Beginner's Guide to Quilting
Starting a quilt can seem like a daunting prospect when you are beginner, which pattern? What fabric? the questions seem endless. So we at quilters are here to lend a helping hand, this guide is designed to help you through your first foray into quilting and to give you the confidence to not make it your last.
Beginners Kit
Before you start quilting you will need to invest in some equipment, a good pair of fabric scissors, a pair over 5 inches will make cutting larger shapes easier to control. Fabric scissors are an essential item ordinary scissors will not be sharp enough to cut through the material cleanly. In order to cut your straight lines you will need either pens or chalk to mark your fabric, a light coloured and a dark coloured one would be ideal so no matter the colour of your fabric you can clearly see where you are cutting. It would be advisable to use non permanent markers so that if mistakes are made you can easily wash the marks out. When you first start quilting templates are a must have item they will give you confidence and will give you a uniform size each time.
A good supply of pins is another essential item to keep your beautifully cut pieces of fabric in place for when you start to sew. Although not an essential item a pin cushion is a good investment because you can just put your pins in as you go along and you wont run the risk of stabbing your finger when you go to pick them up later.
If you are planning on sewing your quilt on a sewing machine then it goes without saying that a sewing machine would be an important piece of kit to have. Any style would be suitable for basic quilting, if you are looking to invest then a Pfaff quilters sewing machine would be ideal for the long term. Other good sewing machine companies include Singer, Brother and Bernina.
If you are stitching by hand then you need some good quality quilting needles, these are different to normal needles because they are stronger and do not have such a sharp point to reduce injury to the quilter. With this in mind a thimble is always a good idea to minimise any injuries.
Picking Your Fabrics
Matching your fabric might seem like a complicated task but with the help of Quilter’s cloth there is no need to panic! Not only does the site have a wide range of individual fabrics for you to choose from we also have a comprehensive range of fabric packs from floral through to batik to get you started on your way. They have been specially compiled with complementary materials for you to star making your quilt, with so many of the fabrics available individually so you can increase the amount you need by however many you would like, or add in some plain colours to balance out the pattern.
We are also on hand to help if you are choosing individual fabrics, when you find one you like we recommend several fabrics that will compliment the one you have chosen. What could be easier! And of course if you are a little more confident you can pick out the patterns and colours you would like to see together from our extensive range.
Choosing a Pattern
As a beginner quilter it is best to pick a simple pattern and repeat it in blocks or find a beginners pattern that is designed to create an entire quilt. Each block should be a simple pattern that you can master without feeling daunted, you don’t want to put yourself off by making things too complicated at the beginning.
The To Georgia Love Mummy quilt pattern is an ideal pattern for beginners because it is simple yet effective. The long strips of fabric are easy to sew together and using a fabric pack you can find colours that compliment each other and that are easy to use to create a beautiful pattern.
With the use of templates you can create some traditional blocks much more easily than you would think why not try one of the many books with templates available that will provide you with pattern blocks and templates to create the designs. The books on Quilter's Cloth are great items for helping you on your way with your quilting skills.
Some people like to wash their fabric before they start cutting it, doing this will mean that any stretching or shrinking that would occur during that first wash is done so before the quilt is created and not after when it could alter the shape of the overall quilt. It is also important to iron the material before you start cutting so that you don’t have creases that could stretch when you start sewing.
Hand or Machine
Once you have chosen and cut your pieces of fabric then you need to decide whether you are going to stitch your quilt by hand or with the use of a machine. Either style will get the job done but stitching by machine will be a quicker process and will allow for greater accuracy. It is easier to have control over the stitches and the straightness of the lines and therefore can make first time quilting a little less daunting.
If you decide to hand stitch this will have the same overall effect but will require a little more patience but as this will be a first quilt taking time to enjoy the process could be a bonus.
After you have sewn your seams iron them to either the right or the left side, you don't want to iron the seams flat because it can weaken the seams and make them come apart.
Wadding and Backing
Once you have sewn your top layer you will need to turn your attentions to your wadding, there is an extensive range of wadding available. You can choose from a range of natural fibres which should be washed before you start quilting because they can shrink which will alter the appearance of the quilt.
If you choose man made or blended wadding it will not need to be washed because there will be no or minimal shrinking.
One you have chosen your wadding you will then need to attach the 3 layers together with your quilting stitches this can be done in straight lines around the lines of your blocks or it can be done in more intricate patterns. The more complex the pattern the harder the quilting will be and like choosing a pattern for your top layer when you start out it is best to pick something that can be easily achieved. You can move onto more complex patterns when you have gained greater confidence and skill. At the first stage of quilting you should make things as easy as possible for yourself so that you can feel a sense of accomplishment and move onto more complex designs when you are ready.
If you are stitching by hand then it would be advisable to invest in a quilting frame to make things easier. The frame keeps the material in place and means that you can clearly see where you are stitching and where the stitching is progressing to.
If you are stitching using a sewing machine you will need to tack the layers together before you start to make sure that the layers will be in the correct place as you progress through the stitches.
Finishing your Handiwork
Now that you have your quilt you will need to sew on the binding round the edge to seal the edges. In order to do this you need to cut a strip of fabric the length of the quilts edges, trim of any excess threads and iron the binding flat. The iron the binding in half and iron the seam allowance flat in preparation for adding the binding to the edges of the quilt. Sew the binding onto the quilt and stand back and marvel at your achievement.