Comparing Solid-Color Quilting Fabric

Considerations and metrics across 18 brands

The fabric used when making a quilt can be the difference between a joyful quilting experience and a series of frustrations resulting in a ho-hum quilt. The following comparison of different quilting solids aims to provide information that will lead to more of the former and none of the latter. I gathered 18 brands of cotton quilting fabric that offer a line of solids. My focus was to learn as much as I could so I could make informed decisions for my own quilting projects. 

Loads of people, friends and strangers alike, made this project better. I hope you know who you are and see your contribution reflected in these pages. I am especially grateful to the customer service people at various manufacturers who picked up the phone and rolled with my questions. Honestly, those conversations made my day. To the shop owners in Michigan and Wisconsin that chatted with me for hours on those cold days in March—thank you for trusting me. 

When I told fellow quilters what I was up to they were eager, very eager, to get the results. Had I known they would be shared like this from the get-go I would have been more tenacious when searching for fabric samples (especially when looking for “true white” fabrics) and I would have recorded more information during my testing. In any case, I did my best in the moment. At long last here we are. Let’s dig in.   

WHAT FOLLOWS

My background

Who this is for

Overview of fabric lines and metrics

Pearls, aka a few things I learned along the way

Fabric lines: notable results and comments

At-a-glance result chart

Metrics and testing techniques

Link to raw data

Additional Resources

My background

I have been sewing, on and off, for 40 years. About five years ago I began making quilts with solid-colored quilting fabric and noticed that the brands of solids I was using differed from each other more than I expected. I looked to see if anyone had done a comparison and found two blog posts (referenced later) that compare solid quilting fabric but neither of these answered all my questions, so I decided to do my own comparison. The more I got into it the more the project grew until one day I realized I had 18 brands of fabric (more if you include the extra Kona samples) and 12 metrics I wanted to measure, and off I went to see what I could learn. 

Who this is for

This is for anyone who has been curious about options available for solid quilting fabric. By sharing my findings I hope to help fellow quilters try some new brands, or continue with their current brands, with confidence. 

I do not declare a single fabric to be the best or worst. This would be impossible because we want different things from our fabric choices. Some will want the largest selection of colors and some will want the line of solids that coordinates with the prints they love. Others will only use the line of solids that is easy to applique or that they can buy at their local quilt shop or that is made of organic cotton.

If you have an experience to share I would love to hear from you either in the comments section or directly at lynn.stuart.quilts@gmail.com. 

Overview of fabric lines and metrics

Criteria for determining which lines to include

I chose all the lines I could find that met at least one of these three criteria:

1. The selection of colors was greater than 50.

2. The fabric was made from organic cotton.

3. The fabric line was mentioned as a favorite by anyone that crossed my path, such as a guest on a podcast, someone commenting on a blog post, or a person I met at a quilting store.

The fabric lines I included 

• American Made Brand/AMB by Clothworks (Black, White)

• Bella Solids by Moda Fabric (super Black, Off White) Organic

• Century Solids by Andover Fabrics (Black, White)

• Cirrus by Cloud 9 (Midnight, Limestone) Organic

• Colorworks Premium Solid 9000 by Northcott (Black, Eggshell)

• Confetti Cotton Solids by Riley Blake Designs (Black, White)

• Cotton Couture Solids by Michael Miller (Black, Bright White) 

• Cotton Supreme Solids by RJR Fabrics (Black, White)

• Designer Essential Solids by Free Spirit Fabrics (Black, Winter White)

• Everyday Organic Solids by Clothworks (Black, White) Organic

• Kona Cotton Solids by Robert Kaufman (Black, White) from Hobby Lobby

• Kona Cotton Solids by Robert Kaufman (Black, Snow) from JOANN

• Kona Cotton Solids by Robert Kaufman (Black, White) from local high-end shop

• Kona Cotton Solids by Robert Kaufman (Jet Black) from local high-end shop

• Kona Cotton Solids by Robert Kaufman (Jet Black Premium) from local high-end shop

• Me + You Indah Solids by Hoffman (Black, White)

• Mod Basics by Birch Organics (Solid Black, PFD) Organic

• Painter’s Palette Solids by Paintbrush Studio/PBS (Black, White)

• Pure Solids by Art Gallery Fabrics/AGF (Deep Black, White)

• Ruby + Bee by Whindam (Black, White)

• Solid line by Connecting Threads (Black, White)

• Sonoma Solids by Wilmington Prints (Black, White)

I bought ½-yard of both white and black in each brand. I figured between those two colors I could assess all the metrics I had identified. In the cases where I only needed a dark color, such as the extent of fading when left in the sun, I would use the black. In the cases where I only needed a light color, such as how transparent the fabric is, I would use white. In all other cases I would use both, thereby getting a second data point for that line. When I had trouble sourcing a pure white or a pure black I bought something close, like off-white, that was readily available.  

Note: I bought five(!) samples for Kona. I bought “Black” and “White” (or “Snow”) from JOANN, Hobby Lobby, and a high-end shop in Cambridge, MA. I also bought “Jet Black” and “Jet Black Premium” at high-end shops in Michigan and Wisconsin, respectively.  

How I chose what metrics to assess

I chose any metric that met both of these criteria:

1. The metric was something I wanted to know or was mentioned by anyone, such as a guest on a podcast, someone commenting on a blog post, or a person I met at a quilting store

2. I felt there was a way I could meaningfully assess the metric 

List of the metrics I assessed

• Color range available

• Color temperature and saturation

• Colorfast in wash 

• Fading from sunlight exposure

• Feel and Sheen

• Fraying from washing machine

• Shrinkage 

• Skew distortion from washing

• Tensile strength—the tendency to distort on the bias

• Threads-per-inch (tpi)

• Transparency 

• Weight, before and after washing

Pearls, aka a few things I learned along the way

Pearl #1: Many well-known quilters use fabric given to them, rather than choosing it themselves 

When I started making modern quilts I read a blog by a quilter I admired where she mentioned that she uses Kona. Great, I thought, now I know what fabric to use. It helped that Kona comes in so many colors. What fun! Why would I use anything else?

