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Scrap Quilting Tips!

As you have noticed, I’m a scrap quilting nut. I love to have a “riot” of color in my designs. Some of them are true scrappy. By this, I mean that I sit next to a tub of scraps and pull out a different piece of fabric for each piece of a block. This is a lot of fun and has made creations like this pattern of mine called Crisscross Cabin Blooms:

And this pattern called Twinkling Log Cabin:

Then there is the kind of scrap quilt that is a little more “planned” like my pattern Scrappy North Stars:

This pattern takes 54 fat quarters. Before you cut out pieces for this quilt, you pair up dark color prints, medium color prints and background fabrics into what I call “color sets”. Each color set will make a certain number of blocks. The dark color will be on the outside in some blocks and on the inside in others. This is a one block quilt, but due to the variety of fabrics, it’s still really interesting and fun to look at!

So now, it’s on to some of my tips for a successful scrap quilt. When you are making a scrap quilt, you are usually using at least 5 or 6 different colors of fabric for variety. But, when you are piecing your quilt top, it never fails, you get the same colors right next to each other or clumped together on one side of a block or quilt. How to remedy this problem?

Tip #1: I number the fabrics. For example, if I have a blue, purple, green, pink and gold fabric, I will number them 1 through 5. If you have 20 different fabrics, you can group them by color family and then number them. Once they are numbered, I then take a diagram of the quilt block or quilt top (you can make a copy of the block or quilt from the pattern and enlarge it if you need to) and write numbers on the quilt top pieces. As I am numbering, I make sure the distribution of the colors is even!

This example above is for a small wall hanging. I call this “color mapping”.

Tip #2: Are you worried that you are going to sew rows or block pieces together wrong after carefully planning the color placement above?

As you can see by the photo above, I have the sections numbered starting with #1. Section 1 is to be sewn to section 2 and then section 3 is sewn to the bottom of section 2 and so on ….. I started doing this when I flubbed on color placement a few times when transferring pieces from my design wall to my sewing machine. I would end up sewing the wrong pieces together and not notice it until a whole border was done and I saw the same colors clumped together. Then …. it was time to “unsew”. An we all know how much fun that is!

I use the sheets of the little square Avery stickers (#5418 Multi-Use Labels) to number my pieces. Here is the complete row laid out and ready to be joined:

Tip #3: Another thing I use these stickers for are “directional” arrows. As you can see by the units above and looking over my pattern diagram above, the triangles face different directions based on which side of the quilt they are on. In order to keep me straight, I draw a little arrow on one of the small stickers and place it at the top of a row so I know which way is up.

As you can see, organization while piecing a scrap quilt is essential if you have blocks or pieces with similar colors. Of course, we always seem to miss something, nobody’s perfect! But this will help you to have the scrappiest quilt you can.

I hope you liked this brief “tutorial” on scrap quilting. Now hit that stash and start stitching!

Leave me a comment below on your favorite scrap quilting tip. You will be entered into a drawing to receive one of the above patterns from my collection! Good luck!

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Do You Like to Travel Stitch?

I don’t know about you, but I like to stitch on projects outside or on the road. I usually have more than one project going on at a time for that very reason. Obviously, I can not have my sewing machine outside on the porch or in my car (…. at least not yet! LOL!), so I have a project in the works that requires the sewing machine and then I have one or more hand projects, either wool or needle-turn applique. Then I have my bases covered and my hands are not idle on a road trip. I just can not sit in a car and not be reading or stitching!

To take a project with me on the road, first I have to have a way to store all the pieces so I do not lose anything. I use small zip lock baggies, either snack, sandwich or quart size (depending upon the size of my project) to store my appliqué pieces. This also works for wool appliqué, hexies or other hand projects!

 

Then I use a larger “project bag”. You know those plastic bags with zippers that small sheet sets come in? They are perfect to pack a project into. enough room to fit your project and sewing supplies you will need such as rulers, thread and needle storage, etc.

These bags work great for plane trips too. Since it is not hard sided, the bag of supplies is easy to squeeze into a suitcase.

