ebook - sewing - my first quilt, the bare basics - frost

8/2/2019 eBook - Sewing - My First Quilt, The Bare Basics - Frost

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MY FIRST QUILT

INTRODUCTION

When I began this basic quilting manual, it occurred to me that I had never

looked up the definition of quilting.. So I decided this would be a wonderfulplace to start, with the definition of quilting

What is Quilting?

We know that people have been quilting in one form or another for centuries,its been past down to many generations.. We know that quilts can bepractical when they help keep us warm or used as an abstract art form tohang in a gallery.. They can evoke feelings of love and warmth and sometimes awe. We often make them as gifts for loved ones or to help other lessfortunate than our selves.. We can sell them to other people who appreciatethe time and energy that has gone into making them. Most of all we know thatonce we start quilting we probably wont be able to stop.. it truly gets into ourblood, and it becomes an addiction!

There are many different ways to quilt and after you start quilting you willdevelop your own unique individual style.. So with all this said what isquilting? I put this into the computer to see what it would tell me and thegeneral consensus is that quilting is the process of stitching two layers offabric together with interlining (batting) in the middle. Now that sure doessound simple doesnt it?

It made me realise that we often over complicate things and quilting is no

different.. With that in mind I have decided to make this basic quilting manuala very simple affair. Just to teach the basics, there will be plenty of time todelve into the never ending depths of quilting once we understand how to dojust the basics,, After that you will have a blank canvas so to speak, that youcan fill to your hearts content.


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Here goes:

PART ONE:WHAT DO WE NEED TO START?

TOOLS, ROOM/TABLE SETUP

ROOM: The first thing you need is space Think about where you will doyour quilting? If possible, a place where you can leave your things out wouldbe best. However that is not going to be possible for everyone. The kitchentable is often used as an alternative. It is the act of placing the materialaround your quilt as you decide on color, pattern etc, that takes heaps ofspace.. One alternative that I recently heard, was to take some pictures(digital would be best) of your designing process, so after you have packed upyou know what colors, patterns where going where.

SEWING MACHINE: You will need a sewing machine unless you wish toconstruct your quilt by hand (and thats a whole other story).. For thepurposes of this manual we will assume you are going to use a machine.

Doing it by hand is a very rewarding time honoured activity, which requireslots and lots of time and a few different stitches to be learned.You can use a basic machine to begin with.. It would also be useful to get awalking foot for your machine.

RULER: A ruler to measure your fabric shapes.. Getting the measurementsexactly right in the beginning will save a lot of heartache at the end.

ROTARY CUTTER: Very important to have a sharp rotary cutter, so you cancut a few layers accurately at a time. It come with a safety mode and shouldalways be returned to safety mode when your not in use.

ROTARY CUTTING MAT: The cutter and the ruler should be used inconjunction with the cutting mat. This has measurement lines on it also, tohelp you keep your pieces fitting together. The mat also allows you a surfaceto cut on that you cant cut through.

Heres a picture of a ruler, rotary cutter and cutting mat some needles andwax for your thread:


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SEWING THREAD: General sewing thread and some quilting thread.

SHARP FABRIC SCISSORS: Do your self a favour and get some very sharp

scissors.. Theres nothing worse than blunt scissors!

PINS (WITH BIG COLORED HEADS): When quilting, pins with coloredheads are always best because they are easy to find on your material. Makesure they are sharp pins too.

NEEDLES: Again sharp needles are the best.

THREAD WAX: You can purchase wax for you thread. Although it is notnecessary it makes getting your thread through the eye of the needle mucheasier.

IRON AND IRONING BOARD: An iron and board are a necessity. You haveto iron the seems and the fabric as you go or youll have very strange lookingquilts. And when I say iron I mean, press, especially the seems as ironingcan push fabric out of shape very easily.

MARKING PENCILS OR PENS: These will come in handy for marking yourfabric and again help you be accurate.

FABRIC: Goes with out saying really.. You will need fabric to quilt with You could use old clothing, linen, some of your hoarded fabric and even moreexciting head of to the fabric shop and start imagining what your quilt will looklike..