I have since learned that influential quilters don’t necessarily choose their fabric line because they like it best; they often use it because a manufacturer gives it to them. As I listened to more quilting podcasts, read quilting blogs, and chatted with shop owners I learned this type of sponsorship is quite prevalent. I also learned about the devotion some quilters have to other brands like Hoffman, Free Spirit, and Riley Blake (among others). I realized I should consider options other than Kona. This project was born from that initial curiosity: What else is out there, and how does it stack up?

Pearl #2: Quilting solids fall broadly into two distinct categories: high threads-per-inch and low threads-per-inch

One of the tests I did was to count threads-per-inch (tpi). To my surprise, three fabrics were in the 132-142 tpi range while the rest were 63-90 tpi with no fabrics in the middle. That’s a huge difference! While counting the threads I also noticed that the three high-tpi fabrics were woven differently than the low-tpi fabrics. They are really altogether different fabrics.

The three high thread-per-inch fabrics are:

1. Century Solids (Andover), 140 tpi 

2. Me + You Indah Solids (Hoffman—known for its batiks), 132 tpi

3. Pure Solids (Art Gallery Fabrics/AGF), 142 tpi

I recently came to learn that high-tpi fabrics work especially well in applique. I was working on a quilt that needed five little appliqued shapes. These shapes needed to be appliqued with great care so they would be recognizable as the game pieces from Camel Up (great family game, BTW). I had never appliqued before but the shapes seemed do-able. I watched some videos, checked my approach with Pat, a neighbor who has won about 20 best of show awards for her appliqued quilts, and got to it. 

It was impossible—so, so, hard. I showed Pat my results and asked what I was doing wrong. She looked at my efforts, offered to applique the camels for me (Yes, yes!), and brought the perfect result back to me the next day. “I know why you failed.” she said, “That fabric is the hardest fabric I have ever used, and I have made over 200 appliqued quilts.” The fabric I was using was Kona.  

She went on to tell me that she gets the best results using a “tight-weave fabric, typically batiks or solid fabric made by the same company that manufactures batiks.” I now understand that she was talking about these high-tpi fabrics. 

ALERT!

A 15-second video post titled, “Solids Faceoff—Quilting” on Laura Money’s thegatheringquilt instagram page, shows that when subject to machine quilting, an AGF swatch had “runs” which did not occur on the high-tpi Century Solids test piece or any of the six low-tpi fabrics, like Kona and Bella Solids, that were also tested. As of this writing, two comments on that post indicate the problem that occurred with the AGF fabric might lie with the choice of needle used for quilting, specifically that the needle is either too big or that the eye of the needle is too much bigger than the shaft of the needle. 

I am just beginning to understand the importance of needle selection and can’t speak to the likelihood of this explanation, but needle selection is the first thing I will explore if my test quilt swatch has “runs.” Full disclosure, I am not entirely sure what the word “runs” means in this context. I think it is either that the little threads that hold machine sewing down are visible or that batting is getting pulled through to the front of the quilt by those stitches, or a bit of both. 

Another commenter offered a different explanation for the AGF runs. “AGF is a tighter weave and I believe higher thread count, it’s why the tension changes on it, I always adjust my tension down to drop more into the fabric.” I have no idea if either of these diagnoses, needle selection or tension setting, is correct. Regardless, it is obvious on the video that something went awry during the machine quilting of the AGF sample.

I would encourage anyone machine quilting a quilt made out of high-tpi fabric to do a test swatch first and if you experience problems try a different needle and/or a different tension setting. 

Check out the post (and the whole page!) at www.instagram.com/p/CeKTW_kJyFA/.

Pearl #3: Don’t be fooled by “silky” fabrics

When I read blogs and scavenged for insight and ideas for this project, I routinely came across folks who said they love this fabric or that fabric because it felt so “silky.” I wasn’t sure what that meant until I started cutting the samples. Some of the fabric samples were silky! Then I washed the fabrics and the silky feeling went away *almost* completely. So be careful getting lured in by the feel of the unwashed fabric. That said, three of the lower thread-per-inch fabrics did feel just a tiny hint more silky after washing: Mod Basics (Birch Organics), Everyday Organic Solids (Clothworks), and Cotton Couture Solids (Michael Miller).

In addition, the three high-tpi fabrics (identified earlier as great for use in applique quilts) felt noticeably smoother, though not silkier, than the others, both before and after washing. I assume this smooth feeling is the result of the thinner threads that make up the fabric.  

Pearl #4: Fabric line that labels the color in the selvage! 

Good news! Pure Solids from Art Gallery Fabrics/AGF (high-tpi) is marking the exact color name/number in the selvage. I love this. 

The bad news it is only one line is doing this and the color name/number is only printed every 24 inches. This means that to ensure you get a cut that includes the color name/number in the selvage you have to buy a minimum of 2/3s yd. Why didn’t AGF print the color name/number more frequently? The entire selvage has words and other markings, so I cannot think of any reason it does not indicate the color more often. Another problem is that only one selvage edge is marked so half the fat quarters will not include the color name/number. 

Nonetheless, I applaud AGF’s decision to mark the color and sincerely hope it considers increasing how frequently the color information is listed and that other solid lines follow suit. 

Fabric lines: notable results and comments

Note: I am pulling Sonoma Solids by Wilmington Prints out of further discussion for two reasons:

1. It appears to be discontinued. 

2. It does not seem suitable for quilts as it is quite a bit thicker than the other fabrics. It was 20% heavier than the next heaviest fabric and almost twice as heavy as the least. It was coarse and stiff, feeling almost like lightweight canvas. 

Three high thread-per-inch fabric lines (listed together for easier comparison)

Century Solids (Andover)

When I started this project, I had a hard time finding Century Solids. I eventually found them in a small shop in Michigan but the owner said she was phasing them out because the customers didn’t like using them. As of December, 2022, (and since I did my purchasing) I learned that fatquartershop.com carries 66 colors of Century Solids.

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 100 colors. 

• Shrank about twice as much as the other two high-tpi fabrics.

• Low fray.

Comments from online sources: None that I found.

