The Quilt Lovers Blog

Puzzle Baby Quilt..

Wed, 23 Feb 2011 22:07:11 GMT

I guess you could say I am fairly new at quilting. I made my first baby quilt 10 years ago for my nephew but I have only just completed my 7th quilt..

Greetings from Ireland

Wed, 23 Feb 2011 22:05:52 GMT

Agnes:Greetings from the west of Ireland. I came across your site by chance, and I'm so glad I did. I have been quilting for about 25 years and it's my passion. I've often thought about ways to turn that passion into a small business that could help financially. I've just started a blog as a way of starting to put my work out there for others to see, baby steps! Seeing your site has inspired me. Congratulations on your wonderful site, very informative, you are very generous with your talent. I wish you all the best with your endeavors, Best Regards! Thank you Agnes for you kind comments. It is always nice to "meet" other quilters around the world, and to know that there are many others passionate about what they are doing. I would love to take a look at your blog and see what you are doing -- please send me the link. I wish you all the best with your endeavours as well!

Judy's Star Quilt Block

Wed, 23 Feb 2011 22:05:52 GMT

Lesley: I am working my way through the sampler and have completed the last block I emailed about. I am now starting on the Judy's Star Quilt Block and have a problem with the size of the triangles cut from the background and medium fabrics. They appear to be too large to fit the block. Could you please confirm if that is the case or is it just me!!! When I lay out the pieces these triangles jut out a lot further than the rest of the layout. Thank you again and kind regards It does seem as if those triangles are too large, however, once you have sewn them together, they will fit onto the larger triangle. If you try it, and still have trouble, then email again, but that should work out.

T-shirt Quilt Question?

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 05:25:28 GMT

Teresa: I love the t-shirt quilts! I am a new quilter and I wad wondering what you recommend for the woven fusible cotton interfacing for t-shirts quilts? I see so many woven, non-woven, I am just confused! Thank you Teresa for your inquiry. I prefer the lightweight woven fusible interfacing -- looks like thin white cotton, with glue on one side and it does not stretch either way. If you check out the others, make sure they do not stretch -- that defeats the whole stabilizing process!!

Fat Quarters Question?

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 04:38:45 GMT

Shirley When I am buying material for my sample quilt block, can I just buy Fat Quarters? A great question Shirley! You CAN purchase Fat Quarters for your Sampler Quilt. Then when you have all your blocks finished, you can take them to the quilting store to find your sashing and border fabrics. I find it is easier to choose the fabrics if I have the blocks up on a wall. You can then audition the sashing and border fabrics to make an informed decision.

Free Motion Quilting

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 04:38:45 GMT

Collettia Having trouble with free motion quilting. Just can't quite get it down. Any suggestions? I have learned lots from your site by reading all your quilting advice. I am just learning quilting, thanks. Free Motion Quilting is one of those things that just takes a lot of practice and patience. One tip -- it is easier if you go fast. Try to keep your movements smooth and keep practicing.

French Fold binding

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 04:38:45 GMT

Karen I am doing a small wall hanging pattern for Halloween.I am new to this so now I have a problem I don't know what is meant be the term they use straight-grain French-fold binding.If you could please help I would appreciate it. You can check at your local quilting or sewing store to purchase straight-grain French-fold binding, or you could bind your wall-hanging using coordinating quilt binding as described in my "learn to quilt" series on quilt-lovers-guide.com. Here is the link http://www.quilt-lovers-guide.com/binding-a-quilt.html I would love to see a photo of the finished item. When it is done, please go to my website under "Share your quilts" and post it.

Kind words from a web site Visitor

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 17:50:04 GMT

Carolyn: No questions, just compliments. I am new to the Internet and found your site to be super easy to use and very well defined. All info is helpful and - so appreciated - grammatically correct! I cannot enjoy a site, even about quilting, that has not been proofread and corrected. Your site is a pleasure to visit! Thank you Carolyn, updating and maintaining my web site is almost a full time job, I'm glad I have help on this. Otherwise I would not be able to keep on quilting!!!

Hand Stitching Fused Flowers

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Kris: I am working on a wall hanging with fused flowers. I wanted to hand stitch but was too hard on the fingers. When used the sewing machine, the needle gums up so bad and the thread ravels and breaks. What am I doing wrong? I'm wondering which product you used for fusing your flowers, and is it more than one layer? Also what kind of thread are you using? It may be you need a different needle, maybe larger or sharper or one designed for metallic threads if that is what you are using? As you mentioned, this is a wall-hanging and it probably will not need to be washed, so you do not need to stitch through the fused flowers, perhaps just around them or in the background.

Machine Stitching Grandmother's Flower block

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Marina: I have been looking for a way to do the Grandmother's Flower block on my machine? I have found a you-tube demo of sewing the hexagons together by hand but I'd love to know how to do them on my machine? have you attempted this and do you have an easier way to join them (its that whole Y seam that frightens me). Thanks for any help you can offer, I enjoy your website very much. I have not attempted to machine sew this block. You would need to trace the hexagon, and sew one side at a time, sewing only on the traced line. Press seams open. I enjoyed hand piecing the hexagons while on car trips and visiting relatives, etc. and think that is the easiest way to make this block.

