Big Stitch quilting has gotten to be a big deal in the past few years, so I was thrilled when Jo Glover, who published the original directions for BigStitch Quilting, spoke to our guild last year. …
Eliane of Patchwork and Poodles introduced me to this super fun way to hand bind quilts. Something about the traditional whip stitch intimidates me, but this? I can get behind this. Materials Needed: Thread: I use DMC Pearl Cotton #8 or #12 (8 is thicker); there are tons of colors to choose from. I like to pick something that contrasts against my binding fabric. Needle: there are special hand-quilting needles out there, I like to just use my favorite stitching needle. There’s nothing fancy about it, except that the eye is really big, which I appreciate :) Scissors Thimble: This is the most important thing that you’ll need, in my opinion. Make sure you’re using a good thimble to protect those fingers! I love this thimble! They also make thimble pads that stick to your fingers, but I haven't tried those yet. Instructions: Machine stitch the raw edge of your binding onto your quilt sandwich per usual. I like to sew my binding onto the front, so that my hand stitches are on the back, but you could do it the other way around, depending on the look you’re going for. Thread your needle. Knot the end, leaving about a 1-2 inch tail. I use a piece that is the length of my wingspan, but you can totally do longer or shorter based on your comfort level. However, I’ve found that when I used longer pieces, it got knotted easily. On the opposite side of your machine stitched binding, insert your needle inside your seam allowance. Come back up through your binding fabric. The idea is that the knot will be hidden inside the binding once you hand stitch over it. Continue to stitch down the length of your binding. Be sure to only stitch through the batting and backing fabric. When your piece of thread is close to the end, stitch through the binding, backing/batting, then, stitch back up through the backing (you want to come back up slightly inside your seam allowance. Tie a knot. The knot will rest between your backing fabric and your binding…completely hidden. Re-thread your needle and insert the needle within your seam allowance, close to where your knot is from your previous thread strand. Stitch through the backing/batting and emerge through your binding. Both knots will be hidden below the binding as you stitch above them. Repeat until your entire binding is stitched. Voila! You did it! I LOVE the look of a chunky stitch, and this is a fun way to add that
I arrived at the class on Wednesday with my latest watercolour panel completed. I also took along the others I’d done as well as a folder of images I’d compiled from Pinterest to discus…
Download our printable quilt size chart with the dimensions for all the standard quilt sizes. Save for all your future quilt size dilemmas.
It's finally here! The video showing you how I do big stitch quilting - a super easy and fun hand quilting technique! Big stitch quilting is my new favorite way to hand quilt - I'm not sure I'll ever go back to traditional hand quilting. It's just so much fun! I love the chunkiness of the
Here are some more photos so you can get the idea of what I am doing. The finished quilt is out of the Anthropology magazine. The other photo is on my progress. I have a lot done, but I have used so much fabric it is sick for the little amount that I have done. I don't know what this quilt is called, but I saw the image in an Anthropologie catalog. Anthropologie has to be one of my favorite stores! So here are some pieces to it and hopefully it gets finished soon, it will hopefully be way cute. The quilt is put together with varying sizes of circles. It was hard to find circles big enough to trace, but these are some of the things that I found in my cupboards, and they worked very nice. One down fall is that it uses a ton of fabric! Most of the fabric that I am using is Joel Dewberry and one from Anna Marie Horner.
I finished this lovely art quilt — it’s Exhausted Octopus‘s Sea Glass quilt method! I did an online workshop on the technique and this was my first result!
I’m so excited to finally present the tutorial for my High Tea Crochet Quilt! However, it’s still a work in progress. Right now it guides you through the sewing and crocheting of the sq…
Quilted patchwork jackets are having a moment right now among the fashion set. Shop our favorites.
Learn how to determine what your free motion quilting stitch length should be as well as see examples of stitches that are too long and too short.
This tutorial will get you started with unlined pojagi by hand. The seams are completely enclosed, so there is no right or wrong side to the end product.
