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Time to Finish the 2017 BOM!

Hi everyone!

I hope you had a great holiday season and are enjoying a happy beginning to the new year!

This is the day to post the finished 2017 BOM project. I will post a photo of my finished project and also the downloadable instructions to finish yours like mine, if you want. Feel free to finish yours which ever way you like. I would love to see your finished projects. Feel free to email me a photo of your finished project to snugglesquilts@hotmail.com or you can post it to my Facebook page where I will have the 2017 BOM post pinned to the top of the page. 

So, here it is:

On the bottom, the phrase “Bloom where you’re planted” is stitched using strips of wool. I think that phrase goes well with this project!

Here is the finishing instructions: 2017 BOM Finishing Instructions

Have fun! At the end of this week, I will be posting the fabric requirements and the prep you need to do for the 2018 BOM. I’ll be posting the new block on January 15th. Are you excited?

Happy Quilting & Stitching!
Deanne

Applique is Fun! I’ll Help You Get Started…..

Applique really is fun. I know people are afraid of that “A” word, but if you have the necessary supplies and a well lit work space, my tutorial should go a long way in relieving that anxiety. This first post will talk about tools needed to do needle-turn hand appliqué.

  • Lighting:

The first tool is good lighting. I like a table lamp with a built in magnifier.

Task lighting directed right on the project helps you see your stitching and will aid in making small, almost invisible stitches.

  • Needles and Thread

Next, the right needle and thread. I like to use size 9 appliqué needles. These types of needles are also called “sharps”.  The size of the needle you use is a preference though. The larger the number the shorter the needle. If a size 9 is too long for you, try another size.

The thread I use is Mettler 100% silk-finished cotton.

This thread comes in a large variety of colors so you can match your thread to the appliqué piece you are stitching. Thread should match as close as possible to help hide the stitches. There are other brands of threads that you can use for appliqué. I like these because they are thin and silky and glide through the fabric easily.

  • Appliqué Glue

When appliqué glue was invented, it was a great day! No longer did I have to pin appliqué pieces to the project and prick my fingers as I stitched. The glue, used in small amounts, affixes the piece to your project with no pins. Now nothing gets in the way of my stitching.

  • Chalk Pencil or Mechanical Chalk Pencil

I use a mechanical chalk pencil from Sewline. Fons and Porter also makes one. There are also regular chalk pencils, like ones made by General, that are good for marking. These pencils are used to trace around your templates onto the fabric you have chosen for your appliqué piece.

  • Scissors

You will need a pair of scissors to cut fabric and also have a pair of scissors to cut out the templates that are traced from your pattern.

Of course now you need to get your pattern and fabric and get started! My next blog post will cover preparing the appliqué templates, applique pieces and stitching. See you next week!

Happy Stitching
Deanne

Quick Review of the 1/4″ Seam Allowance – It’s Important!

So, we’re ready to sew our pieces together. Why is the 1/4” seam allowance so important? Because quilt pattern pieces include a 1/4” seam in the measurements of the pieces (at least most of them do!) unless otherwise indicated. So, if you do not piece with an accurate 1/4” seam allowance, your 1 1/2 x 2 1/2” flying geese unit, for example, might measure something quite different.

It’s best to test out whether your machine is stitching a 1/4” seam using scrap fabric. Even if your machine comes with a 1/4” foot like mine:

Thickness of thread and needle position (if your machine allows you to move it) can make your seam more or less than 1/4”. So, here’s some steps on how to test your seam allowance:

First, stitch two scrap strips together using the your 1/4” foot as the guide (or if you don’t have one, the marks on the machine throat plate) and then measure the seam.

My seam measures up! But if yours doesn’t, here are some added steps to help to achieve a 1/4” seam. Marking a 1/4” line on your machine’s throat plate is one. Some newer machines already have a mark etched in the throat plate that guides you to a 1/4” seam if you line up the edge of your fabric with it while stitching. Once again, test this on some scrap fabric!

