You can put patchwork together in any palette you like. My favourite colour groups are drawn from the things I see and the places I’ve been.

  • Alhambra

    The colours of the wall tiles all over the Moorish palace at Granada

  • Wassily

    A Bauhaus master insisted on the intrinsic roundness of red, squareness of blue and triangularity of yellow. Whatever the shape, it’s hard to go wrong with three primary colours.

  • Kuba

    The colours of traditional Congolese raffia appliqué, plus – sometimes – an accent colour that pops.

  • Tricolor

    In my version the blue is indigo like denim or chambray and the red can stray to orange or pink.

  • Napoli

    The palette of a Pompeiian villa – ochre, red and a greyish blue – all over the streets of Naples today.

  • Dunkin

    Red and white quilts are very traditional; in my version the red can stray to orange or pink.

  • Blanc de Blancs

    Whites vegetable and mineral: laundry, flowers, paper and the pebbles on a beach in Greece.

  • Sea Glass

    Inspired by the sea glass mosaics (green, brown & blue bottle shards) installed beneath the promenade at St Leonards-on-Sea.

  • Citron

    Dandelion, possett, sulphur, ochre and other yellows, keeping the rest neutral.

  • Verdigris

    The matchless, natural combination of green, blue and brown when bronze, brass or copper get weathered.

  • Pride

    A trip to San Francisco prompted my mellowed, Haight-Ashbury rainbow.

  • Carnival

    Fairground carousel, gypsy caravan and Pakistani painted truck art blending with Comedia del Arte.

Patchwork can be made out of whatever scraps and pieces are on hand. I might be able to incorporate some fabrics of your own into a Pemberton Qwilt.