24/7 and Indah/Me + You Solids (Hoffman)

Hoffman currently offers two lines of solids: (1) 24/7 and (2) Me + You (part of its Indah line). 24/7 is vat-dyed and made from threads that have been combed. Me + You is hand-dyed. At the time I bought the fabric for this testing I did not know about the 24/7 line so my results are based on the Me + You line. 

Notable results from my testing and research:

• Me + You had 42 colors as of December, 2022. Hoffman is phasing out this line so that number is expected to shrink. 

• Me + You White was slightly more transparent than the other two high-thread-count fabrics. 

• Me + You Black was a very warm deep shade.

• Me + You had low fray and low shrinkage.

• Me + You was the lightest weight of the three high-tpi fabrics I tested.

Comments from online sources: 

• 24/7 has 48 colors. Hoffman is expanding its 24/7 line so that number should grow. 

• From stitchedincolor.com, “I heard of Hoffman Indah Solids from some well-informed readers. Hoffman is admired for their environmental responsibility. At the Hoffman factory in Bali, a modern water-filtration system returns rinse water clear to the environment. This is a unique and forward-thinking system that has been in operation for more than a decade. The solids are dyed in the same facility. My sponsor, The Confident Stitch, is building an inventory of Hoffman solids. They sent me some fat quarters to sample. The colors are vivid and even. The fabric is considered a poplin. It is lighter than Kona and Freespirit and crisp as compared to Art Gallery. The fabrics are woven and hand dyed in Bali, Indonesia.” 

• “The hand of 24/7 is “amazing.”

• “They have a limited, but very pretty color palette, and they have a reasonably priced swatch ring that comes in handy for matching colors!”

• “I have found another big ‘bleeder’ are Hoffman Bali 1895s = needs a lot of color catchers even after soaking/washing in Reytane.” Note, in my testing the black fabric sample I washed in a regular machine did not bleed onto the attached white fabric sample. 

Pure Solids (Art Gallery Fabrics/AGF)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 162 colors.

• The Pure Solids black has a cool color temperature.

• The Pure Solids black is just a smidge less saturated than Hoffman’s black.  

• I have seen the full line of Pure Solids by Art Gallery Fabrics/AGF in person. I thought the colors were unusually beautiful and interesting. 

• The Pure Solids samples frayed more than the other two. Pure Solids had an average edge-fray of 0.11 inches while the other two each had an average edge-fray of 0.06 inches. That said, 0.11 inch is only a little over 1/10 inch, so really not all that much.

• Dyed and printed in South Korea in mills that are Oeko-Tex and GOTS certified. (From Google: “OEKO-TEX® certified products have been tested for harmful substances to protect your health. Tested for Toxic Chemicals. This label certifies that every component of the product, from the fabric to the thread and accessories, has been rigorously tested against a list of up to 350 toxic chemicals.... The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) is the worldwide leading textile processing standard for organic fibers. This certification provides credible assurance of responsible manufacturing with the least chemical inputs. Ultimately, it ensures quality organic fabric for end consumers.”) Note: I fear claiming the mill is GOTS certified impies the fibers used are organic, which is not the case for the Pure Solids line by AGF. Because of this I find the claim that the mill is GOTS certified to be misleading or at least confusing.  

• JOANN is now selling “curated bundles” of Pure Solids Art Gallery Fabrics with 22 fat quarters for $69.99 ea. (online only). 

• As discussed in more detail in Pearls > Fabric line that labels the color in the selvage!, AGF prints the color name of its Pure Solids quilting fabrics in the selvage, provided you buy enough (~2/3 yd, to include a section that has the marking). 

Comments from online sources: 

• From stitchedincolor.com, “Definitely Art Gallery fabrics do feel different than Kona or Freespirit. They are thinner and slightly silkier. These solids have a luster like Freespirit solids, but they are lightweight like American Made Brand solids. Art Gallery fabrics are dyed or printed in South Korea in mills that are Oeko-Tex and GOTS certified.” Note, the in my testing the “silkiness” is only present in unwashed fabric. The fabric was not noticeably silky after coming out of the wash. Also, AGF is considerably lighter than American Made Brand fabric. 

• From a review on JOANN’s site, “In my opinion, Art Gallery Fabrics are the softest, highest quality fabrics available for quilting. These fabrics iron flat easily, have little lint, are strong, don’t fade in the wash, and have beautiful color. Most of all, these fabrics are SO SOFT to touch.”

• “The Pure line includes just 73 colors.” Note, the Pure Solids line now has 162 colors, so the line appears to be expanding.

• “I used to avoid art gallery as they tended to pucker if I ironed with any steam, but since I pre-wash everything now, that’s not an issue, nor is the differing rates of shrinking.”

• “I love the hand of AGF and how tightly it is woven almost like batik fabrics.”

• “Art Gallery has some awesome solids. Great colors & super soft.”

• “The hand of the Art Gallery is beautiful – the weave seems a bit tighter, though, and while it looks lovely with a lovely sheen, my machine’s tension goes bananas whenever it sews them.” Note, in the Pearls > Quilting solids fall broadly into two distinct categories: high threads-per-inch and low threads-per-inch > ALERT! section is a discussion suggesting that either the needle or the machine’s tension setting could cause problems when quilting or sewing AGF fabrics. 

Take-aways for high thread-per-inch fabric

I believe the properties of the three high-tpi fabrics are similar enough that they could be successfully combined/intermixed without any problems. 

For any high thread-per-inch fabric, quilt a test swatch before quilting the entire sandwich in case the tension or needle needs to be adjusted. This suggestion is discussed more throughly in Pearls > Quilting solids fall broadly into two distinct categories: high threads-per-inch and low threads-per-inch > ALERT!.

Three 100% organic cotton low-tpi fabric lines (listed up front for easier comparison)

Cirrus (Cloud 9) Organic

Cirrus from Cloud 9 is a different type of fabric than any of the other fabrics I tested, organic or not. I have made three quilts with Cirrus and I have a friend who made one. I have no idea where I bought my first bit of it, but I remember seeing a few bolts and thinking, “Look no further—this will look great.” And it did. Through making these quilts I developed a love/hate relationship with the fabric. That said, I will use it again, I know I will because my adoration of Cirrus, while irrational, is also sincere. Still, when I use it I will take care to wash it first and dry it to just damp so that the wrinkles are easier to iron out. In addition, I will design the quilt to minimize cuts on the bias and use stabilizer on any pieces that do have a cut on the bias. Give it a try and decide for yourself!

