Friday’s tutorial this week is one of my favorite quilt blocks. Several years ago, a little after my love affair with crochet began and I started making pinterest boards about it, I finally sat down and let my grandmother teach me. It’s slow, time consuming and utterly relaxing. And it’s for me. I rarely share...
These 15 Easy Quilts for Beginners are a great place to start if you've always wanted to try quilting but worried it would be too hard!
The dahlia quilt shows versatility as well for it suits almost any decor. This pattern has been around for years but still got its impeccable look that stands out! Make your own this FREE Giant Dahlia Quilt Pattern tutorial.
A blog about handmade goods - Patterns, recipes and tutorials to make clothes, and chemical-free beauty products and cleaning solutions.
The craft blog of pattern designer Jeni Baker. Creative adventures in quilting, sewing, and color. Plus free sewing and quilting tutorials.
Churn Dash Quilt Block tutorial by Amy Smart of Diary of a Quilter. Available in two different sizes as part of the Riley Blake Quilt Block challenge.
A fabric collage quilt doesn't need to be scary!
The crochet Stars Aligned Blanket is the perfect blanket to go stash diving with. Half and half granny squares paired with scrappy solid squares create a beautiful crochet quilt.
Earlier this week I shared my latest quilt finish, a Shadow Block Mini Quilt. Today, you can make one, too. One very important thing to...
Double Pinwheel & Peeping Cats Quilt Blocks. Free Pattern and Tutorial
Ultimate quilt binding tutorial with step by step instructions to show you how to make quilt binding and how to attach the first round of binding. Includes 10 tips for success and a lits of tools you'll need to make your own quilt binding.
Learn how to baste a large quilt on a table that is smaller than the quilt.
Today's tutorial is from the talented Elizabeth, who blogs at Ocassional Piece - Quilt. Elizabeth is an experienced quilter with a degree in Clothing and Textiles. Elizabeth has put this excellent tutorial together to demystify the legendary "Y-seam" for us. Soon you will be sewing y-seams without even a blink, read on. Hi! I'm Elizabeth and I blog at OccasionalPiece-Quilt, or OPQuilt, for short. I've been sewing and quilting for more years than I should admit to, and during that time have completed over 120 quilts. So I've faced down more than my share of the Dreaded Y-seams. In June of this year, I made this quilt for my sister, titled Christine's Philadelphia. As you can see there are lots of peaks and valleys in this thing--lots of Y-seams going both ways (some people call them Y-seams and V-seams) but really, let's keep it simple. They are called Y-seams because the V-part of the letter Y usually has fabric with no seam, and the tail of the Y has a seam. I've marked the Y for you in red in the picture on the left. The picture on the right is the other type of Y-seam. I'll show you both. Let's start with the first type of Y-seam, where the "tail" of the Y is facing toward you and the "V" of the Y is underneath. Place a pin at the 1/4-inch mark through the seam, and into a spot that would be the peak of the 1/4" seamline, if you could draw it on and imagine it. Most beginners want to pin that seam to death. That makes me want to run screaming in the other direction. The success of your Y-seam depends on the "float" of the fabric. I sometimes will place one pin on either side of the seam, just to anchor it as I get going, then another pin or two along the starting point. Then I take out the (above) pin. Again, I want my fabric to float -- don't want to anchor that second half of the seam too much, as I need it to pivot. Start sewing from the left edge, as the seam faces you, using a 1/4" seam allowance. Fold the seam toward you, and as you approach the seam, slow down and use a bit smaller stitch. You are trying to anchor the stitching a bit. When you get to the seamline, when you are on top of the thread marking that other seam, STOP. Make a tiny stitch on top of the one before to anchor, but DON'T GO OVER THE SEAM LINE. Lift your needle out of the cloth. I pulled it away to show you what I mean, but you don't need to do that. Just give yourself a little room to smooth the (green) seam allowances out of the way, and to find the place to insert your needle again. Re-insert your needle just on the other side. Then line up the next two raw edges, smoothing the fabric away from the needle and your presser foot. Sounds more confusing than it is. Take a few tiny stitches to anchor, then change your stitch length back to normal. Another shot of my needle placed just on the other side of the seam allowances (which I flipped to the back of my presser foot). Depending on the amount of cloth in your Y-seam, and if you just feel better about it, go ahead now, and pin those raw edges together and stitch the rest of the seam. When you are through sewing, clip the thread if it is restricting the ability of the seam allowance to open up and lay flat. If you left a bit of thread there (pulled it away from the needle as in my photo above) there should be no problem. Press, keeping the tail of the Y-seam open. From the front, it looks like this. Now we'll tackle the other kind of seam--where the seam of the Y's tail is underneath, and you see the "V" part of the Y. First locate the valley of the one-quarter-inch seamline and put a pin there. Snip to within a couple of threads of the pin. Leaving the pin there insures that you won't cut too far. If that happens, curse a little. You can sometime rescue the piece with a bit of fusible interfacing. Better to not cut too far. Half of the seam (1/8") is all that's needed. Find the 1/4-inch peak of the seam below, and poke the pin in to anchor. You can leave in that center pin to hold it, and if you are afraid it will slip, it's okay to put one pin on the backside. If you can, try to avoid that pin on the right. Again, the success of a Y-seam lays in the ability of the fabric to move and pivot. Just as in the first type of seam, start stitching from the left side of the seam, towards that center pin. When you get to the pin, STOP with your needle down in the fabric. Remove the pin, then pivot the fabric so that you can match raw edges. As you align the new sides, it may feel a bit bulky under your foot, but smooth any excess fabric out away from you. Here you can see that