How To Choose Quilt Patterns

Quilting poses no limitations. A quilter can create designs as far as the imagination allows, which is probably why there are thousands of quilt patterns in existence today. Quilters just never run out of ideas and they pass them on from one quilter to another. The patterns keep on evolving then, which eventually gives birth to hybrid patterns.

Novice quilters may at first be overwhelmed by the enormity of pattern options. And this commonly becomes a problem especially when they figure that the pattern they have is actually not what they want to work with. The result is half-hearted commitment and a lopsided quilt, if at all it gets done. You can avoid this, though, if you consider the following when choosing a quilt pattern:

1. Identify your skill level. Before setting out, you must first realistically and honestly assess your quilting skills. This is important because a pattern-skill level mismatch can turn an otherwise beautiful pattern into a sloppy quilt. Patterns are normally classified as beginner/easy, intermediate, experienced/hard, so determine into which your skill level fits.

2. Decide on your intended theme or message. Quilt patterns are oftentimes thematic. There are patterns for holidays, nursery, seasons, among other things. If you are celebrating a birth, choose a baby quilt. If the quilt is for the approaching spring, choose a bright, floral quilt pattern. Consider the message as well. Do you want the quilt to convey a political message? An advocacy perhaps? An inspiring story? Whatever message you intend to communicate, make sure the quilt pattern represents it well.

3. Consider pattern combination. If your skill level allows, you can combine a number of patterns to achieve an exquisite and original look. Don’t be afraid to experiment because, in the first place, quilting encourages exploration of all your creative tendencies. Get out of your safe harbor. Think out of the box. Mix and match.

4. Determine how much time you are willing to commit. The simple patterns are of course quick to do, while the intricate ones may require a lot of time to complete. If you know you won’t be able to finish a pattern in a given time, save it for a future project. In the meantime, work with the pattern that you are likely to finish.

5. Get as many sources as you can. Ask fellow quilters for pattern suggestions. Some of them may even have designed their own quilt patterns. Don’t forget to also look samples in quilt shops and to research online. The good about the Internet is that you can find free quilt patterns—from the simplest and traditional to the more complex and intricate. Online patterns are too plenty you might want to create a collection.  Of course, you can also try to look up in quilt books. These books are a compilation of designs derived from the traditional and old patterns.

Therefore, these designs, which may look new and complicated, are just as easy to do as the conventional quilt patterns you are familiar with.

Four Methods Of Basting A Quilt

Although basting is the least favorite task of many quilters, it is an important part in the entire quilting process. It keeps the quilt sandwich—top, batting, and backing layers—together, making sure they are properly aligned and do not slip apart during the actual quilting process. This in turn prevents puckered and sloppy quilts. When basting, the three layers are placed flat on top of each other—with the backing laid beneath, the batting in the middle, and the top over the batting—and are joined through different methods. There are four methods of basting a quilt. Quilters choose which to execute depending on the quilt size and, mostly, personal preference.

Hand Baste
The most traditional basting approach, hand baste involves hand-sewing. Hand basting is done at the center toward the outer sides using horizontal and vertical stitches across the quilt, leaving a grid-like stitch pattern. Stitches should be around three to four inches apart. A thin needle is recommended so as not to create big and visible holes in the quilt.

Machine Baste
Machine basting is faster to do than hand basting, but it adapts the same stitching pattern. Stitches should be made at the center and progress outward and should come in a grid pattern.

Pin Baste
This requires a huge amount of pins. A small project may need around 75 pins, while a big one may require, at the very least, 400 pins. Like the previous methods, pin basting should be started at the center, with each pin placed 4 to 6 inches apart from each other. The last rows of the pins must not touch the edges of the quilt and so must at least be an inch away. Pins should also be in a horizontal and diagonal pattern to keep the layers securely joined. While pinning, it is best to smooth out wrinkles and press the layers flat. Although fine pins work well in pin basting, safety pins are more often recommended.

Spray Baste
When hand, machine, and pin basting all seem to be quite a task, spray basting comes as a good alternative. It is a sticky adhesive formulation sprayed over the sandwich layers. To use this, the batting must first be layered flat over the backing. Its top half must then be folded toward the backing edge and sprayed. When put back, the batting must be smoothed out to remove any wrinkle. The same procedure is done to the other half. Next, the top is placed over the batting. The top half should then be folded and sprayed. After which, the top is put back over the batting and pressed flat. The same applies to the bottom half.

When basting a quilt, it is important to have a spacious working area. Others lay their quilt on the floor, on a table, or on a similar flat and large working space. Whichever method to use and wherever basting is done, the goal remains the same; that is, to properly put the layers together without creating crumples and puckers in the quilt. With that goal kept in mind, basting is not anymore a dragging task.

Washing Your Quilting Fabrics

Quilts (and most ideally all the quilting materials before they are made into quilts) need to be washed. The only exceptions to this are those antique quilts good only for exhibitions and quilts that are not in good condition.