I love it because it makes beautiful quilts. 

• The 37 colors are all sorta perfect and the matte, almost rustic, look and feel of the fabric takes the light in the most lovely way. It’s like magic. If you are nervous about choosing colors and don’t mind the fraying, I would recommend you try this line. I have the color card and think just about any combination of the Cirrus colors could be successfully combined. It’s astonishing, really. 

• In addition to the 37 solid colors there are 12 “glitter” solids. I am not a glitter-person, but if I had a glitter person in my life I would lean into the potential of the glitter-line with abandon.

• Cirrus has a soft hand despite it being a heavier fabric. 

I hate it because it is hard to work with. 

• The amount of edge fray after being washed was nearly twice that of the next highest. 

• Cirrus does not have a true black or a true white, though the Midnight (dark gray) and Limestone (off white) are beautiful.  

• Cirrus came out of the dryer with some serious wrinkles. 

• Cirrus distorts on the bias more than any other fabric I sampled. 

Comments from online sources: None that I found.

Everyday Organic Solids (Clothworks)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 22 colors.

• Black has a cool tone and with low saturation.

• White was slightly less transparent than the other organic fabric lines, but the differences are very subtle.

• Designated as “Soft” and “Slightly Silky.”

• Everyday Organic Solids had 82 stitches per inch compared to Birch’s 90 and it weighed a little less. 

• Everyday Organic Solids had low shrinkage.

• Everyday Organic Solids is made by Clothworks, the same company that makes American Made Brand, but the cotton used to make Everyday Organic Solids is not grown in the US and the fabric is not manufactured in the US. Only Clothworks American Made Brand (non-organic) line of cotton fabric can make those US claims.  

Comments from online sources: None that I found.

Mod Basics (Birch Organics)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 66 colors.

• Black was a warm tone and is not very saturated.

• White was more transparent than Everyday Organic Solids from Clothworks and Cirrus from Cloud 9, though honestly all of the whites, organic and non-organic alike, were pretty transparent. 

• Designated as “Soft” and “Slightly Silky.”

• Birch had 90 threads per inch, 10% higher than 82 for Everyday Organic Solids from Clothworks.  

• Of the organic lines, Birch had the most shrinkage. 

• The washed Birch sample did skew a little.

Comments from online sources: None that I found.

Eleven remaining low-tpi fabric lines (non-organic)

American Made Brand/AMB (Clothworks)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 100 colors, including PFD (prepared for dying) and muslin. UPDATE - After the initial testing I liked AMB enough that I ordered a bolt for hand-dying. (I hope to do a post on hand-dying in the future). While waiting for the bolt to arrive I got the faded samples and was disappointed to see that AMB faded a lot. Then the PFD fabric arrived and it was awful, extremely stiff and coarse - even after washing twice. When asked, the company replied, I spoke with the owner regarding your question. This is a raw fabric so it's not finished. No treatments or process has been done to this fabric so this will cause it to be rougher in feel than our finished fabrics. We don't have any care instructions because it's not our responsibility to advise how to process it. We just have it available for those that want to dye their own fabrics and suggest you use the same process as you have done when dying fabrics in general. Sorry, this wasn't much of any help. This was disappointing on several levels. Bottom line, no more AMB fabric - of any kind - for me.

• Black has a warm tone with average saturation.

• Designated as “Soft.”

• Higher than average tpi and lower than average overall weight. This makes sense because thinner thread is needed to get higher tpi and thinner thread would weight less.

• Cotton 100% grown in the US and fabric is manufactured in the US too.

• The newest color cards with all the new colors are not going to be sold until the older cards (with two inserts that have swatches of the newest colors) has been depleted. The insert dated 2018 has 12 colors. The insert dated 2022 has 13 colors, all of which are very pale pastels.

Comments from online sources: 

• From stitchedincolor.com, “I made an entire quilt in American Made Brand solids. These fabrics are slightly lighter weight than Kona or Freespirit. The colors are nice, but limited to 75. That’s just barely enough, but it works and could simplify stashing. The best thing about this brand is that it is grown and manufactured entirely in the United States.” Note, AMB now has 100 colors.

• “The Clothworks (AMB) have very limited colors, but I have collected a lot of their print fabrics, so the solids are an easy match.” Note, Clothworks print fabrics are not made of cotton grown in the US nor are they manufactured in the US.

• “I love American Made Cottons.”

• “American Made Brand (AMB), which I LOOOOVE (see – all caps and lots of Os!)”

• “I wanted to love AMB, but it just didn’t suit my tastes. It feels too thin and cheap.” 

• “I wanted to like American Made, but it was too coarse and attracted too much lint for a quilt.” Note, I gave AMB fabrics the highest soft score, where a low score would indicate a coarse feel.

• “One thing I will say about the American Made...we have had bolts fade on the fold line...more than likely from the overhead lights, but if it fades there it will fade any where.” Note, I am doing a fade test (six months subject to direct Arizona sun) on all the fabrics but won’t have results until mid-July 2023.

Bella Solids (Moda) 

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 310 colors. Nine of these, all neutrals, also come in a “silky” version that Moda claims will match the sheen of surrounding printed fabrics. Note, I did not include any Bella “silky” fabrics in my tests.

• Black has a cool tone with above average saturation.

• Designated as “Coarse.”

• Heavier fabric with low tpi and high tensile strength (low stretch on the bias).

• It came out of the washed somewhat skewed and med-high fraying.

• From the Moda website page titled, “Bella Solids & Whites” written by Carrie Nelson (published July 24, 2020). “Bella Solids are a premium-grade 100% cotton, and all of the cotton is grown in the United States.  (And if there was any way to have it manufactured here, we’d do that too.)” Note, American Made Brand, by Clothworks, is made in the US. Also on this “Bella Solids & Whites” page: “Why aren’t the color numbers marked on the selvage? The application of collection names and color numbers is done with printing. Bella Solids are dyed so printing even the numbers on the selvage would be an additional step, adding to the cost of the finished fabric.” Note, it is true that printing the color name in the selvage would add another step and add cost, but Art Gallery Fabrics is doing just that on its Pure Solids line, so it can’t be all that much additional cost. 