Notice, in the photo above, the etched line on my machine. That’s the marks on the machine throat plate I was talking about. If you want check if that line truly is at a 1/4″, Lay a tape measure across the throat plate and put the needle into the tape measure right at the “0” line. You can see that my 1/4” foot falls right at the 1/4” mark on the tape and my etched line matches up too. Good guides!

If you do not have an etching on your machine’s throat plate, you can mark the 1/4″ with a small piece of painter’s or masking tape at the 1/4 line.

Sometimes, I like to stitch with a scant 1/4” seam (just a hair under) and then trim up the resulting unit to the correct size after pressing, if necessary. This way you are guaranteed that your unit will be the correct size.

I make sure to verify that all the units of a block measure correctly for ease of piecing the block and having it come out the correct size. Remember, a small seam error made on the pieces can magnify if the block has a lot of units. You will save yourself the headache of “unsewing” if you have accurate pieces to begin with! I only takes a little extra time to measure and trim units. It definitely saves you time down the road!

So time to get that quilt pieced!

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Tips to Make your Sewing Experience the Best!

Ever sit down at your machine to sew and then realize you’re not ready? You spent all that time cutting out and organizing the pieces for your latest project …. you should also spend time getting your machine and supplies ready! If you do this ahead of time, you will enjoy your sewing more.

Do you have a pre-project checklist? I will share with you the steps I go through before starting a project. Maybe you’ve thought of these? Maybe these will help if you haven’t!

1.  Start with a clean and oiled machine. When was the last time you did that? You should do this after every project, if it’s a large one, or after a couple of table runners.

Follow the instructions for your machine. I clean out under the throat plate, in the bobbin case and compartment. Then I oil the parts as recommended.

 

Yes! That pile of lint under the throat plate is not a part of your machine …. although you may think so!

2.  When was the last time you changed your needle? Many quilters do not think about changing the needle until it breaks. We figure …. it’s still in one piece; it should be OK, right? Actually, that is wrong!

To the naked eye, the needle may look like this:

However, under a microscope after one project the needle is nicked and bent.

And it gets worse with even more use. A dull, overused needle will snag your fabric or punch larger holes than is needed into the fabric as you are sewing. You don’t want to damage that fabric!

3.  Depending on what kind of thread you are using, you may use more than one bobbin of thread. If you are doing a large project, wind some extra bobbins. Same thing goes for when you are machine quilting. When you are machine quilting, you go through a lot more thread than when you are just piecing. So, wind some extra bobbins so they are ready and you do not have to break your concentration!

When it’s time to change the bobbin, that’s also a good time to do some light cleaning that makes your pre-project cleaning for the next project that much easier!

4. I also keep my pincushion close by and my wooden “presser”.

I have to admit this is a great tool! I can press smaller seams and not have to keep going to the ironing board.

5.  A few last things.  Make sure you have good lighting, a comfortable chair and that you take a few breaks to stretch. It’s not good to sit at the machine for hours at a stretch …. although we’d like to get that project done fast!

Well, that’s my checklist to begin sewing. Do you have some things you always do before starting? 

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Fabric Cutting – Tools, Accuracy and Safety First!

I’ve talked about choosing fabric and whether to pre-wash or not in the previous blog posts. So now, you should be ready to cut the fabric! An important step is to have the right tools and we’ll talk about those here. Most quilt patterns today are written for rotary cutting, so I will focus on that for this post. You will need a self-healing mat, a rotary cutter and rulers.

My main focus is on safety. I’ve been the victim of a rotary cutting accident in the past and, believe me, it’s not fun. These tools are sharp because they are designed to cut through several layers of fabric, so they will definitely cut through you! A sharp blade helps with safety because it will run through the fabric smoothly. So, be sure to change your blade when you notice that you have to press down harder than normal for your blade to cut. That means the blade is dull. Replace a blade with a nick in it immediately.  Also, never leave the blade open. Use the lock button as well so no one can accidentally open the cutter.