Questions on a Lap Quilt

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Gina: I am in the process of making a lap quilt (first time quilter) i have almost completed my squares using only fabric from my scrap bag, the dominant colour is red but there are 3 different shades. Should i put the darkest shade in the middle or the lightest shade in the middle or is it just a matter of personal preference when i sew them all together. Congratulations on your first quilt! If at all possible, put the blocks up on a wall (you could tack up a flannel sheet or piece of batting), and see whether you prefer the darker ones in the center or around the edges of your quilt -- it is personal preference. Placing the blocks on the wall gives you a totally different perspective than laying them on a bed or the floor. I'd love to see a photo when you're done. You can post it at "Share your Quilt" on my website.

Question on Binding and Trimming

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Moe: I have pin basted my quilt, do i trim off all excess and add the binding or do i quilt first then bind, thanks for the information, I get confused trying to read and study the pictures I will have to machine quilt or do the hand tied, I do not have a frame Do your quilting first, then trim and bind. If you wish to hand quilt, you can do so with a 12" or 14" hoop, it is not necessary to have a big frame. Good luck with your project!

Applique on a Baby Quilt

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Kylie: I am a first time quilter and I am making a baby quilt for a very dear friend of mine. I am machine piecing it together but I am also appliqueing onto it as well. If I wanted to machine quilt over the top do I quilt over the applique or do quilt first and then stitch my applique on top? IT is probably a silly question but I really what to make sure this works. Thanks for your help What a good question Kylie! Usually the applique is stitched to the quilt top first, then the machine quilting is done around (not over top) of the applique. So, maybe you will do a free motion type of quilting over the quilt top, up to but not on top of the applique. This will help to emphasize the applique. Good luck!

Mitering Square Corners

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Darlene: The mitered corners of my binding sometimes look more rounded than square when I fold the binding to the back of the quilt and hand stitch. What have I done wrong? Would appreciate any tips. When folding the binding to the back of the quilt for hand stitching, make sure you fold it the same way as the front side of the binding, in other words, don't have the fold to the left on the top, and to the right on the backing. That should help keep it square. It is always a wee bit rounded just because of the nature of the thick corners. I hope this helps.

Making a T Shirt Quilt

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Mary: I am making my first t shirt quilt and the logos/pattern are all different sizes. I have already cut some and fused them. I know I will have to fill in odd spaces but not sure how to cut them. The colors are mainly gray and white with a couple of yellow and couple of red. Any suggestions? You are on the right track with fusing a backing onto the t-shirt logos. The easiest way to put them all together is to make each logo block the same size. If your largest logo is 10x10", then add fabric to the smaller ones to make up the difference, so they all end up 10x10. Some could have red around and some could have black, etc. Black really frames the blocks nicely. Did you see the two examples on my website? I find it always helps to put them up on the wall -- makes it easier to make a decision re colors. Hope this helps.

Designing a Denim Quilt

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

May: This is a great web site - THANKS. I have only this year caught the patchwork bug and am 'obsessed!' I am confused as to why you used 2 (tartan) Flannel squares for each denim square in your denim quilt. One of the flannel squares you would not see after construction except for the area of the frayed seam. Did you use the 2 flannel squares to give weight to the denim? Could I not just use some old scrap flannel sheet or something in a complementary/suitable colour instead for this middle layer? I will be on the hunt for some flannel tartan shirts at the next jumble sale - which i have started to go to now to try to find unusual bits of fabric and great place to pick up old cushion covers for about 10/20p and I wash and unpick the zips to re-use! (In keeping with the thrifty nature of patchwork). Thanks again Thank you for your comments and inquiry. Yes, of course, you could use anything you like for the center square of the denim quilt. I used two flannel squares so the ragged edge was full and lush, as well as for warmth. I used two plaid squares because I had lots left over from pajamas. I would also like the colors to be similar in value. So, have fun with this, and I look forward to your photo when you've finished the quilt!

Block Dimensions

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Jessica: I have a quick question about your quilt block patterns, in particular the double pinwheel quilt block. The instructions seem straight forward enough, but can you tell me approx how big the finished quilt block will be? Thank you for your inquiry. I definitely should have the block dimensions in the instructions. It will be 12 1/2" when you finish sewing it together, or 12" finished in the quilt.

Backing and Quilt Sandwich

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:57:42 GMT

Jennifer: I am a fairly new hand quilter. My grandmother taught me how to make the top of the quilt. however I don't understand how to attach it to the backing and put on the binding sandwich style. If I am not using batting does that matter? And do I have to mark my fabric again on the front of the top so I know where to stitch? I'm a little bit confused about your inquiry. You do not have to use batting in your quilt, although the quilting will not have any "puffiness" without at least a layer of flannel in the middle. You will probably want to baste the quilt layers together so they don't slip while you are quilting. (I'm not sure what you mean by "sandwich style") See basting here.... You can quilt without marking the lines if you wish to "quilt in the ditch" or 1/4" away from the seam lines. If you want flower designs or special shapes, then you will probably have to mark the design on the quilt top before stitching. The binding is usually attached after the quilting is finished. You will then trim all the edges, and attach the binding. You can check out the lesson on binding here. I hope this helps.....