Learn how to make a quilt design wall! Choose the best materials to use and learn how to hang a design wall for quilting in your space.
The design wall has by far been the most valuable addition to my studio. I don't have a wall large enough to dedicate to permanently attached panels, so I wanted to make a sturdy, two-piece design wall that could be moved around the house as need be. It was important...
When we moved into our new home, the highest priority for me was getting my quilting studio up and running since quilting is my full-time job. I’ve had many people asking me how I built my de…
There are multiple ways to make a quilt design wall. Here are the best options listed out from easiest to hardest and cheapest to most expensive.
A quick tutorial on how to make a portable and inexpensive design wall for your sewing room, with items easily found at your local hardware store.
Samelia's Mum Sewing Studio
In our old digs my design wall was limited to ONE. Now with the studio I have my own padded room;) I had one wall space left that I was told needed a bumper to protect the wall from ambitious pressers yielding an iron;) I also had two smaller pieces of cut insulation board that...Read More »
When we moved into our new home, the highest priority for me was getting my quilting studio up and running since quilting is my full-time job. I’ve had many people asking me how I built my de…
If you can’t stand back and see your planned configuration of quilt blocks, how can you judge the balance and symmetry? Build yourself a quilt design wall..
There are multiple ways to make a quilt design wall. Here are the best options listed out from easiest to hardest and cheapest to most expensive.
If you can’t stand back and see your planned configuration of quilt blocks, how can you judge the balance and symmetry? Build yourself a quilt design wall..
If you can’t stand back and see your planned configuration of quilt blocks, how can you judge the balance and symmetry? Build yourself a quilt design wall..
Easy, cheap! DIY roll-away quilting design wall tutorial by Sew at Home Mummy (also a great site for other easy, cheap sewing studio and home DIY projects!)
I finally have a quilt design wall in my new house and I'm so excited! There really is nothing like being able to step back and see an entire quilt like this! And I'm going to show you (in excruciating detail) how I built mine - including the specific materials I used. I'll also show
Had I known how easy a DIY quilting design wall board is to make, I’d have done it long ago! Make it in an afternoon with chea materials.
When we moved into our new home, the highest priority for me was getting my quilting studio up and running since quilting is my full-time job. I’ve had many people asking me how I built my de…
Learn how Melissa Averinos uses these appliqué techniques and design wall tips in making her quilts.
A repost as promised for my Improv and Value Class students. Hope you all enjoy! Little update to this post, the design wall with the grid is a Fons and Porter Design wall. Surely none of you are like me and start another grand idea before the previous twenty are finished. Design walls are as...Read More »
Looking for some quilting inspiration? Try these Nine Patch block ideas.
I had wanted to get a portable design wall to take to retreats but did not want to pay the price. Looked at various pins on pinterest and took ideas …
Easy, cheap! DIY roll-away quilting design wall tutorial by Sew at Home Mummy (also a great site for other easy, cheap sewing studio and home DIY projects!)
Hi everyone! We're huge fans of Lori Holt of Bee in my Bonnet. One of our favorite things about her is her creativity and her famous design boards! If you
Last month, I took a Bojagi class with Youngmin Lee at the Pacific International Quilt Festival. While the description and photos of the...
