In this tutorial I'll show you a new size upgrade option for my Dragon Dreams pattern: add a flower banner to make a beautiful throw quilt!
How To Make A Puff Quilt The Easy Way ~Bubble Quilt ~ Puffer Quilt. Free sewing Tutorial
Download our printable quilt size chart with the dimensions for all the standard quilt sizes. Save for all your future quilt size dilemmas.
Want to give your quilting some added texture and depth? Try machine quilting with 12 wt. thread! It's not difficult, but there are 5 secrets you must know.
I told myself I'd never make another puff quilt. Yet, here I am.....sharing about my second puff quilt. (haha!) Don't get me wrong, I loved the process of making my first puff quilt, which you can read about here, but I honestly thought that we'd never have the need for another one. Well, over the last year, I slowly forgot how much work they are (haha) and I started getting the itch to do the process all over again! Peter uses my original puff quilt alllllll the time. He loves the weight of it, but his only complaint was that it wasn't long enough. I made the
Learn how to use interfacing to tame stretchy t shirts and make them play nicely for quilting. Tutorial from NewQuilters.com #tshirt quilts #tshirt quilting DIY
Hi there, I’m hoping you can help me. I have a newly finished quilt that got a small hole in the top from my cat’s claws. What’s the best way to repair…
Learn to make quilt binding in six simples steps by Simple Simon and Company.
I have become obsessed with Flying Geese! No, not the ones currently flying south for the winter. With the quilt pattern Flying Geese. It’s a quick and easy (my favorite!) quilt pattern, and it looks great in all sorts of colors! Here is the first Flying Geese quilt I made. Outer Space Astronaut Flying Geese. And a Christmas Goose. Using the 4 at a time method makes these geese quick and easy, while also making sure that all of the points line up just perfectly like they are meant to. I’ve made flying geese before, and even wrote a quick tutorial on how to make them, but as star points, rather than as flying geese. What’s the difference, you ask? The finished product is different based on how you turn your flying geese units, and other background squares, but the construction is the same. So why, you ask, am I writing another tutorial so soon after the first? You have a lot of questions! I wanted my finished geese to be larger this time. And I couldn’t remember the measurements for cutting my fabric to make a different size. As a writer of the tutorial, I shouldn’t have to go online to look up measurements. I should have that resource available at hand at all times. Flying Geese can be made in any size, the finished size is always like this, each individual goose is twice as wide as it is long. Math, I know, it’s hard! Just a warning, more math is coming! I know, I try not to inundate you with too much math, but this time around it’s necessary. Let’s say you want your finished goose to be 3” by 6”, this will make each pair of geese into a 6” square. Why 3” by 6”? That’s the size I used most recently, so it’s fresh in my mind! So, now that I’ve looked it up, I’ve created a cheat sheet chart of many different sizes, to keep for handy use. The 4 at a time Flying Geese method uses one big square (this fabric is the goose body) and 4 small squares (this fabric is the sky). You should keep it handy too, you can pin it for later and never have to go looking for these measurements again. Now that you’ve got the list of what size little squares go with what size big squares, how ‘bout a quick tutorial on what do with them once you’ve cut them? Flying Geese Tutorial- The 4 at a Time Way To make Flying Geese this way, the large square is your width dimension (6”) plus 1¼”, for a total of 7¼”. The smaller squares are your height dimension (3”) plus 7/8”, for a total of 3 7/8”. This added fabric accounts for the seam allowances (that’s the bit that gets sewn into the seam). I wanted my finished piece (remember, finished means once it’s sewn into the quilt and no edges are left unsewn) to by 3” by 6”. To make this set of 4 geese, you’ll need: 1 Navy Square: 7¼” 4 Teal Squares: 3 7/8” Draw a line with a pencil from corner to corner across the diagonal of your 4 teal squares. Take your 7¼” Navy Square and 2 of your 3 7/8” teal squares, and place the teal squares corner to corner across the diagonal of the navy square. The corners of the teal squares will overlap in the center of the navy square, and the pencil lines will match up, to continue all the way from one corner across to the other. Pin in place Sew ¼ of an inch to the right of the pencil line. Turn the fabric pieces 180* and repeat, to sew down the other side of the pencil line. Because you’ve turned it, you will still be sewing to the right of the line. Cut along the pencil line. Iron the seam, pressing towards the smaller teal pieces. It makes sort of a heart shape. Pin your 3rd and 4th small teal squares, to the remaining navy corner of each of your heart shaped pieces. The pencil line will go from the navy corner, and should go right through the V of the heart. Sew ¼ inch from the pencil line, turn and sew ¼ inch from the pencil line on the other side. Cut along the pencil line, and press, again towards the teal. Now you have 4 Flying Geese! Here they are finished and sewn into a quilt. You can do lots of things with your 4 Flying Geese (even turn them into a star!) but here is the quilt I made with the navy and teal geese used in this tutorial. If you are wanting to making this same quilt, the original pattern (not my creation!) can be found here! My version is made with 40 different fabric combos. At 4 geese per combo, that’s 160 geese total. And, one more time, in case you scrolled by it above without memorizing it, here is the chart of square sizes again. Save it. Pin it. Use it again. And again. Happy goose flying! I love, love, love the binding I chose to go with this quilt! There’s a little bit of it in the quilt top too, but I just love it as binding.
