Posts Tagged ‘Quilt’

Make Quilt Kits for Others

Friday, July 23rd, 2010

As the holidays approach and we are all trying to think of unique gifts for friends and family, quilters have the creative edge. Even skipping over the obvious gift of a quilt, quilted vest, or quilted home accessory, quilters can give a truly unique gift.

How about giving quilting kits for holidays and other gift-giving occasions?

Chances are that friends and family have been admiring your work and have even stated they wish they could quilt. Those are the people who would love to receive your quilting kit this year. Putting together a quilting kit is not hard and it will allow you to share your craft with others.

First, remember to keep your quilting kits simple. A throw pillow, a wall hanging, table runner or placemats are a good start.

Next, pick your designs. Be sure to keep them pretty basic so beginners will not easily be discouraged. Make a copy of the finished design or quilt block so it can be used as a check point throughout the project.

Cut and label the pieces of fabric needed to complete the project. Remember to include directions. Either handwrite them or type them. Remember to include information about the batting unless you plan to include it in your kit as well.

Remember to include all the necessary notions in your quilting kit: a small pair of scissors, coordinating threads and a couple of needles. Your recipient will be delighted!

Quilted oranments, tree skirts and table runners make nice quilting kits. Find your favorite designs and make holiday quilting kits for your friends.

For friends who have some quilting skills, you could assemble kits to make quilted clothing items or larger projects.

If you are part of a quilting club that is looking for a fundraiser, creating quilting kits would be ideal. Quilting kits encourage others to learn the craft and give a sense of satisfaction upon completion. The fundraiser could be year around since many of the projects could be completed and be given as gifts or holiday ornaments themselves. Keep skill levels in mind when making quilting kits: beginner, intermediate and experienced.

If your club is making quilting kits for a fundraiser, keep in mind to price the kits according to the level of difficulty for which they are designed and on the contents inside the kit. A beginner kit will cost less than a quilting kit because it will not be as complex and detailed. Complex designs will involve more work in putting the quilting kit together. More supplies will also be needed to complete it…which in turn means more cutting of pieces.

Packaging your quilting kits is simple. Use resealable plastic bags to hold the items. Include a copy of the finished product or of the quilt block template. Don’t forget detailed instructions, too! Add your phone number to the instructions in case your friend runs across something they don’t understand. Zip the plastic bag closed and your quilting kit is complete!

If you want to give something a little more than your quilting kit, tuck it inside a personalized tote bag that will be handy for carrying along the project (and future projects). Personalize the tote bag yourself with appliqué, rhinestones, fabric paints or embroidery (or a combination of them all). You may also take the bag to a local embroiderer for a custom monogram or personalization.

You may soon find that your quilting kits are the hit of the holiday season and don’t be surprised if friends and family come to request your quilting kits each year!

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Cutting Your Quilt

Sunday, February 28th, 2010

When you start your quilt, you will need patterns, such as rectangles, squares, cut strips, and so on. Once you gather your patterns, you will need cutting tips to complete your quilt.

Cutting the strips:

When you begin to cut your strips, you will need to align your fabric, mark, etc. Use a ruler to decide the width and start cutting once you reach your desired dimensions. For instance, if you want to create a 2-inch strip, locate the mark on your ruler and place the area side by side of your edges that square.

Once you finish cut the strips. You will need a rotary cutter to complete your mission. Your layers figures are based on the strips you cut. You can also mark and then cut your strips so that you have separate squares. You perform the same actions when making rectangles. Squares are also cut in the same fashion. However, you will need to create two squares per cut.

You will need two rectangles also per cut, since the fabric is thick. For instance, if you were to cut 3 1/2 inches of fabric strips x 44 inches, you will need to cut 6 1/2 inches x 3 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches to form your rectangles.

When you start to cut your triangles, start at a 45-degree angle. Cut the squares succeeding to cut the squares slantwise, or diagonally and in half. When cutting your triangles, keep in mind that the longer sides require seams that allow room to finish. You need about a 2-inch finish line per triangle, or side. On three sides however of your triangle, you will need to leave a width of 2 1/2 inches to complete your task.

If you are not use to measuring materials, purchase a transparent, heavy-duty ruler and create templates to use as your guide.

Use your templates, aligning it on the material, and lay it in line down the edges at the three sides and use your ruler in a straight line and over your template. Once you have your template in position, you can start cutting across the width to meet your template.

Once you have cut your patterns, you will need to organize and then cut your pieces. Once you cut, your pieces try to organize them so that they do not get lost. You can categorize the pieces and stack them neatly in a desired area near your sewing station.

After you organize your pieces, you want to learn how to press properly. You will need to iron your fabric to prepare it, yet you want to learn pressing techniques, rather than strict ironing. You merely press and lift, relocate, press, release, and relocate, repeating the same cycle to press your fabric.