I've pivoted, repinned the new raw edges together and am starting down the other side of the seam. This is what it looks like from the back. That deep fold is the V part of the Y-seam. The front. Give it light press. Resist the urge to saturate it with your pressing goo and mash it flat with your iron. A shot of steam and firm pressure with your fingers can usually help the most reluctant point to behave. Sometimes your seam gets a little jig-jaggy. As long as it's not too bad, it will be fine. I did the same kind of stitching process on this seam: shorten your stitches as you approach the point, then lengthen them out on the other side. A better point. All of these work fine in the quilt, because you haven't, a) stitched it to death, and b) murdered it with your iron. You can see one type of Y-seam where I joined the green roofs to the yellow houses. And you can see the other type where I joined the purple roofs to the sky. Now you know all my dressmaker/quilter tricks: never be afraid of Y-seams again! Thanks to Leanne, of She Can Quilt, for hosting this series of guest tutorials for the Finish-A-Long Motivational Program. (Just kidding on the name of it, but it does help get those UFOs out of the closet and onto the bed. Or wall.) And thank you Elizabeth! Don't forget to link up your Q3 finishes - the Q3 post-quarter link is open here and it will close at midnight MST, October 7, 2013. And if you still have some UFOs I hope you will join us for Q4 of the FAL, Q4 FAL lists can be posted starting on October 8.
This sewing tutorial will focus on bargello quilt patterns.
Do you get frustrated trying to get the binding ends cut to the correct length so everything works? I have a couple of different . . .
This method is the easiest ever way to make flying geese units. Simple math and no trimming make it accessible for everyone.
Top US Quilting Blog, A Quilting Life, shares the Best Tips for Sewing with Quilt Strip Sets. Click here now for all the info!!
A blog about quilting, creativity, and sewing
Quilted fabric postcards are fun to make! Use a heavy fusible interfacing for the core. Add background fabric and design elements!
Make your own DIY Quilted Hoodie with me using these FREE Downloadable Templates! Follow the blog post to assemble your own version!
This nicely complex block is a WHOLE lot easier to make than it looks. (Edited to add: See the finished quilt here!) It's July, and I'm so excited that it's my turn to host again in the Nurture Circle of do. Good Stitches! This month we are all going to be making blocks based on the Fibonacci sequence. The Fibonacci sequence is a mathematical concept that was discovered around 200 BC. In fact, it's been around even longer than Fibonacci, who it's named after, but he introduced it to the western world, so he got the credit. The sequence is a series of numbers where each number is the sum of the two previous numbers. Traditionally the sequence starts with 1, but the numbers themselves aren't actually what is important, but the ratios between them. The cool thing about this is that this sequence of numbers, these ratios, show up all over the place. The Golden Spiral for instance is made from boxes whose sides lengthen following the sequence. This spiral shows up a lot in nature. But it's not just nature, it's architecture, art, even web design. The golden spiral is very pleasing to our eye. Many trees have branches in combinations of the Fibonacci numbers and even in the bumps in their bark. Sunflowers and some other flowers have petals according to these numbers. It is nature's numbering system, for reasons that we don't entirely understand, but it is without a doubt both aesthetically appealing and efficient. I have been fascinated by the Fibonacci Sequence even since I learned about it in high school. You can see in the image above how the sequence is used in this month's block. With nature itself on our side we can't help but make a beautiful quilt, so let's get started! This technique makes 2 blocks at a time, which is all I am asking you for, but in order for the design to look right I really will need a 6x6 layout (36 blocks). I am planning to make the extras myself, but if anyone wants to send extra I would appreciate it! For this quilt I am thinking of colors similar to this quilt we did before. You will each need to choose 2 complimentary solids with a decent amount of contrast between them. (No pinks or purples please, let's keep it boy friendly.) Cut a 14" square from each solid. Slice each of the squares into strips, (2) 1" wide, (1) each of 1.5", 2", 3", & 4.5". (There will be a narrow strip leftover which you can toss into the trash or your scraps.) Swap every other strip between the sets to make 2 complimentary, inverted strip sets. Be careful to keep the strips in the right order. Sew the two strips sets together into 2 new blocks and press toward the darker fabric. It's easiest to press as you go along, after adding each strip. (Normally I am not a stickler about pressing but in this case it is important. If one of the fabrics isn't obviously darker, just pick one to press toward, but keep it the same for both blocks.) You might check your measurement here. At this point the blocks should measure 10.5" in their shorter dimension. Square up one end of the strip sets. Then slice off strips going crossways in the same measurements as before: (2) 1" wide, (1) each of 1.5", 2", 3", & 4.5". Again there will be a bit leftover, but probably not much. Again, swap every other strip between the two sets to create 2 complimentary blocks. See how the seams nest? (Yes, sorry, the fabrics changed colors.) Sew these together carefully. The pressed seams should nest, allowing you to get really crisp intersections without pinning (but absolutely do pin if you need to!) Be careful that the ends line up; this time we don't have any to spare. You can press these seams all the same direction, to whichever side you want. Please do run a line of stay stitching around the block about 1/8" from the edge to protect seams from splitting in shipping or assembly. You blocks should measure 10.5" square, but trust me I know how hard it is to stay precise with this many seams. As long as you are within a 1/4" or so don't stress and send what you've got. Thanks so much for being an awesome group, Nurture Circle! I look forward to our finished quilt! (Edited to add: See the finished quilt here!)