Akiko Ike of Niigata, Japan, is a gentle, unassuming lady with immense talent in the Japanese art of Sashiko embroidery. Her technique is not strictly Sashiko, it encompasses and incorpor…
Learn how to make Kantha Quilt patterns in tutorials with step-by-step instructions to guide you! Make handmade vintage and classic embroidery quilts!
Stitching lace insertion to fabric is the first technique that we learn when I teach heirloom sewing by machine. This is not a strong application of lace and best used on collars, yokes, or sleeves. Lace insertion is the lace that is straight on both edges. If one side of the lace feels rougher than the other, this is the wrong side of the lace. I have used a contrasting color thread for the photos. Use a fine machine thread that matches the lace and a 60/8 size machine needle. Starch and press the lace and fabric. Using a wash-away marker, mark the lace placement lines on the fabric. Set the sewing machine on straight stitch length of 2.0 and stitch close to the edge of the lace down both sides. I prefer to stitch from top to bottom each time to prevent the fabric and lace from distorting. Turn the fabric to the wrong side, and carefully cut the fabric between the stitching lines, being careful not to cut the lace. Press the fabric away from the lace. On the right side of the fabric, using a zigzag stitch of 2.0 width and 0.7 length, stitch over the previous stitching line. The stitch should "zig" into the lace and "zag" into the fabric. On the wrong side of the fabric, using blunt scissors, trim away the excess fabric. Starch and press the fabric and lace before continuing with your garment. I first started doing heirloom sewing about 15 years ago while doing custom sewing for "Joy's of Smocking" in Decatur, AL. I still love working with lace and fabric!
Hello Quilt lovers! Today we want to put a spotlight on the AGF collection of free quilt patterns, where you can find lots of easy quilt patterns that are designed especially for beginners, along with projects that are more challenging....
A guide to beginner embroidery stitches. Learn the basic stitches you need to embroider.
Pojagi seam allowances are totally different from quilting seam allowances. This is why you don't want to carry over point matching tendencies to pojagi.
How To Make A Puff Quilt The Easy Way ~Bubble Quilt ~ Puffer Quilt. Free sewing Tutorial
The other day I looked around and had a choice. I could finish a number of pieces that are still in process, clean the studio, create new work or drive into the sunset. I decided to let the stitch tell me what to do. There was quilt back laying around from a piece that never did get finished. So I s
Here is an up close and personal look at Bridging (Faggoting) along with a few tips. I first fell in love with this technique 32 years a...
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…
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How To Make Selvedge Fabric - A Fast & Easy Tute This week I've made a laptop case using selvedges and I thought I'd share with you how I create selvedge fabric. When I buy a piece of fabric I remove the selvedges along both edges by folding the fabric in the correct direction to cut them off as full-length strips. It's up to you how wide you cut them, you may want to cut them wider and see more of the original fabric design. I line the selvedge edge up with a 1" line on the cutting mat and then 1/8" line of my ruler on the next 1" line - lining the ruler over the larger amount of fabric helps hold the fabric in place so it doesn't move while I'm cutting though you do risk making a wrong cut into your selvedge. Update on 11 February 2017 These days I'm cutting my selvedges at 1" instead of 7/8" to allow me to retain more of the print design. The rest of the process of creating the fabric remains exactly the same😊. Update on 11 September 2018 Making fabric from my selvedges has become an important part of my design so these days I have increased the width of the selvedge I cut off a piece of fabric. I'm now cutting at 1-1/8". This gives me more wiggle room for overlapping the fabrics and leaves more of the print section visible on the text selvedge edge. The rest of the process in creating the fabric remains exactly the same😊. To make selvedge fabric first I take a piece of batting or backing fabric - whatever suits