In 1974 when I taught my first quilting class, everyone in my class knew how to sew. They grew up sewing, knew how to thread a needle, take a stitch, etc. I grew up sewing my own clothes and making doll clothes…..often making my own patterns, so transferring that to quilting was not difficult.
Grandmother’s Flower Garden
Schools no longer teach sewing to all students, mothers work and few sew. Most beginning quilting students I have in my classes are not just new to quilting but are also new to sewing. When someone wants to take up quilting, they think the first thing they need to do is purchase a sewing machine.
Garden Sunflower
When I became interested in quilting in the early 70’s, templates were made for all patchwork patterns and almost all piecing was done by hand. Today many people pass up on patterns that require templates or ones that cannot be done by machine. They only want patterns where the pieces can be cut with a rotary cutter. This eliminates a whole wealth of patterns and in my opinion eliminates a lot of the intricacies that were found in many of the quilts from the 1970’s and 80’s.
Suzi’s Box
Why not take a step back, look at some of those more intricate looking patterns and try one. If you want to take a try at a pattern that uses templates, sign up for my 2015 Block of the Month free class from Craftsy. The early lessons have a lot of information on making templates and hand sewing which can be used in any pattern you may choose. Or, try the Quilter’s Design Board on my website. There, you can choose from hundreds of blocks, see how it looks in a quilt and print templates.
I’ve been thrilled with the number of you who have discovered the joys of hand piecing and told me how much you (sometimes surprisingly) enjoy it. If you haven’t already, why don’t you give it a try.
Often, the back of a quilt receives little thought. Once your top is finished, your batting purchased, there are things to consider when choosing your backing.
Choose your quilting thread first. If you want the thread to blend in, choose a backing which is similar in color and maybe a busier pattern such as a paisley or floral. If you want your quilting to show, solid-color fabrics will show off your quilting pattern (and your expertise).
Purchase fabric which is the same quality as that which was used on the top of your quilt. Extra wide quilt back fabrics tend to be slightly heavier than standard quilt fabric. While excellent for machine quilting, the heavier weight may make it a little harder for hand quilting.
How much fabric to buy depends on many factors. The backing should be at least 3″ larger than the quilt top on all sides. (If you are having your quilt quilted on a long-arm machine, this amount should be even greater. Always check with your quilter.) Traditional quilting fabric is 45” wide. Once your remove the selvage, you should assume 40” to 42” of width in your calculations. For any quilt larger than crib-size or a small wall hanging, you will have to piece your backing fabric.
Traditionally, two or three widths of fabric are pieced together for larger quilts. If I am using two widths of fabric, I avoid having one straight seam running down the middle. I place one width of fabric down the middle and split the width of the other, sewing two halves on with one on either side of the center panel. When sewing the backing pieces together, use a ½” seam allowance and press the seam to one side. Do not press the seam open as this causes weakness in the seam and allows fibers from the batting to migrate through the seam.
Most backings, it seems, are made this way. However, you do have other options. What if you want to be a little more frugal or creative with your backing?
Several years ago, quilter John Flynn introduced us to a method using a diagonal seam across the back to save on fabric. It works on quilts that need backing up to about 60″ wide. The calculation sheet we’ve added to our website takes you step by step through the math. For the “mathphobes” out there, we’ve also found an online calculator.
Let me show you some interesting backings from my staff’s quilts.
My new Water Wheel quilt finishes about 41″ x 46″. It would be tricky to get the backing out of standard yardage. But, there is an unused wide border print stripe in the kit. A standard width fabric (say 40″) could be divided and a border strip run up the length.
Or use leftover yardage and piece a strip that helps to make up the width as was done in this quilt for a small boy.
Pattern by Billie Lauder, “There’s a Dog on My Quilt.”
Sometimes, we have blocks leftover which didn’t make it into the quilt top. These are wonderful to incorporate into the back. This small wallhanging was made with blocks leftover from a basket quilt. There were still leftover blocks and they were pieced into the backing.
A yard and a half (all that remained at the shop) wasn’t enough to cover the back of this quilt. The aqua fabric used as the back also served as the quilting design for the center of this quilt which was machine quilted from the back. Remnants from an earlier quilt were pieced to each side (and pieced to make a hanging sleeve).
There are so many options for your quilt back. I’d love to see what you’ve done.
You don’t have to be a longtime quilter to understand the power of quilts. A quilt is much more than fabric joined together. It can be an expression of love, sympathy, joy, hope or caring. Just as the quilt can be all of these things, so can the process itself. Just joining two little pieces of fabric together can mean so much more than it appears. I was reminded of this by way some emails we recently received.
Carol and her Mariners Compass quilt
Amanda in Michigan contacted us recently. She and her friend Merry have joined us on the Quilters Quest Bus Trip. Last year, Amanda brought her Aunt Barbara and mom, Carol. On the Quest, Carol bought fabric to make a Mariners Compass she wanted to auction off at the national reunion of submarine vets (her husband is one) that is happening in Pittsburgh in September. Before she could start the project, she had a massive stroke and was hospitalized in a rehab facility for three months. She has limited use of her right side and speech is difficult and not always understandable. Carol insisted that the quilt still be made and, with the help of Barbara and Amanda, it was completed. This was Carol’s first goal and now she has another she’s working towards – to ride our Quilters’ Quest bus again in November.
After having to give up crafts he loved due to arthritis, David is thrilled to be able to hand piece.