BATTING: This is the stuff that will make your quilt some thing other than twopieces of fabric stuck together.. The batting is usually polyester, cotton orwool and often comes cut into sizes.. cot, single, queen or king etc. It givesyour quilt body and warmth.


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PART 2:CHOOSEING FABRIC/COLORS TO MATCH THEN ARRANGE TILL YOU

LIKE A COMBINATION/DESIGN SETTING OUT ON FLOOR/TABLE

A set of colored pencils and some paper are a great place for you to start yourdesign. Flick through some quilting magazines, go through your piles of

fabric, or even go for a walk outside all of these things can give youinspiration for your quilt design. Once a spark of inspiration has been lit do arough sketch of your ideas, then its time to play with your fabric.

Choosing fabric is one of the most pleasurable but agonizing things we do..What you eventually choose will depend on the purpose of your quilt..

The best way I have found is to lay out a plain piece of material (what everyou have lying around) or the backing fabric (if youve decided what youreusing as backing) in the size of the quilt you are making to use as a blankcanvas(a note on sizes in a minute).. Once you have the blank canvas & orthe backing fabric on the floor or table you can start designing your quilt..

See the below picture for a couple of examples of designing a quilt with aBlank Canvas.

Place pieces of fabric around the canvas and watch what happens.. Onceyou have a combination you are happy with take a photo, because then youllalways be able to go back and see your ideas after youve packed it all away..

Remember different lighting will have different effects on the colors try anddo your design under the brightest light you have. Grab all those scrap piecesof fabric and create a masterpiece while cleaning out your fabric store. Cottonmaterial is the best to work with for beginners.

Be aware that different fabrics have different colorfastness and shrinkagerates. If you are unsure of a piece of fabrics properties always wash them firstto prevent any surprises. It is a good idea to wash fabrics first, just in case.The common finished quilt sizes are as follows:

Lap Quilt (a great cot size) : 40in by 56 in Twin Size : 68in by 94in


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Full Size : 50in by 103in Queen Size : 83in by 103in King Size : 100in by 116in

AMOUNT OF FABRIC: So how does one calculate how much fabric will be

needed? This can be a little difficult, especially if your quilt is made of manydifferent pieces of fabric. I would advise in the beginning to use uniformpieces.. That is unless you feel particularly happy with your area calculationskills

Always remember to allow more than you think for seam allowances andthose little errors we all make.. Basic calculations using the above finishedquilt size measurements PLUS seam allowance of at least quarter inch,should have give you the right amount of fabric. I would also recommend thatyou start with a small quilt, like the lap/cot quilt so you can practise yourskills..


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PART 3:CUTTING PIECES MEASURING ETC

Now youve selected the fabric you like and have a rough design for your firstquilt, its time CUT. Now dont be afraid, we can step through this together

The ruler, rotary cutting tool and mat are now your best friends. With a littlepatience and some basic math you will be able to construct a fabulousSQUARE quilt. The process of cutting the fabric pieces is called piecing.

Whether you decide to use scissors or the rotary cutter it is important that yoube careful, only the smallest discrepancy can make a huge difference. Thecutter is much faster than scissors, and often more accurate.

You must leave a quarter inch seam allowance on all your fabric blocks.Once you know the dimensions of your blocks use the ruler, cutting and matto cut through a few layers at a time. I would suggest experimenting with thenumber you can cut through at a time.

You can create a template out of plastic or other stiff material.. I simple useanother piece of material, however the plastic is a lot harder wearing. Thetemplate should be the exact replica of the blocks and include the seamallowance. On the reverse side of your fabric trace around the template thenusing you desired cutting method, cut out your blocks.

Now you have all your pieces cut its time for sewing your quilt top.


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PART 4:SEWING/PRESSINGPIECES TOGETHER

OF QUILT TOP USING A MACHINE

Take your time to pin pieces right sides together and then sew your piecestogether, remembering to leave a inch seam.. Most sewing machines

measure inch from the needle to the outside edge of the presser foot, soalways keep your fabric edge on the edge of the sewing foot. This way youwill guarantee a inch seem. Its probably a good idea to measure yoursewing machine to check that it is also inch.

Its a great idea to get into the habit of pressing (not ironing) the seams.. Ifyou take time here you will avoid distorting or even stretching the fabric.

