Quilting How-To Now you know the history, the types of quilts out there, and the tools involved, you’ve chosen your fabric, and you’re ready to sew your quilt. But how do you actually go about doing it? In this section, we will deal with just that. Making Templates Templates are pieces of plastic or other stiff material, cut into the shapes you need for your piecework. It is important to be accurate when you do this, so that your quilt will turn out to be the right size. For traditional hand-sewing, you will trace your pattern without the ¼” seam allowance. The line made will be the sewing line. Measure ¼” away from the edge of the template, and that is your cutting line. If you are sewing with a machine, then you will include that seam allowance, and the line drawn will be the cutting line. You may also cut your pieces using the “template-free” method. For this, you will mark your fabric with a rotary cutter, at the desired width from selvage line to selvage line on the fabric. Then these strips can be cut down into smaller strips, squares or triangles, and used as your quilt pieces. Always put your markings on the ‘wrong’ side of the fabric, so that they do not show on the finished product. Piecing Blocks By Hand For hand-piecing, you will place two shapes, right sides together, and pin at the corners. Match the stitching lines and place more pins through the middle. Begin sewing from the first corner pin, taking care to ensure that the fabric does not move out of alignment. Backstitch to add strength, and then continue down the stitching lines. Finish at the other corner with another backstitch. Add on the other pieces in this fashion, again being careful that your pieces do not move out of alignment. By Machine Your machine pieces should have been cut with the 1/4th inch seam allowance included. You will use your machine’s presser foot as a seam guide, which is why marking the seam allowance is unnecessary. On most standard sewing machines, the distance from the needle to the edge of the presser foot is 1/4th of an inch. If you are not sure about your machine, measure it to check. As with the hand-piecing, align the edges of the pieces, right sides together. Place the fabric underneath the foot, and line the edges up with the side of the foot. Sew straight down to the other end of the fabric. Take care not to pull or yank on the fabric. It should feed nicely and easily through the machine. Backstitching is unnecessary when machine piecing. Appliqué Appliqué pieces will be attached to background pieces that are oversized. After the appliqués are attached, the background pieces will then be trimmed. The oversized background pieces will allow them to be squared up later, or kept as they are, as applicable. Center the design beneath the background fabric, and trace with a washable marking pencil on the right side of the fabric. Align the appliqué with the markings on the background fabric. You can also use a freezer paper technique. With this technique, you will trace the appliqué designs on the dull size of the freezer paper. Cut shapes out on the marked line. Do not include a seam allowance. Use a hot, dry iron to press the shiny side of the paper down onto the wrong side of the appliqué fabric. Hold for 5 seconds. This will temporarily bond the paper to the fabric. Once cooled, trim fabric 1/4th of an inch away from the paper. Fold and baste as described in the previous method. The fabric may be sewn through the paper, or you may baste it in place with a glue stick designed for fabrics. Quilting Terminology Quilting Terms C to G Quilting Glossary H to P Quilting Terms Q to Z Tools Types Machine Quilts Fabric Guide Caring More Quilting Tips Quilting Machine Benefits Quilt Sandwich Quilt Pattern Tips Large Quilt