the outcome of your project best - and cut it at least an inch wider and longer than the finished size of selvedge fabric that I need. Next, I spray it all over with basting spray such as 505 (temporary/repositionable) fabric spray adhesive - using a repositionable adhesive means you can change the strips around until you're happy with the look. Now comes the fun part - lay your selvedges row by row onto the now sticky backing fabric. Start at the bottom edge of the 'fabric' placing the frayed/finished edge bottom-most. Overlay the next selvedge over the cut raw edge - slightly overlapping it. You may want to vary the amount you overlap the selvedges by so you can see more/less of the colour/design/text. You can use more than one selvedge along a particular row - using up shorter lengths of selvedge - just lay them side by side and leave the side edges raw, any fraying will be minimal and adds to the look of the finished fabric (as in the top row being placed in the photo above) Once the backing batting/fabric is completely covered with selvedges you are ready to sew the selvedges in place. (If you are creating a Quilt As You Go (QAYG) block then at this stage you can spray baste your backing fabric to the made fabric.) The spray basting should hold the selvedge strips firmly in place while you complete this stage. I sew/quilt over the length of the selvedges using my 1/4" foot as a width guide. I choose one very straight edged selvedge as a marker for my first row of stitches and then use this as a loose guide for my next rows 1/8" to 1/4" apart - I'm not looking for a perfectly straight line finish here. Placing the stitch lines so close together firmly fastens down all the selvedge edges and creates the fabric. There're other methods of attaching selvedges that leave the finished edge of each selvedge strip loose from the background fabric but this I like that my method ensures each strip is well attached and often I use a contrasting thread so the stitching becomes part of the finished design also. Here's a finished QAYG selvedge block that I made last year as part of my Something NEW Sampler Quilt. This block contains selvedges from all the fabrics used in making the quilt. This is how the back of the fabric will look - in this case, you're seeing the backing fabric of the QAYG block but if you've just used a backing fabric or batting then you'll see that instead. Once you've finished your 'made' selvedge fabric then you can trim the edges/cut the fabric to size and use in your chosen project. And that's all there is to making selvedge fabric!!! Check out my other Selvedge posts: This time, I used it to make a laptop case Crazy about that Kaffe Fassett blue Millefiore lining I love selvedge fabric - it's so individual and scrappy looking, there's always something to look at and read! I've wondered about crocheting/knitting with my selvedges too - have you tried it? I've crocheted/knitted with lots of materials in the past - one of my favourites is plastic carrier bags - great for making waterproof garden table place/drink mats and chair covers but that's a whole other post! Do you save your selvedges? If you do then share what you've made and if you've used a different method to make selvedge fabric tell us about that too. Updated On 21 April 2014: The laptop case was a present for my daughter's friend Hayley and here's a photo Flicky sent me of Hayley with her case which she tells me she uses every day. The photo is also proof that the sun does shine sometimes in St Andrews, Scotland! Updated at 11 September 2018 I've used a piece of selvedge fabric for a cushion back - I looove how this looks, don't you? See more about this cushion here in this blog post. and another I made last year - read more about it here. How To Make Selvedge Fabric - A Fast & Easy Tute Featured On: Clicking on an image will take you through to the new page of crafty goodness :) Disclaimer: This post is for informational purposes only, no payment or commission is received on click-throughs and opinions are my own.
Listed below are a few key points, tricks, and sewing tips to keep in mind when tackling your next velvet project!
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Floss wrapped rickrack is an easy technique used to add extra color to your project. The rickrack can be e ither machine stitched to the fab...