I store my threads, needles and scissors is small tins or plastic containers. Here is the tin for my needle-turn applique:

Here’s the inside:

Notice the magnet in the corner. I found this magnet “block” at my local hardware store. It fits right inside my tin and holds needles, a small scissors and some pins. A lot better than having them rolling around inside the tin! 

Next is the plastic container that holds my wool applique threads. I use this for travel sewing and for my summer days “porch stitching”! This is a Snapware container that has a few levels that all snap together and have a cover. I love this for travel!

Next, I needed a place to put sewing supplies within reach when I am sewing in the car. I got this idea from a student in one of my classes. Go to the bathroom section of a Target, Wal-Mart or similar store and look for these small suction cup storage items.  If you can not find one there, find it here. I think they are used in a shower to hold soap. I stick it on the car window and store my thread and scissors so they are easy to reach!

Isn’t it amazing what you can do with everyday items?

So, I’m packed and ready for my next car trip at any time. I better get going on some ideas so I have something to work on for my next car ride. Summer is coming and the kids are miles away, so I’m sure there will be road trips in my near future!

Happy Quilting & Stitching!
Deanne

So You Want to Machine Quilt?

I like to machine quilt my smaller projects (anything under 45″ I consider small!) so I wanted to share some of my machine quilting tips. For the first time, I’ve done a few short videos to demonstrate parts of what I talk about in this post. I hope they’re not too unprofessional ….LOL! I think they came out OK for a first try. So, on to the tips……

Tip #1: I like to practice on a scrap quilt sandwich, especially if it has been awhile since I have quilted anything. This gets me familiar once again with the motion of quilting and also gives me time to work out some design ideas. This is a great way for you to learn how to machine quilt as well.

Tip#2: I sometimes draw designs on a photocopy of the blocks I will be quilting. This helps to get the ideas flowing. You can try this by using the pattern you worked from to make the quilt. Photo copy a page that has a good size diagram of the block that makes up the quilt. Then draw out design ideas in pencil. Here’s a one of mine:

I’ve also sketched out “free motion” designs too.

Tip#3: Make sure you’re machine is ready. It’s a good idea to change your needle to a machine quilting needle. Check your machine’s manual for recommendations. Another tip about the needle…. they wear out! If you are quilting a larger project, the needle should be discarded when you are done. You should be able to quilt several smaller projects with the same needle though.

Once the needle is taken care of, now pick out the thread. I like to use a medium neutral thread on my quilt tops because that blends well with my Civil War reproduction fabrics. My favorite is an Aurifil 50 weight. It works for me! Choose your favorite thread. I like these threads because they do not create a lot of lint in your machine. Thread color is a personal choice. You may want your quilting stitches to show more or be disguised more. Pulling out a tail of each thread and laying them across a block in your quilt will allow you to judge how each blends.

Make sure your machine is oiled, “fuzzies” cleaned out of the bobbin area and that you have a few bobbins wound and ready. This is a good habit to get into especially if the project you are quilting is going to be a large one. No stopping for bobbin filling! Just pull out the empty and load in a full one.

Tip#4: Baste your quilt top with pins or with a large basting stitch. Your preference. I use pins to based my quilt sandwich.

Now it’s time to quilt!

I start out by putting on my machine quilting gloves. These are a great tool to have. It helps to grip and pull the quilt sandwich tight while quilting so it doesn’t get puckers on the back the quilt.

You’ll see them in action in my little video.

I use a darning foot (most machines come with them). Either a closed toe or open toe darning foot will work.

The feed dogs on your machine need to be dropped. See your owner’s manual on how to do that if you have not done it before.

To start, pull your bobbin thread to the top of the quilt. To do this, put your threaded needle down in the spot where you want to begin and drop your presser foot. Tap your foot peddle so the needle comes back up, pull on the end of the top thread and this will draw the bobbin thread to the top of the quilt. This is so the bobbin thread does not get caught in the stitching on the back and create a mess!

