Rail Fence flimsy surprise

  The leader/ender project that had been on the design wall gave me a little surprise.  Hanging on the design wall, it was colorful, and a little bit plain.  So I knew a border of some sort was required.

  Shopping in the stash closet----- I was looking for something to bring it all together.   I had enough of the cream rail fabric for the outer border...which would help float the design.  Yet I wanted a narrower inner border to frame it.   A large print just made it busier.  A small  print looked alike dots and was distracting to me.  Black was  under whelming.  Various blue fabrics were uninspiring.  My green collection is getting sparse.








   Then I went to the red section.

  I have had this mottled fabric for several years.....won as a door prize.  It's not really red.....one of those that are difficult to classify.  Some goldish orange that blends into a red purple tone...as a large piece it is ugly.   Yet, cut into strips  as an inner border, it not only stops the design, it enhances the gold and red fabrics in the mix.












   Once the borders were added, I was surprised to see how well it worked for this rail fence variation.  A little unexpected use of some ugly fabric adds a spark to a very simple pattern.
   Now it is on to the backing and quilting.  Maybe you will discover a surprise in your stash!

  Happy stitching.