You will need to press your fabric as you move through the stitching stage also. You will also need to press the allowances at the seams. Head in the same direction at what time you are pressing the seams. To make your fabric durable and sturdier, press the seams to one of your sides.

Learn more about pressing, and irons to complete your quilt. Pressing is important. Once you have your patterns together, pressing down, etc, you can move onto piercing a perfect quilt.

Of course, if you are not in the mood for hand piercing, you can pick up a few tips in stitching seams and allowances, as well as appliqué. Appliqué is the process of fabric pieces sewn onto fabric, sewing shaped parts of fabric onto an underpinning to form a pattern or design.

Jake Saab

Want to look at iguana pictures and pictures of iguanas? Watch them at the Iguana Care website.

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How To Patch Your Quilt

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

Patches can make up a fashionable, yet old-style quilt that will last for a long time to come. To create patchwork you will need fabric. You merely cut the pieces of your fabric to form patches and design, stitching in simple numerical lines. If you are creating the traditional patchwork, you will need fabrics, including lengthy stripes, squares, curved shapes, and rectangles. You can leave out the shapes that curve if you don’t want to go through the steps of creating a complex quilt.

Crafters often use patches to create quilts with many parts, such as the quilts that resemble the Picasso arts, or the basic quilts. Once you gather your patches, you will need to form blocks of your fabric. The blocks in crafter terms include the “corn and beans,” motifs, “turkey tracks, maple leaf,” and so on. One of the more attractive quilts is the “Robbing Peter to Pay Paul” blocks. Regardless, you will need blocks to finish your quilt.

To start you will need to select your block scheme. You have the choice of the 4-patch scheme, or the 9-patch. The patch block schemes make up grids, which fill in various simple lines in numbers and shapes. The 4-patch is one of the common patterns used to make traditional quilts. The 9-patch is also used, yet other styles are made up on different geometric grids.

The 4-patch:

The 4-patch is 4-squares factored into a numerical grid. For instance, you can picture a box, draw a cross inside, and count 1-4 to achieve the 4-block scheme. To continue to the 4-patch scheme you would need to add squares, stripes, etc.

The overall notion behind the 4-patch scheme is that you can use a variety of patches to create a multi-color quilt, yet you must lay out your block foundation first.

Now if you want to use the 9-patch scheme you would create nine squares in your grid and either leave them together or break them into parts. Still, you must leave the 9-patch structure.

For instance, if you were to take a piece of craft paper, rather graphing paper and draw per inch, four squares, eight squares, and then another ten, you would have your foundation to start your patchwork. To make up your designs however, you would need to add shapes to your grids.

Once you design your craft on graphing paper, you can create a full-size block. You will need to cut your patches, as well as create templates however before you can start your quilt.

To start your quilt you will need to consider the style again. Do you want the 12, 14, 16, 18, or larger blocks? If you are new to making quilts, you may want to start with the lower block inches. However, you will need to learn how to make borders to complete the quilt.

Once you decide you will need to consider your schemes. If you are working the 4-patch scheme on blocks, around 4 inches then you will need to cut your patches 2 inches in squares. The higher the scheme, the more patch inch squares you would need. For instance, if you want to create a 12-block scheme, you would need twelve patches and cut in six-inch squares.

On the other hand, if you were using the 9-patch scheme, choosing the 12-inch blocks then you would need to cut your patches into 4-inch squares.

Now you can move to create your templates. Templates in crafter terms are patterns, which are cut from strong fabrics, or materials. You need the templates to create an easy squared quilt, otherwise prepare to battle.

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Finding The Right Quilt In Crafting

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

Quilts are often made up of quality fabrics. The fabrics include cotton, which polyester is often avoided. Once you purchase top-quality cotton fabrics, you will need to consider style.

How to choose style:

Quilts are crafted in the Feminine, Cottage, Victorian, Country, Scrappy, Lodge, and Conventional Amish, Modern, or Juvenile style.

The female and Victorian often has a mixture of flowery and smaller scales of coordinating patterns and colors. Cottage quilts have brighter pastels and prints on a smaller to average scale with off-white solids, such as beige, manila, fawn, or camel. The Country quilts include the reminiscent of dusty shades that stretch along scales of solid shades. The colors are solid and a couple of colors, such as off-whites, or flag colors integrate to make a fashionable quilt.

Lodge style quilts are made up of reticent, or silent shaded prints, or reminiscent of woody colors that are deeply imprinted in the quilt. The colors are offset by shades of plaid, and the variations combine green, brown, rust, orchra, red, navy blue, tan, black, etc, blending it to make the Lodge quilt.

