I am often asked what solid fabric lines are my favorites, and where do I buy them? Hopefully, this blog post answers those questions.
In my opinion, hand dyed solid fabrics are the best, but if you lack the skill, time, or resources to create your own hand dyed fabrics that is OKAY. We are very lucky to live in a quilter’s world where most of the major fabric lines are creating incredible solid color fabrics.
Here is a list in alphabetical order. I have tried to list the name of the fabric line, its producer, where you can get a swatch card, and where you can purchase online along with a few personal notes and some quilts.
American Made Brand by Clothworks
Color Card
Purchase online at Handcock’s of Paducah and American Quilter’s Society
NOTE—I have been working with AMB for several years. I often make a quilt for their booth at Houston and QuiltCon. Here is a slide show of those quilts. These fabrics are completely made in America–from cotton to cloth– which is reason enough to buy their fabrics. They also have my favorite red and favorite turquoise of all time.
Bella Solids by Moda
Color Card
Purchase online at the Fat Quarter Shop
NOTE—I do believe I need to get on the Bella Bandwagon and check these colors out!
Century Solids by Andover Fabrics
Color Card
Purchase online at Fabricworm
NOTE—I have not used this fabric yet, but the colors are beautiful.
Cotton Couture by Micheal Miller
Color Card
Purchase online at Hawthorne Supply Co.
Free Spirit Designer Solids
Color Card
Purchase online at Hawthorne Supply Co.
Hand Crafted Cottons by Jane Sassaman of Free Spirit Fabrics
Color Card—Not Available
Purchase online at Fabricworm
NOTE—I taught with Jane at the AQS Grand Rapids Show in 2019, and she was super excited to share this new line of solids.
Kona Cottons by Robert Kaufmann
Color Card
Purchase online at Handcock’s of Paducah
NOTE-The weave on the Kona Cottons is not as tight as some of the other more expensive solid fabrics, but the selection of colors is wonderful, and the price is right. Kona Cottons are great for beginning your stash of solid color fabrics.
Pure Solids by Art Gallery Fabrics
Color Card
Purchase online at The Fat Quarter Shop
NOTE—The colors and the hand of this fabric is incredible. Additionally, Art Galley has gone the extra step to put the fabric number and name on the selvedge of the fabric. This makes it so easy to never run out of your favorite color. MXY Road is made almost entirely of Pure Solids.
Painter’s Palette Solids by Paintbrush Studio Fabrics
Color Card
Purchase online at Pineapple Fabrics
NOTE—Mosh Pit @ the Golden is created entirely from Painter’s Palette Solids. The hand on this fabric is lovely, the color selection is vast, and the one stop shopping at Pineapple Fabrics makes this fabric very convenient for quilters.
Solid Poplin by Birch Organic Fabric
Color Card (not available)
Purchase online at the Fabricworm
NOTE—The quilt TUNDRA is composed entirely of Solid Poplin fabrics. Their fabric is beautiful and worth price!
If you are taking any of my upcoming workshops, which you can read more about here, I hope you find this list useful.
Additionally, dear reader, please share anything YOU know about solid fabrics. I would love for this post to be a resource for all quilters.
Thanks for this list of your favorite manufacturers of solid fabrics. Though I like a couple brands, Painter’s Palette solids are at the top of my favorites list, for their colorfastness (I’m a pre-washer, all the way) and hand. I’ve had negative experiences with bleeding with other brands, so I’m sticking with PP. Just added nearly 45 yards of it to my stash, and am now happily sewing Shell-style bits!
Painter’s Palette are really good and you probably already know this, but they are in Kansas City and they get points for that too!
Just fyi if you haven’t tried Moda’s Bella I like them over Kona. But thats just me. Thank you for this list, I’m definitely going to sample some I’ve never tried!
Ps I love your work!
Thank you! Bella Solids now have two votes!
Love this post- thanks for your recommendations. My favorite solids, hands down are Designer Essentials/Designer Solids. The colors are beautiful and the hand is lovely. Can’t find them as much now as I used to though.
Good suggestion! I will add them to the post!
I am acquiring more and more solid fabrics since my Improv adventure began. I have mostly Kona from Hankcock’s of Paducah but have recently purchased some Moda Bella Solids as well and they are quite nice in my humble opinion. Maria, have you tried these yet?
I haven’t, but I will now! Thank you for the suggestion. I will add links for Moda Bella Solids to the list!
thank you for this awesome reference for solid fabrics. I have a solid only quilt on my “to make” list. I am building my solid stash continually.