The advice of washing your quilt materials (main fabrics, batting, threads) before they are assembled into a quilt is important if you are not sure about them.

Washing the fabrics first before incorporating them into a quilt releases any excess dye from the fabric. (Colors in new fabrics tend to run at the first laundry sessions.) Washing also gives the fabric the chance to stretch into its natural “worn” shape.

Fabrics 

The first consideration on washing is the fabric or fabrics your quilt is made of. Traditionally most quilts are made of 100% cotton or of cotton mixes that are very close to 100% cotton.

This is because cotton is a natural fiber, hardy and available in so many varieties of patterns and colors. (It is also the top choice in making clothes.)

Check next what type of material the thread and batting of your quilt are made of. Once you know, you would know the detergents to use and how to treat your quilt in the laundry process.

Detergents 

Use only an unscented liquid-based, color-free detergent in your quilts. Do not use any detergent that has fabric softeners in them. Fabric softeners can damage the fabric fibers as can scents and dyes.

NEVER use bleach on the quilt. This does not only ruin the color, they will damage the fibers of the fabric as well.

Carefully read the detergent’s composition and follow religiously the instructions well. They may be harmless, but some additives in some can be harmful to the fabric when used regularly.

Washing proper

Fill the washing machine with warm water, never hot water. While it is filling up, add the detergent. Stir to make sure the detergent is fully dissolved.

Put in your quilt. Do the regular warm/cold water wash cycle.

Put the quilt in the machine and select a regular warm/cold water wash cycle. Finally, do the cold/cold water wash cycle minus the detergent.

If your quilt is made of delicate materials, air-dry it in an area out of the sun. This will keep the colors intact because sunlight can fade fabric colors.

Let your quilt have a regular tumble-dry if it is made of good quality fabrics. Do not wring your quilt. It might cause a permanent crease and stresses the quilt’s materials.

Hand washing quilts

You can do hand washing of your quilt if you are up to the hard work. Do it in a large bath tub. Fill it with enough water to submerge your quilt fully with an inch or two of water allowance.

Again, make sure the detergent is fully dissolved before stirring the quilt in the water with your hands. Let the machine do the laundry if you are not up to it.

When you are confident that your quilt can be washed and your fabric can take the stress, then you can have the peace of mind that your quilt will be in good condition for years.

Tips In Choosing Quilting Fabrics

Choosing the fabric materials is one of the most critical decisions in quilt-making. This is because there are so many things to consider – the colors, textures, patterns, styles, characteristics, etc. – all of which are important in quilting.

Here are some random tips.

Quality 

First, be sure your quilting materials are colorfast, whether these are old scraps you had been saving to use on your quilt or new fabrics you have bought specifically for your project. Wash a piece to check if the colors don’t run.

Is the fabric strong enough? Too tightly-woven fabrics are difficult to quilt. Fabrics that are woven loose, on the other hand, are good candidates for rips, tearing, and damage.

Pure cotton had been proven to be the best materials yet for quilts. Man-made fibers (synthetics) and some cotton-combination fabrics are difficult to handle. They have a tendency to curl at the most inopportune places.

The good point, however, is that these fabrics have more options in terms of colors and designs than plain old cottons. The colors are more brilliant and designers have done more work (and experiments) on them.

If you are an experienced sewer, you may be able to surmount these handling difficulties. These same difficulties are also present in knitted, stretch and crepe fabrics.

Color and fabric design 

Expert quilters always remind beginners to choose colors and combinations well. This may sound easy but once you have your finished quilt, it is not easy to undo things.

People declare the best judgment call is to trust your instincts. It might also be good to add some time-tested formulas from the arts and from general consensus.

It is said that blue-based colors are “cold” and that red and yellow-based colors are “warmer”. Black will dim any color next to it, and white brightens any color placed side by side with it.

Generally, people are said to be energized and active with warm colors. With cool colors – like green and blue – people tend to become calmer and relaxed.

This is an important consideration if you are intending to give away your quilt to someone important to you (a friend, a loved one, or your boss perhaps). It is worthwhile noting their prospective responses to your present.

If it is for your personal use, you may also have to consider your own feelings of your finished work.

Backing materials and quantity

Always try to have your backing materials similar to your top quilt material in weight and color. The rationale for this is ease of sewing. It is difficult to sew through uneven levels of materials or materials of unlike textures, thickness or weave.

Buy a little more than what you need for your quilt. This is to preclude any eventuality of your running out of materials. The extra fabric you bought will always have some use for you in the future, especially now that you are into quilting.

Your choice

In the end, your fabric choice will depend on your design, the colors you want, and the quality of your work. Of course, once you become a confident quilter, you can always choose any fabric that catches your fancy and imagination.

Quilting is such an exciting art and there is no limit to what you want to create.

