For this quilt I started with the green feather print. ", "It all makes sense now. To create the pieced binding as shown on the “Woven Lightning” quilt, sew 3 blue binding strips together with diagonal seams, creating one continuous piece. Pin your first strip onto one side of the center piece, right sides together, lining up the edges. This is the quilt backing for my Flowering Snowball Quilt. The pictures were very clear and explained the process for me. How Quilters Paper Piece a Quilt . This article was co-authored by Lois Wade. Use a light colored thread, so it won't show through your lightest scraps. However, you can use a very inexpensive white cotton (pre-washed) or old white sheets through which you trace the blocks and sew onto them as a foundation. Use the thinnest/lightest weight paper that will work with your printer/copier for ease in removal. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. Square: smaller pieces of fabric that are … If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. Practice how to piece a quilt with this simple 9-patch block! It's easy to sew those acute angles with absolute precision every time; it's so easy that it's practically "quilt by number"! Shorter stitch length makes tearing the paper easier later. You can see here I've got two squares. The next step is going through my stash and finding what big pieces of fabric I have that will work for backing. This eliminates the need for possibly bulky backstitching to secure your seams. So, blocks are your basic components, and blocks get combined into rows. The fabric's placement is easy to see by holding the foundation up to the light. They're still sewn in rows. Rows are the basic elements, but they're sewn in rows of 45 degree angles. Buying 4-5 yards of fabric for the backing of a quilt can add up fast. It's very logical. Not when there are so many great quilting tips on how to piece a quilt with curves available to you. Find more Friendship Quilt Along Tutorials It helps to make small blocks of quilting patches and difficult angles to sew. intricately pieced quilts I've been admiring! You put your next row here. (In the photo below, my selvage is ¾-inch wide so I have placed a piece of painter’s tape 1-1/4 inches away from my needle on the right side.) A busy backing hides less-than-perfect quilting stitches on the back of the quilt. Many people have done "Quilting", but are put off by the labor-intensive cutting and fitting process that makes a quilt block. It doesn't sound so intimidating now! You're going to sew these two together, and that would give you the top half. This article has been viewed 149,283 times. Sew along one long side of the paired strips with a scant ¼â€ seam, then press the seam toward the darker fabric. P.S. When you piece a quilt top the first thing you have to know is that the pieces that go together all have to be the same size, and they usually start with the smallest pieces you've cut. This is a gargantuan sized stitch! By using our site, you agree to our. Borders are good for quilts that need a frame to stop the overall pattern. Handle with appropriate care. Any shape or size of scrap can be used, so long as it has one straight edge to be sewn. You can do that, that is how regular quilting is done. The blue binding will cover the lower right half of the quilt and the orange will cover the upper left. So here is how I piece fabric strips with diagonal seams: Cut the strips from the width of the fabric (selvedge to selvedge), adding 1/2″ to the desired border width. Clip your threads and press it over. And it just keeps building like that. The piecing numbers are printed on the blocks from the computer. Repeat with orange binding strips. This quilt along features 13 super scrappy quilt blocks and we’re going to piece AND machine quilt the blocks together! Align the edges of your fabric (RST) with the edge of the painter’s tape and sew the seam. Last Updated: October 8, 2020 You can even use oddly shaped pieces of fabric scraps without extra cutting. Always lower your stitch length to 1.5 mm to create a tight, secure stitch that locks the pieces of fabric together. Approved. You can see here I've got two squares. (If you're using hand-quilting thread, which is sturdy, to hand-piece, you may be able to omit these backstitches.) ", "I did not know what foundation-piecing was until I read this article. Some quilt block patterns can be foundation pieced all in one go. If you're concerned about the quality of your hand or machine quilting, choose a busy print that will camouflage your stitches. But, piecing curves opens up a world of quilting opportunities that, as quilters, we should take advantage of. After you've gotten your pieces cut the next step is to put them together. Once you've done that you'd do your second row. Click Here to find the patterns. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. (You can leave the selvedges on for now, we will trim them later.) Now you are ready to quilt! Then you'd sew row one to row two. Use long, thin pins to avoid distorting the paper foundation. Please help us continue to provide you with our trusted how-to guides and videos for free by whitelisting wikiHow on your ad blocker. The pattern should have numbers telling you which piece to add first, second and so on. Let’s go quilt, Leah Day. ", instructions and complete my first block. You will need one copy per block. When you reach the corner, sew right off the edge. Instead of cutting two separate pieces of fabric and sewing them together, you cut one long piece, fold it together and then sew right down one side. You can have lots of fun experimenting and you'll come up with lots more. Lois Wade has 45 years of experience in crafts including sewing, crochet, needlepoint, cross-stitch, drawing, and paper crafts. When both of these are sewn you're going to sew this completed piece to this completed piece, and you're going to end up with a block that looks like that. Another way they can be sewn together is on the diagonal. Choose a quilt backing with an interesting motif and then quilt from the back along the fabric's printed lines, to transfer the design to the front. Here are some ideas of how you can piece your quilt backing to use up scraps and not have to buy more fabric. The paper makes it much easier, in my opinion, because you don't have to cut exact pieces. How to Piece Quilt Backing Step by Step Source: Youtube.com In order to make a quilt backing with the regular or typical fabric, you have to follow a few steps to make sure the result of your work is cleaner and more precise. Use a backing that coordinates with the quilt top if both will be visible during use. Because of this, you can utilize even the smallest scraps with little waste. "Now I have a visual idea of how to paper piece and I'm SO glad I found this step-by-step post. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 149,283 times. How to piece your quilt backing. Many of our quilts don’t have borders, but some quilt patterns are complimented nicely by the addition of a border. This article brought everything back to me. Piece N Quilt is run by Natalia Bonner and Brad Bonner, and our team of experts. % of people told us that this article helped them. Piecing curves can be a challenge, but it doesn’t have to be! They fit together. We all start somewhere, so why not start today! That would give you this part of the block. So, for example, if you want your borders to be 4″ wide in your finished quilt, cut them 4 1/2″ wide. Now, to make the top you would put one block right next to the adjoining block, sew those together, and you've got the beginning of your row. Now that both quilt tops are pieced, we are adding the final borders. How do I print the foundation on the fabric? "The information will help me to start quilting as a hobby. Paper piecing a quilt block is a great skill to learn as a quilter. On a typical quilt (not quilt-as-you-go) the goal of quilting is to reinforce the patchwork, evenly attach batting to the patchwork and attach the three layers. So, you can put your blocks like this. Your support helps wikiHow to create more in-depth illustrated articles and videos and to share our trusted brand of instructional content with millions of people all over the world. Stitch at 1/4", which is typically the edge of your presser foot. Natalia is a full time online machine quilting educator, author and creator of several machine quilting rulers. Avoid ripping/tearing to create your strips, with looser-woven fabrics this can damage up to 1.5" along the tear, causing much waste. These are just a few of the ways you can put a quilt top together. I was able to follow these. Most quilts are made of cotton fabrics that are soft but sturdy enough to sew. By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube. Begin stitching your way down the next side of the quilt until you reach the corner, mitering each corner as you go. ", "It refreshed my knowledge of foundation piecing. 3. You would seam them, sew them down, right here. ", "The explanations were clear and concise, and the pictures really helped. Be sure to line up material in correct direction, lining it up with arrow in pattern (parallel with selvage of material). 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