• Bella does not sell swatch cards with its newly released colors. To get swatches of the newly released colors you must buy a completely new card. These cards run about $45-$50. I am sure whether other lines have this same policy of if they also require buying new cards.

Comments from online sources: 

• “Bella is my fave and much better quality.” 

• “I love. Perfect texture and weight of fabric.”

• “You really need to try moda bella fabrics.”

• “Bella Solids are my favorite now because I feel I get the same satisfying weight as Kona has along with a softness of hand that Kona lacks.” Note, I gave Bella Solids (and Kona) the lowest “softness” score, indicating it felt a bit coarse. 

• “They have a lovely hand and don’t ravel quite as easily as Kona Cotton” Note, in my testing Bella frayed about as much as Kona out of the wash. 

• “I think that Moda Bella and Kona are a nice weight but do ravel.”

• “I buy Bella from thousandsofbolts.com for $7.19 a yard.” Note, this price is accurate as of Dec, 2022. On this same date Missouri Star is selling Bella Solids for $8.24/yd.

• “The swatches are bigger and I find most of my top colors on it.”

• “I’ve used Bella Black before, and it frays like crazy. Didn’t want to go there again.” Note, the fraying was a little above average, at 0.16 inch per edge on average. Kona Jet Black, Free Spirit, Connecting Threads, Colorworks Solid Line, and Cirrus all had more.

• “I was so disappointed with Moda Bella in White. Will be my last experience with it.” Note, I did not find the Bella White to be problematic.

Colorworks Premium Solid 9000 (Northcott)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 113 colors.

• Black had the coldest (blue) tone of all the blacks I tested and is a very saturated.

• Designated as “Coarse.”

• Very high amount of fraying after washing but no skew at all.

• Comments from online sources: 

• “A little harder to find and not as many color choices.

Confetti Cotton Solids (Riley Blake)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 163 colors.

• Black is middle of the road for both color saturation and color temperature.

• Designated in the middle category between Soft and Coarse.

• Low threads per inch.

• Came out of the wash with a little skew, the highest shrinkage, and high fray.

• Manufactured in South Korea “under strict ethical standards.” 

Comments from online sources: 

• “Solids wrinkle so so easily.” Note, I did not have this experience.

• “Riley Blake solids fray less than the Bella and Kona. But they are hard to find!” Note, in my tests, Riley Blake frayed the same as Bella and more than Kona. 

Cotton Couture Solids (Michael Miller)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 234 colors.

• Black is a cool color with medium saturation.

• White was slightly more transparent than the other fabrics. 

• Designated as “Soft” and “Slightly Silky.”

• High thread per inch compared to comparable fabrics.

• Highest measured skew coming out of the wash.

Comments from online sources: 

• “My absolute favorite solid fabric.” 

• “The smoothest, silkiest — they feel more like blouse fabric than quilting cottons.”

• “I agree - quality and hand are excellent.”

• “Cotton Couture are really different! - you’ll enjoy them!”

• “I prefer the Cotton Couture for both the hand, almost no unraveling, and the colors.”

• “While they have far fewer colors than Kona, the hand is wonderful.” 

• “I personally do not like the Michael Miller cotton couture solids. I agree with another reader in saying they are very lightweight and almost blouse fabric. If you are after a white solid, the cotton couture white is almost see through. They also crease like crazy, so take care if you’re considering using this range of fabric.” Note, though the differences were subtle, Cotton Couture did score in the category with the highest transparency.

• “MMcouture solids wrinkle so so easily.”

• “I find the Michael Miller Cotton Couture solids to have a lovely hand – almost like lawn – but they’re very fine and see-through, especially the lighter pastel colours.”

• “I love Michael Miller solids.”

• “I love the cotton couture too!!”

• “I like the white, very smooth hand.”

Cotton Supreme Solids (RJR Fabrics)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 234 colors.

• Black has a very warm tone with the high saturation.

• Designated in the middle category between Soft and Coarse.

• It came out of the wash with no skewing, minimal fraying, but had one of the highest shrinkage rates.

Comments from online sources: None that I found.

• Designer Essential Solids and Tula Pink Solids (Free Spirit)

• Free Spirit puts out different lines of solids, each with its own name. The base fabric in these different color collections is exactly the same. Currently it has two color collections: “Designer Essential Solids” (its basic line of solids) and a second set called “Tula Pink.” The Tula Pink line is subdivided into “Tula Pink Cotton Solids,” “Tula Pink Cotton Solids: Dragon’s Breath” (jewel tones), and “Tula Pink Cotton Solids: Unicorn Poop” (pastels). 

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 80 colors in total, broken up as follows: 36 Designer Solid colors, 22 Tula Pink Cotton Solids, 11 Tula Pink Cotton Solids: Dragon’s Breath and 11 Tula Pink Cotton Solids: Unicorn Poop.

• In addition to these 80 current colors, Free Spirit has stock in discontinued colors that it will continue to offer until the stock is depleted. 

• Black is a warm color with high saturation.

• Designated as “Coarse.”

• Low tpi and high tensile strength.

• High measured fray and shrinkage coming out of the wash.

Comments from online sources: 

• stitchedincolor.com “Choosing based on color and feel, I prefer Freespirit Designer Solids.” 

• “I agree - Free Spirit are my #1. They have gorgeous colors and such a lovely sheen and hand.”

• “The fabrics have a silkier hand than Kona, but are a comparable weight.” Note, after washing I did not find Free Spirit solids to have a silky feel.

Kona Cotton Solids (Robert Kaufman)from Hobby Lobby

Kona Cotton Solids (Robert Kaufman) from JOANN

Kona Cotton Solids (Robert Kaufman) from local high-end shop

Kona “Jet Black” Cotton Solids (Robert Kaufman)

Kona “Jet Black Premium” Cotton Solids (Robert Kaufman)

Let’s get this burning question answered up front - Is Kona fabric purchased from JOANN and Hobby Lobby different than that sold at smaller shops? I am pretty sure the Kona sold at local shops is the same fabric as the Kona sold at Hobby Lobby and JOANN. I came to this conclusion by including Kona samples purchased from multiple outlets in my testing and comparing them as outlined below. I also called JOANN and asked. The rep was emphatic that the fabric is the same. I asked why the ends of the bolts have a different look for the same fabric and she said that is due to the requirements of the vendor. I can’t say I understood that argument, but nonetheless as shown in the results chart above, there are not any differences that would suggest the fabric from JOANN or Hobby Lobby is inferior to the fabric purchased at a small high-end local shop.  