I can't believe an entire month has gone by without me posting! I have been super busy quilting and now it's time to show you what I've up to. Before I show you quilts, I have to post about the absolutely, fabulous design wall that my husband made for me. I already have a great design wall in my quilt room, but it is always covered with a long term project and many times I have to take down the blocks to put up another project for a while. One day while my friend Judy was visiting, she said that she had been thinking about a design wall that would be hinged on the side so that you could swing it away from the wall and put blocks on both sides. I have the perfect spot in my quilt room for this, so I mentioned the idea to my husband. He spent some time mulling the idea around in his head, deciding how to make it light enough to swing well and not pull out of the wall. He decided to make a "frame" from PVC pipe and put insulation board on the front and back. I could then cover that with batting and flannel. Here are the pictures of how the project progressed from start to finish.... Here is the frame-this is a dry fit without the cross bars. The two T-joints that are sticking out on the left are where the design wall will attach to the wall. This is a close up of the T-joint used for the hinge. Next step was to glue all the PVC pipe together and then cut the insulation board to size. He used Duck Tape to join the boards. Then he glued the insulation board to the PVC frame. He glued large pieces on each side and strips around the edges to make it smooth. This is the wall mount part of the hinge. He used a block of wood, drilled it out and fitted a dowel in it for the T-joint to fit over. That was affixed to the wall with a board-screwed into joists for support. Here is my design wall hanging on the wall. Now I just need to pretty it up and make it usable. First I covered it in batting. I bought warm and natural at Jo-Ann's on the roll. It was the perfect width. I used hot glue on the sides and bottom to hold the batting in place once I had it stretched and smooth. Lastly, I covered it with white flannel-because it was 45" wide I had to buy twice the length I needed and seamed it. Again, I used hot glue to keep it in place, but I only used the hot glue on the edges, top, and bottom. I did not use any glue on the surface of the wall. Here is the front of my hinged design wall! And here it is, swung open. You can see that I have quilt blocks on the back too-and on my original fixed design wall. Now I can work on several projects at once. I hope you are inspired by my new design wall to find a place for one in your own quilt room. Happy stitching.............
I can’t believe I’ve been making quilts as long as I have without any kind of design wall! A design wall is an area on your wall where you can lay out quilt blocks to come up with a layout for your quilt. The advantages are numerous — I’ve always laid out my quilts on […]
It has been a weird week. I am running up against the deadline for finishing the "Elements" pieces and I essentially lost two days this week. Monday morning I woke up with a stiff neck and by bedtime I was in a serious amount of pain. Did not sleep and by morning I was in such pain and fear of what might be causing it that I went straight to the Urgent Care Clinic near us. It was a strained trapezius muscle in my neck, making my neck impossible to move without screaming, hot pain and sending tentacles of pain winding up around my skull. The recommendation was rest and drugs and sleep and a soft cervical collar to support the weight of my head. So I lounged around all day on Tuesday reading and sleeping, felt a little better on Wednesday and much better today. So I was back in the studio this afternoon. "Water" should have been easy (that's why I left it for last), but I had a hard time settling on an idea. Close to my heart is the wetland area where we walk, so that began to take shape in my head. I started with an assortment of blue, gray and tan fabrics and fused some strips to form a base. At the end of today I had this: I think I am nearly there. A few additions, then I will trim it to size and bind it. Speaking of the wetland area, we had a surprise when we walked last week. Sofia was with us, and as we came around the corner near the Fanno Farmhouse, Beth and I were talking away and Sofia piped in "look at the turtle!" There, studiously digging in the dirt at the side of the trail, was a large turtle. I took its picture with my phone. That evening on the local news was a story of another turtle that was captured in a backyard several miles away. They are snapping turtles that have invaded the wetlands and creek. They are not native to the area and are thought to have been pets, originally, that were released into the creek and have bred there for years. This is the season when they come onto land to dig holes and lay eggs. They are quite destructive, eating the native fish, frogs, even baby ducks and can take a finger off if you are dumb enough to offer it to one. We found this one pretty interesting and were happy to have encountered it until we learned later what pests they are. If we see another we are advised to call the Parks department or Fish and Wildlife, who will come and take it away. Wish I had known. Now I am on the lookout when we walk.
It’s Gorgeous in Any Color! This beautiful rose is big, bold and absolutely stunning. The quilt is gorgeous in whatever colors you want your rose to be. The pixelated look is produced with 2 1/2″ squares of solid fabrics. Choose color variations that create depth and shading within the flower and leaves. Quilt from Miss …
25 project ideas for summer-themed sewing projects including quilts, coasters, bags, pillows and hoop-art. Lots of citrus, watermelon, and strawberry quilts
Learn how Melissa Averinos uses these appliqué techniques and design wall tips in making her quilts.