David from Sydney, Australia, has an enthusiasm which can’t be matched. He is a brand new quilter who only started quilting in November last year. He had done dyeing, handspinning, knitting, and weaving all his life but arthritis forced him to stop knitting altogether and to cut back on spinning and weaving. His doctor suggested trying other things that use different movements to keep my hands agile. Sad when he thought he’d have to give up crafting forever, quilting has given him something to get excited about and something to aim for. He is currently working on Golden Album, Carnival and Columbia. David writes: “Quilting has taken over my crafting world! I love the idea that if I can draft it, I can make templates, and turn it into a quilt! The possibilities just astound me.”
Suzie found comfort in the simple act of sewing small fabric squares together.
Quilting gives us something to strive for, it brings us joy and it can also comfort. One of our local customers, Suzie, lost her son, Johnny, when he was only 31. After his death, quilting comforted her. She chose to make of quilt of simple squares remembering a quilt she made while caring for Johnny when he broke his leg a year earlier and how they enjoyed the time they spent together. While others worried that she was locking herself away, Suzie says, simply, that the process was comforting to her.
I felt the same way after the attacks of September 11, 2001. My Windows quilt served as therapy for me in the days which followed.
There is a wonderful exhibit taking place through July 26 in nearby Herndon, Virginia, called Sacred Threads. It was created to share the experiences of quilters whose stories would be a source of healing and strength. Here is one just one example of the quilts in the exhibit and the story behind it.
“I remember the first time I met my future sister-in-law, Annie. She was working in a residential facility. As she turned down a hallway, an elderly resident abruptly bellowed out, ‘Hey Annie! Give us a jig!’ Suddenly, this tiny, energetic woman with bouncy red curls joyously pranced and danced as laughter ensued.
“Annie was diagnosed with terminal multiple myeloma cancer in September, 2014. How do you live life knowing you are facing certain death? In Annie fashion, she recently donned my daughter’s tutu and jigged. With this quilt, I honor her spirit. Grieving, smiling, remembering, I attach that silly little tutu!”
Our lives are often incredibly busy and often this craziness translates to our quilting. While there is nothing wrong with quick quilts and timesaving methods, I hope you take the time to enjoy the process and the challenge, comfort, reminiscing, or pure joy you can derive from it.
I hope you have been following my Craftsy Block of the Month. This has been a new endeavor for me. While you’ve been learning different techniques for making this quilt, I’ve been learning about how online classes work. You may be surprised to hear that I don’t know how the classes will look after the editing process until they are each released at the beginning of the month.
This month’s installment contains several lessons, the final being adding the appliqué. In your online lesson this month, I pull out these lovely appliqué flowers connected by stems and talk about how to place them. But wait…what happened to the lesson on making those stems with bias bars? Not everything we taped can be shown and making the stems uses the same technique as we used earlier in lesson 4 making the appliquéd basket handles for the cherry basket. Here, then, is a quick review. If you made the basket handles, you’ll remember that they are easier to make than they look.
I once again use the aluminum bias bars from Celtic Design Company. Making stems with bias bars is a very precise method and you do not have to turn your stems after sewing which is next to impossible with such skinny pieces.
Let’s start by cutting your fabric. Make sure your fabric has been squared up and use the 45-degree line on your ruler to position it diagonally across the fabric. Make your first cut along this diagonal edge. From there, cut bias strips at 1 1/8”.
Take your first strip and fold it WRONG sides together. Machine stitch 1/4” from the raw edge. Trim the seam allowance to a scant 1/8”.
Insert your 1/4” bias bar into the tube of fabric. Remember that you are dealing with bias so handle it gently. Rotate the seam to the center of the bar. Press the seam to the side. Pull out the bar but be careful if it hasn’t cooled down. You are now ready to add these to the appliquéd flowers.
Remember that if appliqué isn’t for you, these blocks still look lovely without it. It is, though, fun to try.
Most of you know that I have been designing fabric for quilters for a lot of years. My first line was introduced in 1981 by a company that shall remain nameless. I did three lines for that company in two years and they decided that quilting had reached it’s peak in popularity and they were getting out while they were still on top. Hah! Little did they know.
RJR Fabrics heard that I would no longer be with that company and asked me to work for them. It has been a great partnership between us and I have been working with them since 1983. RJR is in the Los Angeles area while I am on the east coast. We mostly meet remotely but manage to get together a few times throughout the year.
Recently, I flew to Los Angeles and went to the RJR offices to meet with the new art director, individuals from the Japanese company who work with my screen print fabrics, and those from yet another company who I work with in producing my batik lines. It was a whirlwind day and a half but we got a lot accomplished.
RJR has moved to new offices in the past year so it was great seeing their new place and touring the facilities. When you walk through the door, you are struck by the openness of the offices and color everywhere. Quilts are hanging all around and it is just a colorful, happy environment.
Demi, the head of marketing at RJR, sorting batiks with me
While at RJR, I sorted fabrics from my three batik collections, mixing the groups. RJR plans to make pixie groupings of these (2 ½” strips of 40 fabrics per group) and I am designing quilts that can be made with each group. In fact, I am recoloring our popular Crayon Box quilt using these pixies. Here is a sneak peak of one of the colorways.
Front entryway at RJR Fabrics
Summer Lily and Lone Star Salute in the halls at RJRA small portion of the warehouseWomen making kits for other retailers (we make our own here in the Studio)The shipping departmentFolding fat quarters for bundlesPackaging kits and bundles
In 1974 when I taught my first quilting class, everyone in my class knew how to sew. They grew up sewing, knew how to thread a needle, take a stitch, etc. I grew up sewing my own clothes and making doll clothes…..often making my own patterns, so transferring that to quilting was not difficult.