I also use a “klutz” glove and have ruler guards on my rulers. These, of course, are optional but I would not work without them. The ruler guard is great because it will prevent the blade from hitting you if the cutter happens to skip over the ruler’s edge.

I even purchased extra of these ruler guards (they only come in the 24” ruler size) and had my husband cut them down to fit my smaller rulers.

Tips on Squaring Fabric: I like to cover this subject for the newer quilters that read my blog, but it never hurts to brush up on your fabric squaring skills even if you’re an experienced quilter!

Now that you have the tools and are ready to cut your fabric,  you need to square up your fabric. When fabric is rolled onto the bolt at the manufacturer, the lengthwise grain of the fabric most times ends up not being straight. So when you get your cut of fabric, you will need to square it up so strips that you cut from the fabric are not bent in the middle. Here is an example:

Notice how the strip on the left bends away from the line on the mat and the one on the right is straight? That’s why we square up!

Step 1: Press your fabric making sure to press out the crease from the fold.

Step 2: Line up the selvedge edges of your fabric:

If your fabric looks “wavy” (like the photo below) with the selvedges aligned, you need to shift the fabric, while keeping the selvedges lined up, so that it lays flat on the cutting mat. Don’t worry that the sides of the fabric don’t line up.

Step 3: Lay a ruler along the bottom edge lined up with the fold of the fabric. I use my small square for this.

Then lay your large ruler on the left side and butt it up against the small ruler, while holding the small ruler so it doesn’t shift.

Step 4: Remove the small ruler while keeping your hand on the large ruler to keep it from shifting. Cut along the ruler’s edge to cut off the uneven edge of the fabric.

Now you have perfectly squared fabric! Ready to cut your strips so you can cut the pieces for your quilt. If you are cutting a large amount of strips, you may have to re-square the fabric as there can be slight shifts of the fabric as you cut. If it looks to you like the fabric has shifted, perform the above steps again to re-square. This is one of the reasons why you need a little extra fabric!

So, go cut out that quilt and get busy!

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Do You Do … Pieced Borders?

I consider the borders of a quilt the “frame” for the design. Many times, a plain border will do. But with me, I can’t just do plain! Often I will add a pieced border alone or do one in conjunction with a plain border. Here’s one I am working on now:

This happens to be a one color sawtooth border that I am preparing. I also like to do scrappy sawtooth borders as well. Here’s an example of a scrappy border I used for one of the quilts in my book, Blooming Patchwork.

Don’t you think the sawtooth border makes a great frame for the applique in this quilt?

Another reason to add a scrappy pieced border is to use up extra fabric or to make a quilt a bit bigger. For my Scrappy North Stars, I used what is often called a piano key border to frame this quilt.

For this quilt, I framed the blocks with a plain black skinny border and then put the piano key border on the outside.

Another border option I have use is a scrappy checkerboard border along with a flying geese border. My Sister’s Reunion lap quilt shows this type of border the best:

Notice the large flying geese frame the blocks, then I have framed them with a multi-colored checkerboard border.

Here’s a couple of other interesting borders I have done. This first one takes an element from the actual block in the quilt and uses it for the border. It almost give the illusion that the quilt continues on. This pattern is called Paper Chain.

For my next unique border, here is my quilt pattern, High Prairie Blooms:

Notice for this border, I just cut strips from the colors used in the blocks and alternated them with some background strips to create this border.

So, this is just a few borders you can use to jazz up your next quilt. What kind of borders do you use? Share some thoughts you have on pieced borders and also some tips you follow when adding borders. I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

More Thoughts on Fabric – Before you Start that Quilt!

Continuing from last week’s post on color choice, I wanted to talk about how much fabric to buy and how to prepare it for your project.

How much do I buy?

