to have smaller sections. So your small print fabric will show up nicely in those sections you’re planning to paper piece. If you use a large scale print, you’ll likely lose part of the motif/design in your piecing. You know I’m all about foundation paper piecing and it’s many (many!) merits, but showcasing large prints is usually not one of them.

A medium scale print is great for a background, or if you are piecing a larger block. If you’re working on a small block, keep in mind that beautiful print you chose? You might not see too much of it in your piecing. You need to pick a fabric that suits the scale of your block. It might be too big a print for a 6” block, but perfect for a 12” block. 

A caution in using prints. I’ve mentioned the issue with large scale prints, but the more pertinent caution I would offer is that of directionality. I’ve used the word “directional” throughout this blog post. It’s a key thing to mind in foundation piecing. As FPP templates are a bit like a jigsaw puzzle and cut into smaller sections, it can be hard to keep the prints all lined up in the same direction. Then when your block is complete, you have the print going in all directions and it can be a little jarring to the eye. It is absolutely possible to use directional prints in FPP – it’s one of my fave things to do. But it takes a bit of finesse, planning, practice, additional time and often a bunch of extra fabric to do this. Really, that’s a whole ‘nother blog post of its own! 

A note on stripes

Stripes can be really effective in a foundation paper pieced pattern but use them sparingly. That directionality I mentioned? It really comes into play with stripes! But it can be a fun way to add a bit of extra movement/interest to your block.

Where prints really shine in foundation paper piecing is with fussycutting. That’s where you choose a motif/design in the fabric to highlight and showcase in your piecing. Usually it involves cutting the fabric to size, and centring it in the middle of a foundation pieced section. Novelty prints are fantastic for this and can add such a fun touch of whimsy to the design. Think of it as a little bit of an I-spy in your FPP block!

This Cosy Cottage shows how fussycutting some little prints can add a bit of fun to the block.

As foundation paper piecing tends to have a lot more sections to it than traditional patchwork piecing, be mindful of just how scrappy you go when you choose those fabrics. Too many contrasting fabrics and you’ll lose the shape intended in the piecing.  FPP takes a bit more time than regular piecing so you don’t want all that hard work and time going to waste!

At the end of the day, the most important thing is that you use fabrics that bring you joy.  There’s no quilt police here. There’s only what -you- like and what you don’t.  Use these suggestions as loose guidelines, or throw them away in gleeful abandon as you grab fabrics at random from your stash. So long as you’re foundation paper piecing and having fun, my job here is done.

Happy sewing!

Kristy