I've been making a lot of pillows lately as part of my determination to Make More Buy Less this year. I got the idea from Melissa over at Oh How Sweet Co and have been up to my ears in pillow making ever since! This pillow was made a little while ago. You might remember
Happy New Year! Despite the long pause in postings, I did actually complete a few more sewing projects in 2014. January 2014 - Drawstring book bags for Allie and Cate's birthdays February 2014 - Robert Hughes baby quilt (I really need to consider taking a "how to photograph your quilts" workshop:) quilted with stars and spirals May 2014 - Amy Becker's HS graduation lap quilt Amy picked out fabrics at Fabric Depot during her Portland visit, Christmas 2013. I supplemented with a few fabrics I found at The Stitching Post and at Kapaia Stitchery during a trip to Kauai (always looking for an excuse to fabric shop). The blue batik with butterflies was the first fabric Amy chose. Other colors were built around that. quilted with vining flowers and leaves Now Amy has this nice warm lap quilt - perfect for her college years at the University of Arizona in Tucson. She assures me that it does get cold there, especially when the air conditioner is running. November 2014 - New curtains and duvet set for the Sisters house After 20 years, Stefanie and I decided it was time for a change in the upstairs bedroom in our Sisters house. We found some curtain fabric at IKEA (seen below in the medium-sized pillows). After a futile search for a coordinating duvet cover I decided we just needed to make our own. Not as cheap, but so much more fun! On the bed in Anna's old room at our house (tempted to keep it here, but...) Had to add a border piece as it was just a bit too small. Found a fun coordinating fabric at The Stitching' Post. Shams and throw pillows. The quilting in the shams mimics the print in the curtain fabric. All set up in its new home. On to 2015... January 2015 - Jeanne's lap quilt This quilt was made for my good friend and fellow swimmer, Jeanne. She will be out of the water for a bit, recuperating from surgery, so of course this called for a quilt! My daughter, Anna, suggested the colors - perfect for a swimmer. Another swimmer friend, Jenn, joined me for a shopping trip to Fabric Depot and also helped with part of the sewing. Sandi and Jeanne The design incorporates over 60 small blocks with names of some of Jeanne's friends. Next Up???? cityscape art quilt based on a photo of Roussillon, France art quilt based on our Croatia travels last September flower/plant themed art quilt for the Hardy Plant Society Hortlandia Plant Sale in April hopefully taking Hilde Morin's Bowl Art class
The Cafe Wall Illusion is pretty neat and works really well for a quilt because although the lines look like they are bending, they are actually perfectly straight. So it's easier to put together than it looks. Even so, it took us a bit of time to nut out because the illusion only appears if you meet certain criteria. Also, you need to ensure that you use a light and a dark fabric for the squares. Black and white will always work but you can use any dark color shade as long as it isn't too fussy. So it's best
The design wall has by far been the most valuable addition to my studio. I don't have a wall large enough to dedicate to permanently attached panels, so I wanted to make a sturdy, two-piece design wall that could be moved around the house as need be. It was important...
A blog about two modern cousins who quilt, sew, knit, stitch and craft everyday.
I made a design wall for my sewing room, and I am so happy with how it works! I know there are several design wall ideas out there, some are good for portable projects (think flannel backed tablecloths that can be rolled up and packed away quilt blocks and all). I am working in my temporary sewing room while my new workshop is under construction. This space is small, without a lot of wall space, so I needed a semi-portable design wall that I could move around the room. It also needed to be rigid
The quickest tutorial on making a photo quilt at home.
Are you ready to make the easiest quilt ever? If so, read on to see how I made this easy quilt with no measuring or pattern required!
Make quilting easy and fast for a beginner quilter with these building blocks quilting stenciles from Leah Day.
