Kim Stenehjem passes on a tip she learned from Barb Bunnel when she owned Quilters Quarters. Sometimes when you’re having trouble picking a set of colors for your quilt that really works well together, or if you’re not very confident choosing colors, pick a multi-color fabric you really like and use the colors in that print as your guide. The fabric designer has already given you a palette that works together and that appeals to you. You don’t even have to use it in the quilt but it gives you your color blueprint.

What color palettes could you create using this Kaffe Facett paisley?

And if you’re still not confident selecting on your own, there’s a free online tool that will do it for you. Coolors is a very fast color palette generator that samples an uploaded or online image and breaks it down into a five color palette. You can use any kind of picture to get a color breakdown: a landscape, a fabric swatch, or even a painting. It’s fun to play with.