As I scrolled through Instagram on my phone while I had breakfast (we all do that, right?) I saw that @berry_birdy had put out a fun new challenge. Each May, Lesley hosts the Micro Mini Stitch Along #microminisal where we get to play and create little quilts, no bigger than 8" square. The challenge set yesterday was called "Treasure from Trash". We were to use only scraps that were in our bin. Fun! As my sewing room bin was emptied the day before for bin night, I had quite limited scraps available to play with. I only had little bits and pieces that I'd trimmed when preparing rainbow applique blocks (you can see these in my previous post). With a small piece of batting from a previous project, I started out by creating a background. I placed pieces down to cover the batting and sewed some very "rustic" lines to hold everything in place. Last week, I watched some of the Making Zen video classes and one class was by @southerngals_designs. In the class, Tiffany showed us how she uses the teeniest pieces of fabric, glue and thread to create an eye. She then uses these little eye panels on other projects. I set out by cutting the white piece and blue pieces of fabric to make the basic eyeball shape. The upper and lower eyelids were then built up using teeny scraps, held down with just a regular school glue stick. Once I was happy with the layout, I roughly went over the eyelids and sewed the pieces in place. Now for the fun bit, adding hand stitches. Rather than cut thread to add some little decorative stitches, I used to use embroidery floss regularly and would keep the spare threads which I'd split from the floss, in a little pocket in the floss tub. These were great for this project. I had lots of colours available to use and I had two strands of black. Perfect! I added straight stitches, little crosses and outlined the white of the eyeball in black, which kinda looks like eyeliner. I was thinking of adding eyelashes, but figured I should stop before I got tooooo carried away. I added a small piece of fabric to the back (from my scrap bags) of the piece and sewed right around the edge (rectangle). Pinking shears finished it off. The piece measure approximately 2.5" x 5.5" and I had a lot of fun making it. I'll probably end up using it as a bookmark. This image shows the scraps that I had left over after this exercise. They're now back in the bin... unless another trash challenge is set. If you're interested in the Micro Mini Stitch Along and checking what everyone is making with their trash treasures, you can find it on Instagram by searching the hashtag #microminisal.
This embroidery looks like it's floating!
Learning tips and tricks usually just comes with experience, but this article gives you a run-down on how to quickly boost your quilting skills.
A slip stitch / blind stitch is a common and excellent hem stitch. It is used when you don't want visible stitches. We use slip stitch / blind stitch for fastening two pieces of fabric together from the right side without the thread showing. Usually, I use it for closing an opening of a pillow, attaching the body and the parts of a sock doll, sewing a seam from the outside of a garment, and other soft finishing. How I do the slip stitch / blind stitch Thread the needle and tie a knot at the end. Insert your needle from the fold. Pull the thread through so the knot is hidden in the fold. Insert the needle into the opposite layer directly across from where the needle just came out. Insert the needle and run the needle through about 1/4" from the insertion point. Pull the thread through to bring the fold and the layer closer together. Reinsert the needle directly across from where the needle just came up out of the fabric. Run the needle through the fold again another 1/4" or so and come up. Pull the thread through to bring the fold and the layer closer together. Repeat these steps, you will see the outcome as shown in the picture.
Sharing my love of all things vintage, and aged with the patina of time...
Ladder Stitch Tutorial - Step by Step with pictures. Follow along my Ladder Stitch Tutorial and finish your projects with no thread showing.
I don't know if I've told you before, but I learned how to quilt while I lived in Japan in 2002. Japanese housewife culture, including their approach to quilting, has always fascenated me. I should have been an anthropologist and studied that more intensely, I know, but I got caught up in trying to communicate and became an ESL teacher instead. Anyway.. I discovered flickr in 2006 and the quilts I saw there lead me to start blogging about quilting. Tonight I want to share a handful of my favorite quilt photos from the Tokyo International Quilt festivals held each year in January. One year I'll make it there myself, but until then, I will live vicariously through Jennifer and Jan. Be*mused Tokyo Quilt Fest 2011 Set Be*mused Tokyo Quilt Fest 2010 Set Be*mused Tokyo Quilt Fest 2009 Set Movinghands Tokyo Quilt Fest 2008 Set Movinghands Tokyo Quilt Fest 2007 Set Movinghands Tokyo Quilt Fest 2006 Set (one of my all-time favorites is the 9th quilt in the set-- the blue one) All photos in this post were taken by Jan of Be*mused, used with permission. (*I hate to post quilt photos without information about the makers, but sadly most of these pics don't include any. Apparently the quilter info is only printed in Japanese at the show. If you have any information for any of these quilts, please comment and I will give them proper credit.)
Invisible Closing Seam. On all these cute little animals and friends that I'm making, I like to have a nice finish to them. It's much e...
Make a simple Summer Floral Floor Cushion with this tutorial to relax and enjoy the summer breezes wtih a favorite book.
