Futon

For those of you who don’t know what a t-shirt quilt is, it is literally a quilt made out of t-shirts. It works alongside the same principles as a patchwork quilt design but is different in its own special way.

The basic notion of these quilts is that you use the designs from old t-shirts, right where the printings, designs and slogans are. This is a perfect use for all those unused t-shirts you do not wear anymore and gives them a new way to be useful.

Making one of those quilts is easy and relatively quick:

1. Collect and clean all the t-shirts you would like to use. Make sure they have all been washed and ironed. You do not want to work with soiled or wrinkled materials.
2. Work out how many you wish to use in your design. This is a vital step as it’ll affect each other part of your quilt design.
3. Choose a pattern. Will there be a border between all of the t-shirts? Will you stitch them all together and just add a border round the outside? The choice is yours.
4. Work out what size each t-shirt square needs to be to work with your pattern. Check all of the t-shirts to make sure the parts you want to capture can be contained in these sized squares.
5. Make a block template, ideally with thick card or linoleum – something that’s tough to accidentally cut through.
6. Spread your t-shirt over the block and cut out the design.
7. Organize all of the t-shirt blocks in your preferred pattern.
8. Cut out and arrange your borders and other materials and add them to the t-shirts to ensure that your pattern will work and come out the size you intended it to.
9. If everything has lined up, start to stitch the pattern into rows. Once all of the rows are complete, sew the rows together.

Thats it!

Now there’s no reason to have all those old t-shirts floating around and cluttering up your closet any more!

To get some more excellent tips about the best way to make a patchwork quilt, check out Jane Green’s how to make a patchwork quilt website now!

What Sort Of Stitching Patterns Do I Need?

There are two stitches that people new to stitching will need. These are the straight stitch and zig zag stitch

All machines have a straight stitch, its the most popular and most used stitch by just about everyone. So its considered the default.

Most machines will have a zig zag stitch but be certain to check because there are machines out there that don’t have this. They’re far and few between, but they’re still out there, so just be sure to check the machine.

There are two other stitching styles that are handy to have but are not essential. These are button hole stitch and stretch stitch.

Stretch stitch is good for for anything that needs a little room to manouver round the seam, so its good for a patchwork quilt which use several different materials, but its not required.

Do not be too worried about getting a button hole stitch, a few people love this kind of stitch, but button holes can be done with a zig zag stitch setting.

Any Other Tips?

Check the machine can be reversed or is able sew backwards. This is fairly significant as some older machines don’t do this and its actually convenient when you need to do this.

Always get the seller to show you how to thread the machine. Almost every machine has an alternative way of threading the needle. There’s few things worse than having a new machine to play with and having no clue how to even use it.

If you buy one and forget this step, you may get lucky and find a video that shows you the correct way to do it on YouTube, but this should really only be a back up solution.

If you’re purchasing a second hand machine, remember to check the electric cord for indications of fraying and wear. You do not want to get electrocuted while sewing a quilt!

Keep these tips under consideration and you’re sure to purchase a winner!

To get some more good advice about how to make a patchwork quilt, check out Jane Green’s how to make a patchwork quilt website now!

Cutting fabric squares is an odd thing. Its something that seems easy to do but difficult to master. It can take lots of attempts to get the perfect square.

Well if you’re yet to attain the ideal square, which is vitally important if you are going to make a patchwork quilt, there are two methods to do it.

Make a Template

This is a quick and very simple solution. Get some thick card or vinyl, a pair of scissors and a ruler. Mark out the size of the square you need and cut it out of the card/vinyl.

You may then place this perfect square on top of your material and use your rotary cutter on the outside.

With A Set Ruler

You are going to be able to find some specialized rulers in most craft shops. These look like ‘L ‘ shapes and generally have a 90 degree angle. They should also have measurements down each side.

Simply cut along the inside of the ruler to along each side to the length each side of the square should be. When you have cut out two sides, flip the ruler over the diagonally opposite side and repeat.

