https://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/blue-green-quilt • Posted by Kim B.
A basic tutorial hopefully showing how easy it is to create a beautiful quilt 'for life'.
A basic tutorial hopefully showing how easy it is to create a beautiful quilt 'for life'.
Carefully (preferably with a rotary cutter) cut squares out of contrasting *washed and ironed* fabrics. I used 8.5" squares throughout. Arrange in a pattern you like. If you look again at the picture you'll see that I positioned darker fabrics more towards the edges, but still random enough that it blends. I used almost 30 different fat quarters with several being old fabrics which hold memories.
Pile your squares into organised sections - I labelled each with a scrap of paper saying 'Column 1', 'Column 2' etc
Neatly sew the squares together in order with a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Its easier now if you use something to hang the strips on.
Now using your curtains as a sort of 'positioning board' hang one column over the other right sides together and pin so that the seams match up *exactly*. You can also position the pins so that they hold the seams to the correct side (usually fold both edges towards the darker fabric) so that you don't need to worry as you sew. The neater and more even you were with cutting and with your seam allowances the easier this step will be. Sew up the columns and repeat across the whole patchwork.
At this stage you can either 1) Hand quilt the entire thing with suitable wadding and backing fabric 2) Become highly adept at using your specialist quilting sewing machine to machine quilt everything together or 3) Pay quite a lot of money to send the quilt away to be professionally machine quilted. I did this and I intend to do this for all my quilts! This is why the project is rated 'pretty pricey'!
When the quilt is now 'quilted'... The finishing touch is to bind the quilt. There are many dfferent ways to do this. I used a wide satin ribbon and I have a video tutorial on YouTube which I believe is the best way to explain. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uzh7uy61hnw&feature=player_embedded