Below is a basic block construction

Try to are find a logical way to sew your blocks together.. In this logical rowmethod, sew the blocks into rows first:

+ + =

+ + =

+ + =

Sewing the rows together will result in the finial block, as shown:

+

+


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=

Dont forget to press the seams as you go.

If you arent doing this kind of basic pattern, sew your quilt together inmanageable sections, which can all be sewn together at the end.

APPLIQUE: You can use all thevarious forms of appliqu to create different

patterns and effects on your quilts. The appliqu can either be put on the quilttop after youve finished piecing, on the individual blocks or group of blocks.What is appliqus? Well, in quilting it means to sew one piece of fabric to thetop of another. This can be done in a variety of methods from stitchingdirectly onto the block to using fusible webbing to iron and then stitch either byhand or machine.. Basically appliqu can enhance your quilt in amazing waysand is well worth looking into after youve finished your first quilt.. that isunless you feel a little adventurous

Note: If building a quilt with un-uniform pieces it is best to build it from themiddle out, especially if you have a centre-piece to build your quilt around.One more interesting note if you have old thread thats a little fragile you

can put it into the freezer for a couple of days and then let it thaw out andyoull fine it will be flexible again


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PART 5:BATTING AND BACKING

The batting is generally made of wool, cotton, polyester or a polyester-cottonblend. Generally it comes already cut into the below standard sizes:

Lap (cot), 45" x 60" Twin, 72" x 90" Double, 81" x 96" Queen, 90" x 108" King, 120" x 120"

When choosing the type of batting to use you will need to consider how youare going to quilt (ie. Machine or by hand), what the quilt will be used for, arethere any fibres that you like best and how are you going to baste (explainednext) the quilt.

Which batting will you choose? Wool is the warmest, cotton is great for when

you are doing lots of quilting and if you are after a puffy quilt try the high loftpolyester. If youre not sure asking the attendant when you purchase yourbatting, what they would recommend.

Hint: Batting should be opened and spread out 24 hours before using, as itwill remove all the creases that occur during packaging.

CUTTING BACKING: The backing of your quilt may be underneath, butextending the colour around to the front can really make the colours in yourquilt sing.. It is also the fabric that will be against you skin (if your quilt is usedthat way) so take a little time is deciding what fabric to use. Or, you maydecide to use another colour altogether to set the quilt off in a different way.

The quality of the backing fabric should be as similar to the top as possible.You will need to cut the backing 4 inches larger than the quilt top on all 4sides.


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PART 6:

SANDWICHING IT ALL TOGETHER(BATTING, BACKING & BASTING)

Layering The Quilt: Now lets put it all together!! Layering or sandwiching isthe process of putting all three layers (quilt top, batting and backing) together.Some care must be taken at this stage because it doesnt take much to ruinall your good work!

Find a table or floor (preferably floor boards or lino) that is smooth and flat anda little bigger than your quilt. Lay the backing on the surface first, right sidedown, flatten out any wrinkles in the fabric, starting in the middle and workingyour way out. Once done, fasten the backing in place with some maskingtape pulling so it is a little taut.

Next layer is the backing, which should be placed carefully on top on the

backing and smoothed out. Finally, the quilt top should be placed in thecenter of the batting with the quilt top facing up, again smoothing out anywrinkles from the center..

Your quilt is now ready to be basted..

Basting helps us keep all the layers together so we can quilt them.. As aresult it is a very important step in the process. The least the layers movearound the better when quilting. With that said here are a couple of methodsfor machine basting (I wont touch on the hand quilting methods)

The most common method: Start pining the layers together, working from themiddle out keeping the pins about 4 inches apart. Good quality pins are thebest because they will not rust and leave marks on your quilt. If possible donot pin were you know you will be sewing/quilting as this will help to keep yourquilt from slipping during the sewing process.

A couple of other methods: quilting tacks are available and are used with aquilting gun to baste your quilt very fast and easily.. Fusible batting is also avery quick method and involves placing the fusible batting between each layerand simply pressing. The layers will then be stuck together ready for quilting..Ask at your local quilting shop about these methods.