There are a couple reasons these techniques are at the very top of my list. Firstly , its quick. While this might not seem like much, if you’re making a quilt with 40 squares and it saves you thirty seconds per square, you just saved 20 minutes on your quilt.

Secondly, these strategies don’t need you to mark out any lines. This is great as there is no chance of unintentionally drawing on any piece of the material and having to throw that section out.

As a bonus, its easy to make perfect triangles as well.

When you have your squares, simply cut your squares diagonally form one corner to the other and you will get perfect triangles every time.

Remember to use a guide or ruler for the cutting so you get a nice straight edge on each side!

To get more great tips about the way to make a patchwork quilt, check out Jane Green’s how to make a patchwork quilt website now!

One of the most appealing and lovely quilts that will adorn any bedroom is a patchwork quilt. Although it may appear the quilt was put together haphazardly, there is really a large amount of care and planning that goes into each one.

So if you’re thinking how to make a patchwork quilt, here’s the things you need to do before you start:

Collect all your potential materials together.

I’ve seen scrappers during the past decide they are going to make a patchwork quilt, grab some material and just start cutting out squares. This is a recipe for disaster. The very first thing you must do is collect all your potential material in one place.

Work out how many squares you can get out of each section of materials.

Its extremely rare that you’ll have scrap materials of all the same sizes. So it is smart to work out how many squares you will have.

The explanation why you do this now is now is so you can determine if you have enough materials to get the pattern you would like. If you don’t, you’re going to have to reconsider your design or get more of the same material.

Cut out your patches.

Once you have your design, you’ll know how many squares you will need and what size they’re going to have to be. Its now ok to begin cutting.

Stack Them into piles

Trust me, this make it so much easier and faster when putting your quilt together. Before I started doing this, I lost countless hours sorting though my materials and other squares and patches for the one or two remaining squares.

Do a ‘dry run ‘

This is a comparatively quick and easy process and makes sure you have enough of each material to finish off the quilt.

For a dry run, you want your squares and a whole pile of pins. Make a line of

This makes sure you do not discover that you are short of material towards the end of the quilt.

Its also a good way to be certain that it’ll fit correctly on any bed or couch the quilt is certain to go on.

After you have finished the above steps, you are ready to assemble your quilt – good luck!

To get some more nice tips about the best way to make a patchwork quilt, check out Jane Green’s how to make a patchwork quilt site now!

One of the most important tools in making a patchwork quilt is a rotary cutter. I recollect how I used to draw lines on fabric, then cut out my pieces with scissors.

I just balk at even the very idea of that now. So where do you start when buying your first rotary cutter?

Well there are many styles of cutters available, all with blades that come in different sizes, different shaped handles and a variety of protective sheaths.

Typically larger blades are used to cut through thicker fabric like flannelette, or a number of fabric layers at one time. Although the more layers of fabric you cut through the less accurate you can become. So it is best when beginning to just start with a few layers to gain confidence.

Blade Sizes

Rotary cutters come in several different sizes which include 18mm, 28mm, 45mm and 60mm in diameter. Smaller blades are great for cutting around curves, small templates, and finer work but you’ll find usually the bigger blades will be more useful.

The 45mm is the most widely used and a good selection for all general fabric cutting needs. You’ll find this size is the one you reach for the most.

New Blades and Sharpening

When you purchase a rotary cutter it’ll routinely include one blade and occasionally a spare. It can be quite costly buying new blades every time they get blunt. What is so great about these blades is that they can be sharpened!

The sharpeners can be found in assorted sizes of blades but will only fit one size blade per sharpener. A blade can be sharpened 6 or more times before it has to get replaced.

The down side is if you’ve more that one size blade you will need to buy a sharpener for each size. Something to think about when buying different size cutters.