I’m a huge fan of Kona solids. The very fact that they’re not as tightly woven, as you mention, to me is a plus, not a minus. If you’re improvisationally piecing curves or even freehand “straight lines” it’s wonderful to have a fabric with a little bit of give that will ooze itself into place even if the pieces aren’t precisely the same size or slant.
Also Kona, because it’s a bit more loosely woven, is very forgiving if you have to rip out a seam or if you want to do hand stitching.
At least 15 years ago, when I started working exclusively with solids, I decided to buy only Kona, and cull out the other brands from my stash. I have found that mixing brands can create subtle differences in how the fabrics behave together, whether one is thicker or thinner, even in how they look in the finished quilt. I don’t think I’ve ever regretted that decision. I usually tell my workshop students (or at least I used to, when we used to have in-person workshops) to buy Kona — and if we’re going to have a communal swap pile, I require Kona only.
And if you want to dye your own fabric, Kona takes the color beautifully. A bolt of white PFD, 60 inches wide, will last a long time.
Michael Miller cotton couture is my go to. I like the saturated colors.
I like them too! I will add them to the post. Thank you!
Try Jane Sassaman’s new hand dyed fabric from Free Spirit. Yummy colors and works beautifully. Pre wash is a must. There are about 15 great colors – all blendable with Kona and with Jane’s prints.
I love Jane’s fabrics. Good to know!
thanks for the solids links. I also like Bella Solids, especially for applique’ as they are a bit softer.
Love the eye candy in todays post – thanks!
Hi Maria
I just ordered a couple of color cards. Uh oh. Might start another quilt…or even finish one!
That is excellent news. Even better would be that you agreed to go on a bike ride with me! Or a hike.
Can you help compare the weight of these slides? I use Kona, the color cards for Bella seem a lot lighter weight. How do these others compare in weight/feel toKona. Thanks.
Nancy, I am sorry. I thought I replied to your comment already. I think the best path is to go to the maker and see if you can figure out the thread count on the fabrics. Kona is probably going to be the heaviest which has it advantages and disadvantages. I prefer a lighter weight, but not too light.
Thank you so much for this wonddrful list.
Sorry for the delay on my reply. I am a huge fan of. Michael Miller’s Cotton Couture solids. This is a line of 100% cotton broadcloth. I have never used a cotton that presses like this one……….seams are truly flat with no steam, pressing spray, starch, or a spray of water. It is so smooth and fast! It is thinner than a lot of cotton solids, so it has a fine hand. I find it at Hancocks of Paducah and Fabric.com . one of my local quilt shops carries maybe 10 boys of various colors. Recommend using a #70 needed/fine piecing thread. I use a 60 wt cotton or poly like Bottom Line. I have never had a problem with a 60 wt. poly melting under the heat of my iron. This helps give a flat seam, too.
I appreciate the info on the other brands, some I have not heard of. I agree…..Art Gallery fabrics have a wonderful hand and take a seam/pressing beautifully. I wonder it that is a broadcloth too?
The only brand I avoid is Kona. It is difficult to get the seams flat……eve with water and other sprays, that seam just keeps popping up. I used a grill press on a seam while it cooled down, and that little bugger still popped up.
I will look for the other brands in my shops and give them a try. Thank you for starting this conversation.
I am signed up for your curves class this weekend, see you then. I assume we will get the log in info tonight. I did not receive a materials list, so I have pulled a wide cool pallet and am excited to dig in. Thank you for doing these Zoom classes………Kathy Iskow/New Mexico
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Wow. Kathy! Thank you for all the great information! I will email you privately about the curves class. Looking forward to it!
Modern Quilt Studio has wonderful solids as well. They also have a “warp and weft” line looks scrumptious, in both stripe and plaid. My fav go to are the shot cottons from Free Spirit (Kaffe Fassett).
Good to know! I almost always use Kaffe’s shot cottons for the backs of my quilts. I love them!
I’m curious about the color names of the favorite red and turquoise from AMB. Thanks!
I love both dark #81 and light #79 tomato and dark turquoise #102 and dark aqua #34!
Marcia Derse has a beautiful solid collection of 100 colors. They are based on her hand-dyed fabrics so they have that slight variation in shading through the fabric. There is a swatch card available. One year I subscribed to her Pallet club. In four shipments, over the course of the year, I received a piece of each color. They are gorgeous and a pleasure to work with.
Wow. That is great information. I will try and add it to the blog post. I love her fabric!