Hello all, I'm Kelly from My Quilt Infatuation, and it's my turn to share a tutorial in the Oh, Sew Baby Series! This quilt is one of my favorite go-to quilts to make when I need a fast and fun baby quilt. It's easy to put together, simple to vary, and is fat quarter friendly. That's a win in my book! You'll need at least nine fat quarters for this quilt. Trim your fat quarters to 20.5 inches. Then from each fat quarter, cut four strips, 4.5 x 20.5 inches for a total of 36 strips. You'll only need 35 strips for the quilt. I prefer more fabric variety, so I used more prints. That's totally up to you. As long as you end up with 35 strips, you're good! This quilt really is a snap to put together if you just remember a couple of important "rules." First, one full strip length is equal to five strips sewn together in the opposite direction- This is going to be important to keep the proportions of your quilt correct. Secondly, the quilt will measure 48 inches in width, which equals two full strip lengths, plus two "short sides" by 60 inches, which is three full strip lengths. When I make this pattern, I always like to play around with the layout until I am happy with it, then take a picture. Trust me, the picture can really help if your layout gets messed up. (ahem, pets and children anyone?) I chose to lay my strips out into thirds. Notice that the top third of the quilt has two horizontal strip sets, plus two vertical strips? The other two thirds each only have one horizontal strip set, but seven vertical strips (remember, five vertical strips are equal to the width of one horizontal set). Once you've decided on your layout, just start sewing your strips together in sections! ps- I'm a quilting rebel and I do NOT press this until the very end. Shhh...don't tell the quilt police! Just join your sections together and, voila! Your quilt top is finished! The important thing to remember with this quilt is to have fun with it. I like to think of it as a puzzle, but you get to decide where the pieces go! The result is a modern, random look that appears more difficult than it really is. This quilt is also really easy to modify to suit your size needs. Bohemian Charm is another example of a quilt I've made with this pattern. This one measures 60 x 64 inches, so it is three full strips in width by three full strips, plus one "short side" in length. I did not choose to construct this one in thirds, and it's actually tough to tell where the different sections are, which I love! The finished quilt measures 48 x 60 inches. A perfect size for a baby, but still big enough to be useful for years! I hope that the next time you need a quick baby quilt, you'll give Strip Tango a try, and I hope that you'll hop over and visit me at my blog home, My Quilt Infatuation, for lots of modern quilts, more tutorials, and my weekly link party, Needle and Thread Thursday! I want to thank Kelly for stopping by and sharing this fun quilt pattern with us! Be sure to check out her blog, My Quilt Infatuation to see all of her lovely work!
Learning how to tie a quilt is a simple process once you know the steps. A super easy beginning sewing project that anyone can do!
Learn how to make the softest and fluffiest binding ever with our step-by-step chenille quilt binding tutorial!
Art Quilter Robbi Joy Eklow shares her method for making a quilt facing, an alternative way to finish raw edges of a quilt.
Earlier this summer, the Happy Zombie posted a quilt-along called the Ron Swanson Along. I don’t watch much TV and haven’t seen Parks & Recreation, but I still thought her quilt was…
FREE QAYG ALONG PART 11We’re obsessed with string quilts! And they are super easy, super fun and beginner friendly, so we thought you might like to make one too. This week we were invited to make some short videos for Spotlight’s Quilting Expo, so we went totally over the top and made a 3 part series on how to make a quilt as you go string quilt from start to finish. This series is perfect for the very beginner or for those that want to try their hand at making a quilt as you go quilt. It’s full
To create my fabric collage quilts, I work in two similar but distinct ways. Most often, I will hunt for and cut out fabric shapes from larger pieces. This is the method I teach in class. Every onc…
Re-imagine traditional quilt blocks in a new way when you learn how to supersize quilt blocks to celebrate a single block in one large quilt design.
Quilters make many choices when quilting their quilts. Here, Angela discusses how to pick the perfect thread to quilt a high-contrast quilt.