Unearthing Quilting

There have been lots of events that have shaped the world as it is today. There are various concepts and principles that continuously guide each and every civilization toward survival and propagation. There are very ancient practices that still make their marks within the realms of the present generation. Let’s take a step back and take a journey aimed at unearthing quilting.

The craft of patching fabric materials together was commonly used in order to come with body protections and household accessories like usual clothing and pillows. Quilting has been around as early as the 15th century. There are even accounts leading its association with one of the oldest known communities of Egypt. There are also evidences pointing the existence of whole cloth quilts during the glamour of the trading years in the well-to-to European countries and Asian areas.

The most documented and proven ancestors of the quilts today were extracted from a Mongolian cave. The approximation of experts is that it existed during the first century BC as a linen carpet. At present it is kept safe and preserved within the confines of the Archeology Section in the Saint Petersburg department of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

In the United States the making of quilts was quite rare particularly during the period that spanned the late 18th century and that of the onset of the 19th century. The reason was primarily because it was considered as a leisurely practice which is only suitable for the wealthy folks. Most women preferred to stick to the conventional methods of spinning, sewing, and weaving in order to make clothes for the family. Bed covers were limited to the likes of woven varieties made available commercially and economically. Quilting was actually tagged as colonial wherein only a handful can be involved.

Unlike the common garments that can be mended and created out of left over scraps or old materials quilts were highly regarded as decorative items that can truly bring out the meaning of art. Each item brought to life by a skilled maker is considered as a one-of-a-kind needlework. During the early 1800s, quilters focused on the designs that revolved around quilting styles of whole cloth quilts, medallion quilts, and broderie perse.

As always technology entered the scene and made quilting a more recognizable entity as it increased in the number of styles and patterns specifically during the middle portion of the 1800s. The Industrial Revolution paved the way for more promising creations especially when textile manufacturing clawed its way into the picture. The women were not anymore obliged to spin and weave their way into making clothes for their family. When 1840 sprouted, the textile industry allowed for the affordability of commercial fabrics.

Now, there’s a misconception that quilts during this time were forcibly made out of the usual scraps and left over materials from conventional dressmaking methods. Actually it was in this period wherein various forms of cotton prints were made available publicly for the specific purpose of quilt making. There are documents and pictures that indicate that fabrics and materials really were made just for the quilting craft.

A Brief History Of Quilting

What is quilting? 
Why is it popular in cold countries than in tropical ones?
What makes is special?

For beginners who do not have any faint idea about quilting, introduction to this old but growing craft can elicit a lot of questions. The following are some of the answers, including a brief history of the craft.

The craft

The dictionary defines quilting as a method of securing or wadding of two layers of fabric, usually with a soft, thick padding (cotton, wool, etc) between them, by way of stitching them together.

In the old days, this extra padded fabric is used to make garments for insulation against the cold. Later, the stitching that keeps the stuffing evenly distributed provided the opportunity for quilters to express their artistic inclinations through designs and colors.

Very old quilts were found in the mountains of Mongolia dating as far back as the 1st century. A wadded carpet found has a center quilted in an overall pattern of spirals and bordered with diamond designs and animal shapes.

The patterns and the techniques of those old quilts are still in use today and are already part of the quilter’s catalog of techniques.

Coverage 

The first quilts were thought to have originated from ancient Egypt, went all over Asia, and then to Europe in the years of the Crusades in 11th century.

In the U.S., it first became popular for use in petticoats and comforters. At the end of the 18th century, American quilters were already using colored fabrics sewn on the outer layers known as the appliqué.

Later, the patchwork patterns became widely used as well.

When emigrants from Europe brought over their quilting skills with them on their new home, quilting flourished in the U.S. in the colonial era. American women learned to create patchwork quilts from fabric scraps.

African-American women began quilting as well and continued the art form to this day.
Their quilts have been much praised for their bold, asymmetrical designs and bright colors, usually with tied knots.

When there was a rush to migrate to the West, the quilting patterns reflected the new experiences then that included designs and names such as wagon wheels and log cabins.

Picture quilts and friendship quilts became widely known, too. The picture quilts have designs that looked like pictures were sewn on the quilt itself.  Friendship quilts are ‘albums’ of special events like weddings, births and anniversaries.

The most famous friendship quilt is the 1987 AIDS Memorial quilt. It contained the names and dates of persons who died of AIDS.

The American quilt blossomed in the 19th century. (Early 18th century samples have largely disappeared.) This was the time where several traditional patchwork patterns have evolved and are still popular today: Sunburst, Sawtooth, Log Cabin, Bear’s Paw, etc.

Some of the most compelling works of art are the quilts made by Amish women. These were utilitarian quilts with geometric designs that are color-rich and are now much-sought-after by collectors.

Today, quilting is used as a form of textile art. It already has incorporated a utilitarian function in modern life. And like any other art forms, it continues to grow and evolve.