If however your blade has a nick out of it, perhaps from dropping it or cutting into your ruler, you will probably not be in a position to sharpen it satisfactorily and it will need to be replaced.

Ensure you buy the right blade for your cutter as the hole shape in the centre of the blade varies according to the brand of cutter. For instance, “Kai” cutters have a round mounting hole with two squares cut out of it on opposite sides, while Olfa blades have a triangular shaped mounting hole.

That is it for this article, keep your eyes peeled for part 2 where we cover handles and maintenance.

Until then, happy quilting!

To get more sound advice about the ideal way to make a patchwork quilt, check out Jane Green’s how to make a patchwork quilt site now!

When most people think of patchwork quilts, they’ve got an idea in their mind of a rustic fancy iron framed bed, with a patchwork quilt spread over the top. Each individual square looks like its a little pocket, stuffed with air that gives off a inviting and warm look.

I have had many people ask ‘how do you make the puffy quilts ‘?

Well its quite simple, you just have to follow 1 or 2 easy steps.

Calculate how many squares you’ll need. Every quilt is different, so you can not just pick a number and work from that.

Measure the bed size that you intend the quilt to go on. Get the size of the mattress and then allow for a minimum of one foot of extra quilt to hang off each side.

For the sake of simple calculation, I am going to say we’ll use 4 inch squares. So if you were making a quilt that was 40 X 40, you’ll need 100 squares. Calculations work this out so the quilt would be 40 inches by 40 inches – but this will really turn out a bit smaller due to seam allowances.

When cutting the back fabric, make sure you cut it a bit larger to account for the pockets. So a 4 inch square would have 4 and 3/4 inch sizes.

Then sew the top squares to the bottom squares around the edges, making sure the extra fabric is in the middle. Also be sure to leave a hole for stuffing.

Stuff each square firmly, though not such a lot that you cannot sew them together. Also take care that you stuff each square equally. Inconsistent stuffing will leave you with a strange, lop sided looking quilt.

Lay the backing fabric on top of the sewn puffs. Stitch the sides together round the edges, leaving room to turn the quilt out. When stitched together, turn the quilt the right side out and sew the opening closed.

And there you have it, your own puff patchwork quilt!

To get more superb advice about how to make a patchwork quilt, check out Jane Green’s how to make a patchwork quilt website now!

Even in this day and age, not everybody uses a PC. It surprises many of these folks to learn that PCs can be quite useful in a number of their preferred activities.

Quilting is no exception to this. There are several ways in which computers can help and assist with making a patchwork quilt.

Sharing Ideas

If you described the pattern of a patchwork quilt to 10 people and asked them to make it, you would have 10 different looking patchwork quilt patterns. If you showed them plan of the pattern on a PC then everyone would know what it’ll look like.

Other stuff like email and PDF’s can allow people to share and send copies of their patterns, pictures of their work and ideas with each other and bigger groups.

Some people use paint and design programs on their computers to explore potential patterns and ideas.

This can help them develop their concepts, make any corrections or enhancements or merely see whether a concept would look good without having to make it first.

They could also use their PC to show their friends or e-mail their designs to other people.

Email isn’t the only way PCs can help share ideas and patterns. There is a whole load of resources available to anyone with an internet connection.

Videos are a quite popular way for quilters to share their knowledge. While images and patterns are good, if you’re struggling with parts of your quilt or wish to know the simple way to do something, its hard to beat a good instructional video.

Websites are another effective way to gather information and help with quilting. Some even offer free patterns and designs for download as well.

Forums are another good palce to discuss quilting with similar-minded people. A fast search will turn up a number of different quilting forums. The best part about forums is that its a great place to ask questions and get help with any quilting issues you possibly have. You’ll find that there are many people willing to respond to your questions and help out!

So as you can see, there are a considerable number of ways in which a PC can actually help you out with your quilting problems and ideas!

To get more good tips about how to make a patchwork quilt, check out Jane Green’s how to make a patchwork quilt website now!