White Kona

I included three white Kona samples, one each from a local shop, Hobby Lobby, and JOANN. The white sample from JOANN was “Snow” and the other two were “White.” The measured metrics and the feel of all three white Kona samples were nearly indistinguishable. In terms of color, the two labeled “White” looked to be the exact same color. Not surprisingly, the one labeled “Snow” was more of an off-white.  

Black Kona

I bought five black Kona samples. The samples from Hobby Lobby,  JOANN, and one from a local shop was labeled “Black.” The other two also came from local shops and were labeled “Jet Black” and “Premium Jet Black.” The only difference in the blacks was that the “Jet Black” and “Premium Jet Black” samples were a more saturated deeper shade of black. 

That said, one shop owner told me the black Kona she received during the pandemic was low-quality. She showed me the bolt alongside a newer bolt of Kona black and the pandemic bolt was clearly inferior. She said she was glad to have been able to get any black, as the supply was really low, but was miffed that the sales rep wasn’t transparent about the quality of what was available. At this point all that pandemic black is probably out of the stores, but be sure to check before you purchase.  

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 365 colors, the most of any fabric line. For many, this alone is enough to make it an easy decision to use Kona.  

• “Black” is a warm shade and somewhat saturated. “Jet Black” and “Jet Black Premium” are very deep neutral-toned shades of black. To my eye these two “Jet” blacks were indistinguishable—maybe Kona just changed the name on the end of the bolt?  

• White was slightly less transparent than the other fabric lines, but the difference is very subtle.

• Designated as “coarse.” 

• Low tpi and the least amount of stretch on the bias of all the fabrics. 

• Medium fray and skew and not much shrinkage coming out of the wash. 

Comments from online sources: 

• “Kona is manufactured in Korea/Indonesia/Thailand. The line is Oeko-Tex certified.”

• “Kona has a durable, substantial weight and texture.” 

• “Dense and tightly woven.”

• “I find that Kona frays far worse than most other solids.” Note, I read this comment in more than one place but in my testing Kona came in middle of the pack for amount of fray. 

• “I have also experienced bleeding with Kona Navy and Kona Celestial.” Note, I specifically bought and tested these exact colors and did not experience any bleed.

• “Kona is a notorious bleeder in my experience, and practically every color is a culprit. Also, I’d expect you’d find different results using hot/boiling water!” Note, I did not experience any bleed in any fabric I tested, Kona or otherwise. 

• “I’ve been using Kona for decades & never had any bleeding. Just washed a dark green & white quilt with unwashed Kona solids, & it turned out fantastic. I’m going to keep using it.”

• “Reply to thegathering quilt from blooms.n.bobbins: The scientist in me is wondering what the results would be like when replacing the color catcher with a scrap of white fabric from the same company. I have the same experience as others where Kona hasn’t yet bled into my other fabrics. But I’ve also never dared to wash without a color catcher. In other words, I wonder if there’s a difference between brands in how easily their fabrics take up dye.” Note, I did not use a color catcher in my testing and did not have a single sample, from any manufacturer, back-dye into the attached white fabric. 

• “Fabric shack online. All the Kona colors, $7.29yd, shipping is $5 and they sell in 1/4yds too.” 

• “Black is true” Note, I agree with this for Kona “Jet Black” but not for Kona “Black.”

• “Not all Kona cottons are the same. Check their website and see that it comes in different qualities.” Note, Kona does have a category under [Fabric] called [Premium] but the only fabric listed is “Jet Black,” which is a very nice black. In my testing the “Black” samples I purchased at different stores was indistinguishable. 

• “I recall hearing they have different versions of their fabrics, but I’m not sure if that’s true.” Note, I did not find this to be true in blind testing.

• “The only one (white) that I would absolutely avoid is Kona. I have, in the past, purchased Kona white @ the big box store. Many believe that the Kona sold @ those stores is different than Kona sold in quilt shops - but Robert Kaufman, the manufacturer, says it is all the same.” Note, in my testing the Kona whites performed equally well, regardless of where they were purchased. 

Painter’s Palette Solids (Paintbrush Studio/PBS)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 210 colors. The PBS website categorizes some of the 210 colors into various bundles. One of these is Birthstone Palettes with 12 different fat quarter bundles, one for each birthstone. I’ve seen a few quilts made for babies using their birthstone bundle and thought it as a unique and lovely way to personalize a baby quilt. Use the colors any way you want or search on [Patterns MJ Kinman Gemstones] to find patterns that look like actual gems.  

• Black has a very warm tone and very high saturation.

• Designated as “Coarse.”

• It came out of the wash with no skewing, medium fraying, and had the lowest shrinkage rate.

• The PBS website has a page that shows the Kona equivalent for each PBS quilting solid, www.pbsfabrics.com/pages/kona-matches.

Comments from online sources: 

• “One you need to try is They are rich in color and have a wonderful hand. Their weight is a bit more hearty than Free Spirit solids.”

• “I would also NOT choose Painter’s Palette by Paintbrush Studios, as it felt heavier than most quilting fabric. Unless I was making a quilt out of all solids and could use only PP fabrics, which would be difficult as they do not currently carry many colors.” Note, I can confirm that Painter’s Palette was tied with the Kona Premium Jet Black as the heaviest fabric I tested. That said, they now carry 210 colors, so lots to choose from.  

Ruby + Bee (Whindam)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 55 colors. 

• Black has a medium-cool tone with medium-low saturation.

• White was ever so slightly more transparent than the other fabrics. 

• Designated as “Soft.”

• Highest amount of stretch on the bias.

• Low fraying but high skew out of the wash.