The scraps means you can create any type of quilt you choose, as well as shades, tones, colors, etc. Conventional Amish quilts combine the penetrating shades of gemstones on a solid background with a mixture of black.

Modern quilts include the colorful novelties whereas simple lines are used to make up its squares.

Juvenile quilts is often made up of brilliant pastel, or crayon shades, colors, tones, etc, and includes prints as well as a solid background.

Once you choose your style, you will need to purchase your materials and measure your fabric. The fabric should be machine washable. Sometimes however, the fabric will bleed, which in this case you will need to continue wash, rinse, and continue until the dye remains in tact.

Once you purchase your yard bolt, or fabric you will need to learn steps to cutting your parts “On the grain.” This is a common phrase used by quilt makers. In addition to cutting, you will need to purchase fillers and learn how to craft them so they blend into your quilt. In quilt maker terms, “batting,” is choosing your style so to speak. For instance, if you wanted to create a traditional quilt you would choose ‘flatters” that match your material. When choosing batting it is ok to purchase polyester. You will have a choice of wools, cotton, and so on available as well. To help you make a decision consider the following questions.

How to choose:

Do you intend to craft your quilt on a sewing machine, or by hand?

What is the size?

How much time can you invest in making your quilt?

Do you intend to wash your quilt regularly, or design a fashionable quilt for your showcase?

Do you plan to make a quality quilt?

Asking the questions can help you choose your materials. You can find additional help by visiting craft shops and reading recommendations by the manufactured written on the batting label. In the meantime, visit the Internet to choose your patterns.

You also have the pre-packaged options, which you can purchase your batting, including the yard of batting. If you choose the pre-packaged, you will have convenience, such as elimination of cutting. The pre-packages are already cut to fit the average beds.

If you purchase yards of batting, be ware that it has not been pre-shrunk. This means, you will have bulks of batting to carry to your home. You want to keep in mind that yards of batting is suitable for smaller projects only, and is difficult to cut your patterns.

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Learn To Make Quilt Templates

Friday, January 29th, 2010

Templates are patterns so to speak, only with templates you cut the materials you need from strong fabrics. Otherwise, if you were making patterns you would cut the templates from ordinary paper.

At what time you create templates, you are making your quilt making process easier. The surface patterns will flow consistently as well. You can use your created templates and trace along your patterns, instead of pinning graphing paper to your quilt material. You can purchase ready-made templates, however if you create your own you will save money. You can purchase transparent plastics at craft stores, or stores that carry supplies, such as craft, paper, pencils, etc. If you choose plastic, you will need to individually, trace your patterns. You will need allowance for your seams. After you create your patterns, cut your templates. The plastic templates are ideal for making larger quilts.

Straight grains make up woven textiles. The grain lines run comparably along the edges of the non-fraying edges in the materials. Across the “straight grain,” is another line known as the “cross grain.” Crafters use the term to define the lines, such as “Fabric on the grain.” You will need to eliminate the edges, by cutting it off.

The non-frayed edges are makes up the areas that have not been cut, especially around the label and the snug woven areas.

How to create basic templates:

Creating templates is as simple as tracing your footprints on paper. To create your templates you will need to choose plastic and/or paper. Once you make your choice you will need to trace your template to paper, add a few permitted seams, and then use adhesive to add your trace to a clip of hard copy, i.e. cardboard or the like and cutout your templates. Stop: before you cut your templates, first replicate copies and play with the patterns until you achieve your desired mark. Once you achieve your patterns add numbers and/or letters to mark your pattern. This will help you remember where each template goes. Next, you will cut your pattern parts out, using common scissors. Cut the outside areas only at the edges. You will need to create one template per piece to add to your quilt.

Next, trace your patterns, tracing the parts onto your plastic and/or paper. Space the parts once inch in all directions, and away from the other. Use a measuring device, such as a ruler to draw 1/4-inch line at the outer outline. On your templates, create a dot. You want the dots to meet two seams per count. The dots are important to mark your stitching areas.

Next, use your direction of textile thread lines (Grain line) and convey the arrows you have created from your model parts and relocate it to your template. You have made basic templates; however, there is a variety to choose from.

Tip: You can invent templates using software installed on your computer.

In addition to the basic templates, you can make window templates. The templates are ideal for those want to pierce by hand. You can also make templates for pre-prepared designs. Window templates can assist the beginners, since you will have a marked line to follow through when you begin stitching. The windows are easy to make, yet you must follow the “hand piercing: rules to complete your patterns. You can also add templates to your window, which may include emblems such as roses, bouquets, etc. Regardless the window, basic, or other types of templates can lead up to a block/border pattern, rather a fashionable quilt.

Jake Saab

Want to see bee pictures and pictures of bees? Visit the Bee Facts website.

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