So here’s video #1 (no laughing!):

 Now you are ready to go! Start with a few small “locking stitches”. Since you feed dogs are dropped, they are not moving the quilt sandwich …. you have to. So to make these small stitches, just move the quilt top slightly while stitching. Since you are only moving it slightly, the stitches will be very small. Once you do those beginning stitches, you can now move on to the motif you have chosen. Be sure to move the quilt top at an even pace with the speed of your machine. That is how you keep the stitches even (unless you are one of those lucky quilters who have a stitch regulator on your machine!). Once you reach the end of your design or are at a place where you need to stop, end with a few small locking stitches again. Snip the threads as close as you can to the quilt top as you can. Now you are ready to move on to the next area!

Here’s video #2:

You are now machine quilting!

Check your local quilt shop for some in person quilting classes. There are also many machine quilting books available for a more comprehensive lesson. The main thing is to have fun! Start off with easy overall designs and work your way up to more difficult ones. Practice makes perfect! Here’s a few motifs I’ve been working on:

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

I Like Scraps …. Do You?

I love scraps because …. I always have a lot of them! I don’t think many quilters are actually without scraps. When I cut out a project, I usually end up with basket by the side of my cutting table looking like this:

Yeah, this mess … it’s one part wanting to get to sewing my project and 3 parts laziness. I really need to sort out the strips. I usually sort them into containers based on whether they are a color print or a tan print and if they are a full width of fabric (40″) strip or just a piece of a strip. Here’s one of the bags I use to contain my strips:

So what can you do with all these leftover strips? I like to design patterns with log cabin blocks. 

And 1 1/2″ and 2 1/2″ strips are great to make a very scrappy log cabin quilt. I used mine to make a Courthouse Steps Log Cabin block (above). Of course you can also use them to make traditional Log Cabin blocks as well.

Another great use for leftover strips are pieced borders. Especially if you finish a project, have lots of fabric left over and you want to make it bigger. This example below is the piano key style strip border created by using 2 1/2″ strips.

Another option is to mix pieces cut from 2 1/2″ and 1 1/2″ strips to make a unique border.

Finally another use for my strips is to make scrappy binding. What a great way to use up the fabric from a project! And you do not have to buy additional fabric for a binding.

If it does not work to cut a leftover piece of fabric into strips, I separate those pieces by color and put them into bins to use in appliqué projects. Instead of having to cut into a larger piece of fabric for a small flower, I just dig into my appliqué bin of the appropriate color!
Here’s some of those bins:

 

Another way I put scraps to use is to use them to make test blocks. I make these when I am trying out color ideas for a block. Instead of cutting into “fresh” fabric, I dig through my scraps for colors I want to audition and make the block. I can even make two or three different variations. Once I have chosen the color combo I want, I can purchase the fabric and make the quilt with no worries. This is also a great idea because it familiarizes you with the pattern instructions before you tackle the whole project.

When you are done with the test blocks, you can add a few scrappy borders to it and have an instant mini quilt! They make great gifts! Here’s one I made a few years ago:

So do you want to try a scrap quilt and are not sure how to get started? Try a “planned” scrap quilt. Take a quilt pattern for a quilt made with one block make each block separately using different colors (but still coordinating). Another way to get scrappier is to do it while buying fabric. If a pattern calls for 1 yard of blue, consider buying 4 fat quarters in different blues or other colors in that color family. Do the same for the other colors in the pattern. You’ve instantly made it scrappier!

The key to enjoying scrap quilting is to let go and have fun! Buy smaller cuts of fabric in many colors from your local quilt shop instead of larger cuts of just one color. Once you build up a stash, it’s fun to go “shopping” there and experiment.

***Share with me your ideas on scraps! I’d love to hear from you. I’ll pick a winner from the comments to receive my scrappiest pattern, Scrappy North Stars!*** Winner will be chosen next week. ***We have a winner! Yvette Borden. Congrats!***

Fat quarter friendly scrappy stars lap quilt

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Picking Fabric Like a Pro!

Have you ever picked up a quilt pattern and wondered “how am I going to get my quilt to look like the sample”? Well, it’s easier than you think!