Comments from online sources: None

Solid line (Connecting Threads/CT)

Notable results from my testing and research:

• 95 colors. 28 of these 95 are part of a subset identified as “Amish Colors.” 

• Black has a very cool tone and high saturation.

• Designated as “Coarse” and “Slippery.”

• Low tpi and high amount of stretch on the bias.

• High fraying but no skew out of the wash.

• Can buy same color thread. 

• Order directly from website.

Comments from online sources: 

• “I so love the solids these solids. Good quality and price.”

At-a-glance result chart

Metrics and testing techniques

Note, before I did any testing I applied a code to the fabric samples so that I would not be aware of which lines I was handling during any part of the testing process. 

Color range available

I found this information online. It changes every season as some colors are added and others retired, but I believe it is accurate as of December 2022. 

Color temperature and saturation

Black

I put the washed black samples on a table with ample natural light, compared them to each other, and ordered accordingly. This resulted in a grid with saturation (deep/dark to gray) along one dimension and color temperature (cool green/blue to warm purple/brown) along the other. I did this twice and got the same result so I think it is reasonably accurate. That said, the differences were very subtle. Still if you are making a primarily warm quilt that includes black, one of the warmer options will harmonize better. Likewise, if you are making a quilt with primarily cool colors a cooler black would harmonize better. On the other hand, if you want to intentionally create tension in a quilt—say you are making a provocative word quilt—you might prefer a black that does not harmonize.  

White

I did not assess the color temperature of the white samples because I did not have the pure white option for enough of the brands and it would create a false result to compare “white” to “snow” to “ivory” etc. 

Colorfast in wash 

I sewed a 4-inch square of unwashed white to a four-inch square of unwashed black and ran it through a normal wash cycle, set to warm, using Arm & Hammer laundry soap. Then I took apart the seams and looked carefully for any dye transfer on the white fabric. Not a single white sample showed evidence of dye transfer. I was surprised by this as I had seen a post on thegatheringquilt’s instagram page where some popular brands of solid cotton quilting fabric had a remarkable amount of color “caught” in dye catching strips when the fabric was shaken with the strips in a mason jar. This instagram post had a comment where a quilter described experiencing bleed with two specific blue colors of Kona, “Navy” and “Celestial.” I bought these exact colors and, along with “Aurora Red” (AGF), ran the same test with these three colors. Again, I did not have any bleed in any samples. 

My current thinking is that the dye that was caught in the strips is somehow unable to back-dye even though it can get caught in the strips, but that is totally a guess. This two-part post from thegatheringquilt can be found here: 

www.instagram.com/p/Cd6_7ASJ1tQ/

www.instagram.com/p/CdwF923umNn/

Fading from sunlight exposure

In late November 2022, I sent strips of all the blacks, along with the two Kona blues and one AGF red mentioned in the preceding [Colorfast in wash] section, to my brother in Tucson, Arizona. He secured them to the inside of his southern-facing garage windows. In this spot, the samples will get consistent and strong sun, protected only by inexpensive window glass. I will compare the sun-exposed samples to not-sun-exposed samples when I visit Tucson in July, 2023, when they will have had a chance to be in the most intense summer sun for several months. 

Note, a rep from American Made Brands mentioned that solid cotton quilting fabric also is prone to fading from indoor lighting. She said fluorescent lights are the worst, but that any bright light can cause the fabric to fade. 

Feel and Sheen

When I was first looking over the unwashed fabric samples I could not believe how different they looked and felt—shiny, matte, soft, silky, rough, etc. Because of that I added a “sheen” metric and a “feel” metric to capture these differences. 

I tried to see if I could sense any difference in the sheen between brands in the after-wash samples. To do so I ironed creases in the small black samples and looked at them under differing lighting conditions and kinda thought I could see a minor difference. The emphasis here is on “kinda.” It was so subtle, if it was even there at all, that I couldn’t reproduce my results. So I decided not to report on sheen as it practically disappears after the fabric is washed. 

At first I thought I would have the same problem with the feel of the fabric; they would be too similar to differentiate. But as I handled them I started to notice the variations and was able to put each sample into one of three categories: “soft, “medium,” and “coarse.” (In addition, I noted three that have a very slight silky feel.) Since I was unsure of my ability to discern these subtleties I redid the experiment two more times, spacing the comparisons by a week and not looking at the previous results during the interims. After the three iterations, I compared the results from the three tests and to my astonishment the results were identical(!) with the same five in the “soft” group, same two in the “middle” group, same six in the “coarse” group and same three with the “silky” notation.

Fraying from washing machine

To assess fray I measured the fray on each side of the washed 18-inch square black and white samples and added up the four measurements to get the total fray for each sample. I then averaged the total fray from the black and white sample from each line. Excluding one outlier, the range of total fray (the four sides added up) was ¼-inch to ¾-inch. The excluded outlier was from the Cirrus samples, which had 1¼ inch total fray!

Responsibly produced 

I didn’t search every manufacturer for this specifically but I am sharing the information about responsible manufacturing that I do have, such using techniques that require less water or the fabric being made from USA-grown cotton, when it was plainly provided.  

Shrinkage 

I cut 18-inch squares, then washed all the whites in one load and all the black in another load. Both loads were set to “normal” and used warm water. Then I dried them to the setting that is one notch drier than “dry.” I ironed the samples and measured from the outer edge of the fray and calculated shrinkage from the original 18-inch cut. The range of shrinkage was pretty big, 2.8% – 7.2% reduction. 

Skew distortion from washing

A few of the 18-inch square samples (both black and white) came out of the wash with noticeable skew. I used ¼-inch increments to rank the skew. Less than ¼-inch got a 0, ¼-inch got a 1, etc. Most fabrics got a 0, but one got a 3. 

Tensile strength—the tendency to distort on the bias

I am using “tensile strength” as the name for measure of distortion on the bias of the 18-inch washed samples. I was interested in this because I have often cut fabric only to have it distort when I iron it or sew on the bias and I wondered if any fabric would have less of this tendency. 

Then I became especially interesting in identifying fabrics that have a lot of this “play” after reading Improv Quilting by Irene Roderick. On page 40 she describes how to use this bias play to create organic arcing strips to use in improvisational piecing. So cool. 