When making a quilt label, is it appropriate to include the name of the person who designed the pattern? And is it necessary to contact the designer of…
Use this standard quilt size chart to design your next project. It covers all sizes from baby to California King. Size chart is easy to read and printable.
Have you ever wanted to make a temperature quilt? Are you familiar with what one is? Temperature quilts are kind of like a daily diary of the temperatures that occurred throughout the year in a p…
Don't know about your area but here in VaBch/Norfolk Friday was July Sew Day. It wasn't just another sew day this one had a little spice. Our local PBS Station, WHRO, was filming and interviewing for a piece they are doing on the work Elaine and I do for and about QOV. It is apparently a new segment on events and people around our area that support our active military and veterans. To be chosen as the first story is quite an honor. We will post and link what we can when it becomes available. They will be making another trip to the home/studio for some more footage and interviewing this coming week. Are we excited...ask your 7 year old on Christmas Morning before you hand him/her their first present. Duh!!! To say we are lucky when it comes to space would be very true. The Ocean View Senior Center Norfolk allows us access to the gym area. Our guild also holds our Day Chapter meeting s here. They have been very generous and gracious hosts. Above, the WHRO camera operator, Shannon, takes some shots as Laurie explains the photos of her family she has on her cup. Elaine and I had the honor of awarding QOV's to her parents. WWII Veterans who meet when her dad was wounded and the treating nurse was...you guessed it...her mom. Above, left to right Nancy B. Nancy Z. and Anne H. share stories and experiences with the WHRO Reporter, Michelle B. (standing) Michelle is a 26 year veteran from the U.S. Air Force. She was also one very surprised recipient of a Quilt of Valor that we presented. We will post some photos at first opportunity. Shannon videoed and took some stills of the Award Presentation. Nancy Z's name will come up again here in a few minutes. Above Susan P. and Nancy F. (I know a lot of Nancy's) were working on bindings. While Davis M. (below) was doing some cutting. He was working on some blocks for future QOV's. Davis has been quilting since February 2013 and has already ribboned. A former engineer he took to quilting and sewing like, as they say, a fish to water. I think I've seen at least a dozen of his finished projects...at least...oh did I say finished. One month he brings a couple of tops to Show and Tell and next month he brings the completed quilts. My guess is the life expectancy of a UFO is very short around Davis. We displayed a couple of finished quilts and there was an area where we had quilts to be bound, bordered, and labeled. Everyone had plenty to do. There was one quilt that wasn't there. It was in the Longarm Room attached to the machine waiting for someone to get home and apply some thread. You'll recall I mentioned Nancy Z. would be heard from again. Well here she is. Elaine and I were graciously invited to attend this years Region 8 Retreat. While there it was announced by Betsy that a company that makes the blue star fields for flags has a very strict and rigid quality control system. If there is a flaw, any flaw, the smallest of flaws detected as the field comes off the machine the field is removed from further production and prior to Betsy, discarded. The fields are never part of an American Flag. Well long story short Betsy took delivery of apparently a pallet full of blue fields of different sized stars that didn't get past quality control. So of the 90 individuals that attended the retreat we all got some blue fields. You may have seen some postings of what others have done with those blue fields. Well here is Nancy Z's. I got to quilt it and more than likely will get to award it down the road. This truly is one of those times when the picture doesn't do justice. This is one fabulous quilt. My goal as a longarmer, whether a QOV, a Project Linus, someone's baby quilt or one of Elaine's custom T Shirt quilts, regardless, is to compliment the quilter's work. I haven't seen Nancy yet so I'm kind of on pins and needles but I hope I was successful. Her work is always beautiful and meticulous. Picking the pattern and putting down the first few stitches was more nerve racking than flying into a combat zone under fire. At the time I was used to that, it was the routine. Complimenting the work of quilters is a tad bit more challenging. If I get it wrong a lot more dangerous. I'll leave you with this...by the time I get the quilt all of this has been figured out...thank goodness! I have to admit I'm a littler concerned in regards to the size of the lap as indicated above. I'm gonna have to talk with Elaine. Apparently I'm gonna need a "nap quilt." I'm certain I qualify. Quilt till you wilt...we do.
