The snow just keeps on coming. Just about every other day for the past two weeks, we have had a snowstorm drop another 6-12″ of snow. We live in a veritable snow fortress! I know a lot of New Englanders are getting tired of it, but I admit–I still love it. It’s so pristine and gorgeous, and to be honest, having to dig tunnels to get out our front door is living a childhood dream for me. Walking down those paths with snow towering on either side is just so cool! My children love it, too, so I won’t be complaining.

Loving the snow  doesn’t mean I wouldn’t mind a little getaway to the tropics. Here are my final photos from our vacation in Cozumel and Belize early last month. Color palettes are created using Play Crafts’ Palette Builder 2.1 and my photographs.

Corresponding Kona cottons from left to right:
Palm, Ivy, Grasshopper, Lime, O.D. Green, Olive

Corresponding Aurifil thread from left to right:
5021 – Light Grey
2887 – Olive
5018 – Grass Green
2888 – Fern Green
4173 – Dk Olive
5015 – Gold Yellow

With all this white, I really needed some green. We are nearing the time of year when I feel that strong desire to grow something–anything! and often get my seeds planted under a grow light. There’s something about the tiny green sprouts of new life that help make the last cold days of winter linger a little less closely. This color palette gives me a good dose of green during a very green-less season!

Corresponding solids from left to right:
Bella Cherry, Kona Wine, Kona Hunter Green, Kona Basil, Bella Avocado, Bella Popsicle, Bella Cayenne

Corresponding Aurifil thread from left to right:
2395 – Pumpkin Spice
2355 – Rust
5021 – Light Grey
2892 – Pine
2887 – Olive
2230 – Med Peony
2270 – Paprika

These bright beauties were spotted at Bacab Eco Park in Belize. Bright flowers sure know how to brighten a snowy day. I added an extra color to this palette, because I really wanted the pinks and reds to be well represented. In playing around with this palette, I also discovered that Play Crafts has been updating their Palette Builder! Now not only can you get matching Kona Cottons, but you can also get matching Moda Bella solids OR opt for “All Solids”, which will match the closest color regardless of collection. I love this option, since I’ve noticed that some of the Kona matches aren’t always true to the color in the palette/photo, so adding the entire pool of Moda solids to the mix is a great idea! This makes the available matches quite long, though, so I plan to include a little of each in my Color Inspiration posts each week. I most likely will opt for “All Solids” and will list the best matching fabric solids for each palette, in addition to the matching Aurifil thread. Quilty color overload!

Do you mix and match your solids when you quilt, or do you opt for all one brand?