Anyway, I measured the tensile strength for both the black and white samples by hanging a heavy vice grip on the diagonal and recording the amount of absolute stretch. The measurements were reasonably consistent between the black and the white of each brand giving me confidence in my results. I then calculated the percent stretch (I needed to use percent since the samples had shrunk to different beginning dimensions) and averaged the black and white percent stretch to get a number for each line. Range: 3.56% – 9.92%.

Threads-per-inch (tpi)

I put a ruler on each piece of white fabric (and the two Kona “Jet Black” samples) and took a close-range photo. Then I enlarged the image and counted, being careful to count along the warp dimension for all samples. Range: 68 to 142, with most being around 75 tpi and a cluster of three around 135 tpi.

Of note is that the low-tpi fabrics usually state they are 60x60 or 60x62, but the lowest thread count I found was 68 for any of the fabrics. I assume this is because I measured after they were washed and dried. 

Transparency 

I placed all the small washed white samples taut on a highly contrasting surface and scored the transparency. I repeated this and got almost identical results. I did it a third time if the first two scored differed and used the “two out of three” rule to determine the score. That said, the differences were way subtler than I had expected. 

Weight, before and after washing

I weighed the 18-in squares before and after washing and recorded the results. It’s hard to say how much of the weight loss was due to fray and how much was due to additives being washed away but to try to tease that out I plotted the total fray against the weight loss and got a weak result, leading me to believe that additives make up a significant amount of the weight loss that occurs during washing. The full weight test results can be found by going to the [Raw Data] found at the end of this document.  

Link to raw data

The Code > Brand key is in the [# of Colors] tab

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1EHLhjjyHmPYCSbVkHgW9v0zvHI0P8AZlmbXVez1UMIw/edit?usp=sharing

Note, I did not collect this data with an eye on sharing the raw data but my daughter and son-in-law (both researchers by profession) thought it was important to do so. Send me an email if it doesn’t make sense and I will try to answer your question(s).

Additional Resources

Apps and websites

www.instagram.com/thegatheringquilt

Instragram page with posts that compare solids for both back-dying color-catcher strips as well as comparing the results for machine quilting these same fabrics. There are also some comparisons of quilting tools and other handy information. Check it out! 

www.stitchedincolor.com/blog/2017/12/4/comparison-quilting-cotton-solids

Blog post that provided some valuable insight into this project.

What a Color? 

Free app that samples the color content of an image and can give you the RGB, CMYK, HSB, HEX, and LAB values for any selected color within the image.

www.play-crafts.com/blog/tools/

Website with color tools and Kona swatches to import into Illustrator.

www.stephskardalquilts.com/color-wheel-harmony/

Website with a tool to find combos on a color wheel by exact fabric name.

www.stephskardalquilts.com/color-palette-tool/

Website with a tool for matching solid fabric to a jpg image.

www.stitchedincolor.com/blog/2017/12/4/comparison-quilting-cotton-solids

Website with a cotton solid fabric comparison from 2017.

www.freespiritfabrics.com

Website for Free Spirit. It has a 100-page+ downloadable PDF catalog of all its fabrics, including the full line of Kaffe Fassett. To access it go to . In the purple bar, click on [Be Inspired], then select the first option, {Catalogs]. Scroll about half way down and click on [FreeSpirit Re-Order Catalog 2023 - 2025, Two Year Catalog]. It’s great fun to flip through. Note, however, that the images of the fabrics are not all printed at the same scale. To see the scale, put the SKU number (printed on each image) into a google search and find a merchandiser that shows the fabric with a ruler image. 

Purchasing online

I purchase from small local shops whenever I can. I love going in and seeing the fabrics, playing with combinations, and learning from the staff. But sometimes I can’t get what I need and I order online. The first two websites listed below have been very helpful in those circumstances. The third one is complicated.

FabricShack.com 

Website that sells the full line of Kona for $7.25/yd, with cuts down to 1/8-yard. Shipping is $5 for purchases under $50 and free if over $50.

Stashfabrics.com

Website that has buying clubs where you pay a monthly fee in return for monthly deliveries of fabric. (Click on [Clubs] in the menu bar.) Depending on which club you join you receive fat quarters, half-yard cuts, or one-yard cuts of Kona, AGF’s Pure Solids, or Moda’s Grunge line such that at the end of the year you will have received every color in your chosen line. For example, the “Gimme All the Konas” 1-yard club is $214.95/month (this comes to $7.07/yard) and you would receive one yard of all 365 colors by the end of the year. Note, club memberships only start in January and a limited number are offered—and they appear to always sell out. Regular cuts of Kona by-the-yard at Stash costs $7.60/yd, with free shipping on orders over $99. 

Stash also carries a few hard to come by lines from international deisgners such as Kathy Doughty from Australia.

Missouri Star Quilting (MSQ).

MSQ is the largest, or at least one of the largest, online sources for quilting fabric. During my discussions with two different quilt shop owners, one in Michigan and one in Wisconsin, I came to be weary of MSQ’s purchasing habits. Specifically, these quilt shop owners independently shared their suspicion that MSQ scoops up fabrics it feels will sell well, not just because they think they can sell it but to keep it out of smaller shops. This is a thorny issue, made all the more so because I do not know if it is true or just paranoia. But… if true… MSQ is essentially leveraging its buying power to get a disproportionate amount of the best fabrics which discourages shoppers from going to their smaller local shops since the new exciting fabrics either are not available or, since the small shops were only able to get such a small quality, already sold out. 

The focus of the shop owners’ concern is on the word “disproportionate.” Of course, a company that sells as much as MSQ should get more fabric than a store that sells less. The question is, Is it intentionally getting more than its share to screw the little guys? Let me know if you have insight into this; I can totally see it being true and I can also see it being not-true, just an idea born out of the frustration of how hard it is to run a small profitable quilt store when competing with huge online stores that can seemingly offer endless stock of everything. 

Thanks for reading!

I did my best, but know it could have been better. Please keep discussions kind and feedback constructive. About once a month I plan to incorporate feedback that adds value to the post. I am considering doing additional posts on other quilting tools and supplies or where to find unusual fabrics—let me know what interests you most!

lynn.stuart.quilts@gmail.com

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