First, I’ll share a secret with you … maybe it’s not such a secret … but when you see fabric in a quilt, whether it’s an individual pattern or in a magazine, most likely that sample was made 6 months to a year ago! Unless a fabric company has a sample made with new fabric not in stores yet and plans to have the fabric and the pattern debut at the same time, you might not find the exact fabric shown in the pattern. Often fabric companies print limited quantities of a line and when it’s gone, it’s gone! So what’s a quilter to do?

Search for fabric by color family and print size so it reads like the original fabric!

See this red fabric?

If you can’t find this exact piece of fabric, then you look for something in the same color family and shade. So here’s a piece of fabric that is close to the same shade of red and also has a print about the same scale.

What if you pick up a pattern that says to choose 15 color print fat quarters; 5 light, 5 medium and 5 dark? Stumped? Don’t be! This is where the fun starts! Light, medium and dark is all relative. Here is a blue from my stash:

This may be considered a dark blue if it is paired with a lighter blue fabric. But look what happens when I choose the next blue fabric:

That first blue is lighter so you can use it as the “light”, if you are only using 2 blues in the project. Or it can be a medium blue if you are using 3 blues in the project.

Look at this next picture. I have 3 stacks of fabrics next to each other. Lights, mediums and darks. Some of these fabrics are the same color (there are 3 blues and 3 greens for example), but with the variation of shade and print it looks like you have 15 different colors. That’s the fun of scrap quilting!

So head to the fabric store and start stacking up the bolts!

TIPS

Once you get that fabric home, make sure it’s prepared and ready for when you want to start your next project. If you are a pre-washer, get the fabrics washed, ironed and folded.

If you like scrap quilting, cut your larger pieces of fabric into fat quarters, fat eights and strips. Then you are ready to pull out smaller cuts when needed or pile up a rainbow of strips for that log cabin quilt!

Store your fabrics by size and color in labeled stack-able tubs. This makes finding the fabrics you want easier so you can get to the cutting and sewing. Here are some of my tubs that I’ve shown you before on my blog:

Organization keeps the fun happening!

So, leave me a comment on how you approach color when planning a quilting project. Do you follow the pattern choices to the letter or do you go off on your own in the quilt shop and experiment? I will pick a winner from the comments and you will receive a copy of my two newest patterns! I’ll pick the winner on Thursday, April 5th. **Congrats! We have a winner: Judy U.****

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

More Pattern Inspiration! New Pattern Coming Soon!

So last Saturday, I shared the first of my new patterns that will be arriving soon. See it in this blog post here. Today, I want to share the second of my new patterns. This one also has 2 projects in it and they are for the table, but I added some applique to these. The pattern is called Bloomin’ Spools:

In the pattern are instructions for the long table runner and for the square table topper. Both are embellished with some pretty floral applique that you can do by hand or machine.

This pattern was inspired by the spool block, versions of which have been around since the 19th century. Quilt blocks were often designed and named for ordinary household items. I image the women who designed and named this block based it on the wooden spools that held their thread.

This antique quilt also inspired this pattern:

I loved the scrappy-ness of this old quilt. The different color spools and different color backgrounds inspired me to make my runner and topper scrappy in my pattern.

Here’s a close-up of the applique on each of these projects:

Look for this new pattern at the end of the month, hopefully! It’s being written and tested as we speak.

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Happy Quilting Day! Here’s a New Pattern Coming Soon.

Are you getting some quilting in this afternoon? I am just sitting down to my sewing machine now, after doing a bit of laundry (boo). I wanted to share with you a pattern of mine that will be debuting shortly and the inspiration behind it. 

I saw this quilt in a book of quilts from the 19th century and was immediately inspired! I have no idea what this block or unit is called, but the multi-colored scraps used to make this quilt makes it interesting.

The block unit is easy enough to replicate and I thought it would be a great pattern to use up lots of scraps! Here is my pattern that I call Paper Lanterns. I call it that because when the units are stacked together, they look like those colorful paper lanterns you can find at craft or dollar stores.

My pattern contains 2 table runner projects and I think they are a fun way to use up left over 2 1/2″ strips. We all have stacks of those, don’t we?

Look for this pattern to be release at the end of the month or the first week in April. It’s still going through the testing stage because I want it to be an enjoyable project for you!

Happy Quilting!
Deanne