Unless a pattern specifies that the fabric amounts listed include a little bit extra, I like to add about 10% to the amount I buy. If a pattern calls for 1/8 yard, I’ll buy 1/6 of a yard. If it calls for 1/4 yard, I’ll buy 3/8 yard. It never hurts to have a bit extra and you can always use the leftovers to build your stash!

I do this for several reasons.

  • When squaring up the fabric, it’s possible to lose some of the length if the fabric was wound a bit wonky onto the bolt.
  •  Or if I decide to pre-wash my fabric, there could be shrinkage.
  •  Finally …. Cutting errors. We all have them!

By the way …. My patterns as written include a bit extra in the fabric requirements.

Pre-Wash Fabric or Not?

Now that you have your fabric, do you pre-wash or not? There are pros and cons to both. Many quilters swear by it. They wash all their fabric as soon as they get home from the fabric store. Others do not. It tends to be a personal choice for each quilter based on their experiences, the types of quilts they are making and how much time they have. I prefer not to pre-wash mine because I like the stability of fabric that’s not pre-washed. To me, it’s easier to cut. Also, I like to wash quilts after quilting to get the “antique” look.
However, pre-washing can alleviate fears of color transfer when you wash your finished quilt. Although many fabrics today do not bleed like those in the past, some quilters prefer to wash before cutting just to be safe. If you do not like how the fabric feels after the pre-washing, spray it with starch when ironing it. This will add stability for cutting.
Here are the pros and cons as I see them:

Some Pros to pre-washing:
• All the fabrics that are going to shrink will shrink so the finished quilt pattern is not ruined by fabrics shrinking differently.
• Certain fabrics might bleed, like purples and reds, and transfer to other parts of a quilt when the finished item is washed.
• Chemicals used in the processing of the fabric, perhaps an irritant to some quilters, are removed in pre-washing.

Some Cons to pre-washing:
• It takes time. The extra step of washing adds time to the prep when getting ready to make a quilt.
• It washes out the sizing. Some quilters like this sizing which tends to make the fabric easier to cut.
• Most of the quality fabrics today do not shrink much and the fabric dyes are much more stable to prevent bleeding.
• Fabric edges fray.

As an added protection, when I wash a large quilt that I have made, I use Shout® Color Catchers and I have experienced no color transfer. I always wash the quilt on the gentle cycle with cold water. I dry it on low for about 10 minutes and then lay it out flat or gently over a drying rack to finish drying.
If you decide to pre-wash fabric, you can prevent most of the fraying by cutting a corner off the fabric or cutting the non-selvedge edges with pinking shears.

I have washed fat-quarters and fat eights as well. To keep them from fraying, I use the techniques shown above. I also use lingerie laundry bags (the small net bags with a zipper) for these so they do not get all tangled together.

When I wash fabrics, I separate them by light and dark and use the gentle cycle with cold water. I use the Shout® Color Catchers here as well. I dry them only briefly and then hang the pieces on a drying rack to finish. I then fold them and put them away, saving the ironing for when I am ready to use them.

So, do you pre-wash? Or not? Share your experiences and your pros and cons. That’s the way we all learn!

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

**Winner of last week’s drawing: Nancy N!**

What Color Should I Use?

Color Choice

Color…. I am asked every time I speak to a group how I choose my color palette for my quilts. It’s an interesting question. To me, the colors I choose breathe life into my designs. If I have a color in a quilt block that does not mesh well, the design can be lost. You need the right contrast between colors to enhance a design.

I am a scrap quilter at heart. So I like a lot of color in my quilts. Once a design is complete, I will decide how many colors I want in the quilt. Then it’s time to “audition” the fabrics!

Here’s how I store my fabric:

Sometimes, all those bins are spread out across my floor!

By laying out the fabrics like above, I can see how each color interacts with the others in the stack. If one of the fabrics sticks out too much or fades from view within the collection, I know that it does not belong with this group.