Next we can finally begin QUILTING.


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PART 7:QUILTING YOUR QUILT

You can, of course quilt by hand, but for the purposes of your first quilt we areusing a machine.

Quilting in itself is a huge topic so I will be general just enough to get youthrough your first quilt.. You can quilt by using straight lines or free motions ora combination of both. You can use your imagination to decide what designyou would like to stitch onto your quilt some thing that will enhance thedesign of your quilt top. You will need to use an even-feed foot on thesewing machine to help reduce puckering, as the top and backing are movingat the same rate. If you are doing free motion (not straight lines) quilting thena darning foot will be best for you.

I would suggest you stand back, look at your quilt top and decide whetherstraight lines, wavy lines or a combination will suit that quilt the best. Then go

ahead and quilt sew the three layers together..

We are almost done


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PART 8:FINISHING OFF INCLUDING LABELS

Finishing The Quilt: Here are two ways to finish your quilt:

This first way is best for small quilts and is done BEFORE you quilt. Whenlayering your quilt pieces place the quilt top facing down instead of up, so thatit is facing the batting. Then sew around the outside of your three quilt layersleaving a inch seam around the edges of your quilt. Leave a gap at thebottom of your quilt big enough to put your hand in.

Once youve finished the sewing, cut the corners off diagonally to reduce bulkand carefully put your hand inside and turn your quit in the right way. Smooththe quilt out pushing the corner right out to sharp points. Hand stitch theopening shut, then baste the quilt (with pins) and quilt as previouslydescribed.

Binding: What is binding? It is the material strips that are sewn around theedge of your quilt to give you a finished boarder.. As above there are manyways to finish your quilt but using binding is a very popular and effectivemethod.

You can make your own binding by cutting along the straight of the grain,usually about 2.5 inches wide, depending on how wide you want yourboarder. Measure around your quilt to determine how much binding you willneed. You can join lengths if necessary, with a inch seam. Press anyseams open and then press the binding in half, lengthwise with the outsidefacing outside.

Attach the binding to the top of the quilt by lying the binding back against thequilt top and pining it in place. The three quilt layers need to be sewn to theclosest side of the binding (which is pressed in half) in this way. I know thissounds a little confusing but if you have a look at this picture you should getan idea:


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This is not a quilt binding but it does show you vaguely what I mean .. Thebinding will be turned over and stitched likewise to the other side to form theboarder.

When you reach a corner dont panic I was going to try and describe howto do a mitered corner, but it is rather hard to explain in paper (see the

videos), instead I will attempt to explain how to do an overlapped border. Foryour first quilt it is easier to do, and easier to describe. To make youroverlapped borders, cut two of the borders the length of the patchwork designand the other two borders the width of the total quilt, which included the f irsttwo borders. Sew the shortest two borders into place, and back tack at theends of the seams. Press the seam allowances towards the border.

Next, attach the top and bottom borders (these overlap the two already sewnon the other sides). Pin and ease the quilt to fit the borders, stitch the seam,back tacking at the beginning and the end. Finally, press the seamallowances towards the borders.

Alright, you dont want to make your own binding? Well you dont have to,you can use the backing fabric by bringing it up and over to the top (once thequilting has been done) and pressing it in place, with the edges tucked under..Then you just stitch carefully around the quilt, either by hand or machine,depending how you want the finished quilt to look.

Labelling The Finished Quilt: Labelling your quilt is the last thing youshould do BUT dont forget, this is historical information that could be veryimportant down the track. Your label should include:

Your full, The date, Your city and state, The quilts name, And anything else you think is important, maybe a poem or a

message to someone

Your label can be made out of any fabric or embroidered and should beplaced in the bottom right hand corner on the back, using blind stitch..

Congratulations you have made a quilt!!!

Please send photos of your quilts to [email protected], so we can

start a Quilting hall of fame. Your quilt designs can help inspire others.

A couple of fun things I will be covering shortly..

Putting photos on fabric to be used in quilting of course Making wedding quilts All the different corners you can use gosh theres a whole

book just in that Dyeing fabric for quilting And heaps more... got any ideas? [email protected]

ebook - sewing - my first quilt, the bare basics - frost

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