The Log Cabin Quilt Block is a perfect block. Once mastered, you can stop there because it's almost impossible to run out of ways to make log cabin quilts.
Learn how to figure out how much yardage of backing fabric is needed when making a quilt.
A blog with special designed quilts, blocked, applique, t-shirt, picture, etc. including pictures, tutorials, techniques, quilting, & giveaways
Binding your quilt is a great feeling- it means you’re almost done! It’s a simple process that gives your project the perfect, finished edge. But if you’ve never done it, binding can look a little tricky. How do you get those perfect corners? Where do all the raw edges go? If you’re brand new to…
I have one week left in my Photoshop for Quilters online class. I thought I would share another PSE technique with you: The point of this lesson was to take an image and edit it so that you could print out a pattern to create an applique quilt. I chose a favorite image of my niece, Lilly: Original Image Image changed to black and white with levels adjustment Image deepened with Hue and Saturation adjustment Image has been posterized Then we were taught to soften the edges of the posterized version so that this could be printed out and used as a pattern to create a portrait quilt. These softened edges would be easier to cut out of fabric. If you look at the version above this one, you can see how much more detail there is in her hair that I removed. After the quilt top is completed, I could go back in and add that hair detail back in with machine quilting. How cool is that! You can find out more about this online class here: http://www.pixeladies.com CLICK HERE: to see My Quilts May Your Bobbin Always Be Full, LuAnn Kessi
When I started quilting, I had no idea how to do this. My knots would look so ghetto, lol. This may be a no-brainer to a lot of you seasoned sewers out there, but for all of you that’d like a…
5 MORE WEEKS! As excited as I am for this baby to come, and to gain back some comfort, I’ve been enjoying the quiet moments. With the hubby at school for most of the day and it just being me …
I have always been intrigued by the art of Sashiko, but I have never had a chance to learn more about it. This article from Koekoek was just what I was looking for. It is a nice introduction to th…
Upcycled t shirts are a great way to recycle your old clothing into something fabulous! Here are some great ideas and tips!
Learn how to make patterns that are reusable and will last longer than a traditional paper pattern. Get tips on how to trace and transfer pattern marks.
Learn how to fussy cut with this quilting how-to video. The fussy cut is a simple technique that can add a lot to your quilts!
Hey there! When you are new to quilting and sewing knowing the yards/inches gets very confusing. When I started learning how to sew, these terms were like learning another language! Haha! I remember going online and looking for a yardage...
If you're looking to learn how to make a t-shirt quilt easy, you've come to the right place. We'll guide you through the process of how to make a t-shirt quilt DIY for beginners. Or, let us make your quilt for you - you won't regret letting us take the wheel!
No matter the occasion for quilting, if you've got a specific person in mind when making a quilt, you've probably also got a specific size in mind. When getting started, it's important to know exactly how much fabric and batting you'll need to complete everything and achieve a quilt that's big enough to fit your needs. While bed sizes are pretty standardized, the best quilts for those bed sizes are not. Depending on the pattern you're using, you might increase or decrease from the traditional sizes of these quilts in order to make them fit the design. There's no one right answer for any mattress size, but if you know the most common quilt sizes, you can figure out whether or not a certain design would work for your bed. Here are the basics of bed quilt sizes:
Summer's over and it's back to school time, which means it's also back to sewing school time! (Did you know that I have a FREE beginner's sewing course?) Last week I mentioned that I have a new free pattern for a pencil-shaped pencil case to share with you (update: here's the info on the pencil
Instant printable pdf sewing patterns and tutorials, easy to make recipes and free sewing class for the family
In today's culture of disposable fashion, the simple art of basic darning and mending has been all but forgotten.
Discover the joy of easy lounging and simple sewing with The Marisol Jumper Free Sewing Pattern! This one-piece jumper is a light-weight sensation that