Wow! It's been a week since I posted anything. How lazy and/or busy I have been (your choice). Today I felt like getting back to normal and after Dave and I cleaned out the garage and moved some stuff to the upstairs storage area, I got this nice email asking about my post on the design wall installation that I use, and reuse every time I change my studio arrangement. It is totally flexible. ++++++++ Pam in SW Florida asks: I am wondering about the Command hooks and your design wall statement. how thick is your design wall and how do you hang it with Command strips? Thank you I use 1" thick styrofoam insulation from Lowe's and the large Command hooks that hold 5 lbs. Since this is the third time I have used the same design wall, I had to cut it to size again and cut out a space for the wall outlet. Using a craft knife and straight edge I drew the shape and cut it easily. To attach the two panels, I chose to do them horizontally this time, to fit in under the ceiling light fixture. Here's the wall, just propped in place. Because my last studio space had a very low ceiling, I had cut these panels down to fit. Not wanting to buy more, I decided I could still make use of these, if I hung them horizontally instead of vertically. They are about 7'4" wide instead of 8 feet. The bottom panel was also cut down to fit above the baseboard. Since I am making smaller works for the foreseeable future I really don't need an 8x8 foot design wall. I put two hooks on the bottom side and two on the sides of the bottom panel. Then I pinned the batting to the top panel and placed two hooks on either side of that panel as I anchored it in place over the edge of the bottom panel. It was easier than it sounds and I did it alone, so take note. Surgery on the styrofoam for the outlet. The leftover batting shows the previous hole, pinned in place now, and hardly noticeable. And then the fabric all pulled out and scattered... I washed the floor in the new studio and took the dogs out for a final walkies around the block and even tho it was after 4pm, I thought I would start something creative in the space. It was pretty lame, so I will put it aside and try again. I hope this helps. Happy New Year everyone!!!
Exhibition of Wall Quilts, ArtsPost Galleries, Hamilton While we stich, life is not elsewhere. In a world that is increasingly connected with non-stop news, quiltmaking does not happen in soli…
Here it is- the selvage quilt that didn't make a dent in my collection of selvages! This is my second selvage quilt (Emerald Selvage Spiderweb, 2013) and probably won't be my last. Now that I'm in the habit of saving them, I can't stop! This is where I started a couple of weeks ago. If you are wondering, the red is Kona Tomato. (My grandfather grew the best tomatoes.) It only took about a week to complete the top. Many thanks to Karen Griska for writing a great pattern! I opted to set the blocks on point and skipped the borders. I wanted to make lots of blocks (I cut mine at 10"). This size fits perfectly on my kitchen wall. Selvage quilts are heavy, so a lap quilt wasn't appealing to me. I knew I wanted to quilt this with red and white thread. I started with "organic" vertical lines through the red squares. I figured whatever I quilted in white would disappear, so I decided to practice feathers. (I really stink at quilting feathers!) All that top to bottom quilting means no threads to bury. No marking, no threads to bury = win, win. There are some really cute selvages in here. And so many memories of projects past! Printed copyright dates range from 1994 to 2014. The back is loaded with dots. Why not? The only place you can really see the feathers is on this section of the back. That's OK with me! More practice required. One more glamor shot on the couch with the matching pillow. Yes, it's snowing again! Selvage Log Cabin (needs a cuter name. any suggestions?) 42" X 42" Started January 31, 2015 Completed February 16, 2015 Pattern by Karen Griska
You can make this HUGE, husband approved design wall in under 30 minutes. Yup! An easy peezy project. No more placing blocks on the floor and picking up pet hairs and dust. Our new home has really nifty textured walls and I’m always remodeling my sewing room so I didn’t want to staple batting to them to create my design wall. Instead I found packs of 3/4 inch thick polystyrene panels at Lowes. They are approx. $9 per pack. Supplies Needed Duct tape Flannel sheet or thin cotton batting such as Warm and White 1 or 2 packs of Perma multi purpose panel foam Pack of Command reclosable hanging strips for 16 x 20 frames Step 1 – Sweep the area of floor that you will be working on. You don’t pet hair and dust to static cling to the foam or batting. Step 2 - Place the panels on the floor one at a time butting them tight together. Tape the panels together using duct tape to create a 4 foot x 8 foot section (or the size of your choice). Step 3 - Our local store didn’t have any flannel sheets so I used a piece of Warm and White batting. Place the batting on the floor Place the panel front side down on top of the batting Pull the batting taught as you bring it around to the back side of the panel Duct tape it in place Step 4 – Use Command Reclosable Hanging Strips made for 16 x 20 inch picture frames on the back to hang it on the wall. I used two at the top and two at the bottom just inside the batting. That’s it! How easy was that. Now you have a fabulous, light weight design wall. Best part is it isn’t permanent and you didn’t damage the wall hanging it. You can use a lint roller to pluck the fuzzies off now and then. Happy Creating!