Here’s how I sort out fabrics when I am looking for lights mediums and darks for one project. By stacking the fabrics as shown in the photo, I can see what the fabrics will look like together and also pick out the ones that may not fit in.

Here’s a photo that shows how I get contrast. The photo on the left shows the first grouping I chose. On the right, you’ll see that by replacing 2 fabrics with a lighter version, I created some contract within the group that will help accent the design.

You do not necessarily need to stay within a fabric line or even with fabrics from the same fabric company. What I have found is that using fabrics from the same genre pretty much insures they will look good together. For example, I use Civil War Reproduction fabrics. In most cases, this is foolproof. However, if I find a fabric that is not from a Civil War collection but fits in well with the other fabrics chosen, I will use it!

What if You Don’t Like the Colors I Choose?

I’ve heard it before. Someone looks at a quilt sample of mine, and will say: “I love the design, but I just don’t like the colors!” Well, if that’s the way you feel about a quilt ….. use the fabrics you like! I’ve even done that myself with a design of mine. Here is a quilt of mine made with the fabrics I love:

And here is the same quilt, made for my son’s girlfriend, in bright colors that I never use! 

See how the design works for both? Many quilt patterns are like that. Substitute the fabrics you like and you will love the design and the fabric!!

So, it’s time to go shopping for some fabric, right? When do we actually need an excuse!

Now, it’s sharing time. Do you have some tips on storing your fabric and on color? Share those tips and win a copy of my pattern, Homestead Trail, so you can practice your color choosing! I will draw for the winner next Monday, November 20th.

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Fabric Conservation – Use those scraps instead of tossing!

Here is a tip that I call “bits and pieces” because it’s a way to use more of that precious fabric! I thought about this when talking with a guild member at a recent presentation. She said she didn’t like the fabric waste that came with making flying geese units the way I made them in my patterns. So it inspired this blog post.

Make Half-square Triangle Squares While Making Flying Geese!

Last week I was making several large flying geese units for a quilt. This tip works best if your flying geese units are larger ones, for example 3 1/2 x 6 1/2″ geese. Start out with the rectangle that is 3 1/2 x 6 1/2″ and two squares that are 3 1/2″ square. Draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of the squares. Once you have the square placed face down on the rectangle, sew along the drawn line and then sew another seam 1/2″ away from the first seam. If you want to mark that line too, feel free.

Then, cut the unit between the sewn lines:

Press open the units:

Once you repeat this step on the other side and press the units open, you will have a flying geese unit and two half-square triangle squares. You can use the HST squares in the project you are making the geese for, or save them for another purpose!

A geese unit that measures 3 1/2 x 6 1/2″ will yield two HST squares that can be trimmed to measure 2 1/2″ square. A geese unit that measures 2 1/ x 4 1/2″ yields two HST squares that can be trimmed to measure 1 1/2″ square.

What can you do with these HST squares? Make a pinwheel block with four of them or sew them together in a chain for an interesting pieced border. Or, just toss them in a container just for those HSTs. Then you can pull them out and whip up a small project with them. A candle mat, a small table runner or anything you can think of!

So, there you go! You won’t feel guilty about making those geese units and having to throw away expensive fabric. You will use every little bit and piece … eventually!

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

To market, to market ……

Greetings from Houston!

 

It’s time for fall International Quilt Market. To add a twist, the World Series is also here this weekend. Houston is hopping! First task is to unload the car and haul it all inside.

Here’s a cool “bird’s eye view” of the sales floor set-up:

 

Now the work begins. I always am amazed that I can get everything pulled together in my booth. It seems to me that I have too much, but it magically falls into place!

Finally, here’s my “sneak peek” out in the lobby so shoppers can get a taste of what they’ll find in my booth.

Now it’s showtime! The show begins tomorrow at 9:30 am and runs until Monday at 4 pm. I’ll share more photos of things I see around Market through the weekend.

 

Meanwhile, here’s the other activity in Houston:

Until later this weekend …… happy quilting!
Deanne