Quilting is an art that creates mesmerizing artistic designs. However, the process is not a cakewalk! If you are a beginner and want to start your first-time quilting, you might feel a bit overwhelmed at the beginning.
But don’t worry, you are not alone. Quilting is not that easy, and that is why I provide some easy and amazing tips for your to help you get the quilting work done better.
Here are 8 easy quilting tips that will help you create a better masterpiece by avoiding undesirable hurdles.
Table of Contents
Beginner Quilting Tip 1: Pеrfоrm a Bleed Test fоr Your Fabrics
The more colorful the quilt is the higher its aesthetic value. However, when trying to make one, you need to make sure that you choose the right fabrics. An important aspect to look for is to ensure that they don’t color bleed when put to wash!
Immerse the cloth material in soapy water and make it remain there for around half-an-hour. Then, observe whether the color of the water remains the same or not. To double-check, you can even press the wet fabric against a paper towel.
If the color of the water changes or the color gets transferred to the paper towel, you must refrain from using that particular material. If its use cannot be avoided, you can use a dye fixative to prevent it from shedding its color.
Beginner Quilting Tip 2: Get More Fabric Than You Require
Calculating the exact amount of cloth required for the quilt is a non-trivial task, especially for a novice, particularly because it needs you to consider many factors like the size of the quilt, design, and thickness desired.
So, it is always good to have more fabric than what is estimated. This helps you better manage your design and sewing pattern without having to worry about its shortage. Further, it will also help you to rework if something messes up!
Having more is never a bad idea as you can freely trim it at the end. Moreover, it is pretty difficult to manage with less cloth wherein you might end up sewing a smaller quilt or the one that is not up to the mark.
Beginner Quilting Tip 3: Start Simple
After all, you wish to have your quilts neat and professional. This does not necessarily compel you to use complex patterns. Simple designs work as efficiently as complicated ones when sewn with care and precision.
It would be a good plan to start your quilting journey with simple patterns, particularly if you are a beginner. This will help you gain a good grip over the process avoiding frustrations that might adversely affect your confidence!
You can gradually migrate towards quilting the intricate designs once you complete the simple ones. This will imbibe a strong foundation on quilting in you upon which you can easily build a robust monument of your desire!
Beginner Quilting Tip 4: Choose Colors Wisely
Colorful quilts earn increased attention from everyone. However, all not all colors blend well! A quilt with mismatched colors is never appreciated, no matter how well it has been sewn or designed.
As a result, you should choose your colors carefully, making sure they make an attractive finished product. One possible way to accomplish this is to use a color wheel that helps you find the hues that blend the best.
Nevertheless, while choosing the colors, do pay attention to its place of deployment. For instance, if you wish to use the quilt for babies, then cooler colors would be a better choice over the warmer ones.
Beginner Quilting Tip 5: Say Yes to a Quilting Machine
Quilting is a greatly aided process when you have enough workspace, dedicated presser foot, in-built quilt designs, drop feeding mechanism, free-motion support, and automatic cloth feeding mechanism.
These facilities form a part of quilting machines and are not available in most normal sewing equipment. Further, the former machines come with many other accessories that aim at making your quilting experience a splendid one.
Thus, although you can quilt with the regular machines that support free-motion and come with a walking or quilting foot, it is better to have a dedicated quilting machine, especially at the initial stages.
Beginner Quilting Tip 6: Finger Safety
You must always ensure the safety of your fingers while you quilt in the machine. The most common type of injury is to get the finger stabbed by the needle. Mind it! It can potentially be a severe injury.
To avoid this, you should always maintain your fingers at an optimal distance from the needle. Concentrate on your quilting and avoid getting distracted. Refrain from hurrying up and avoid quilting when your body pleads you to rest!
However, at times, your fabric might demand extra proximity towards the needle to render quality stitches and a superior finish. In these cases, you can use rubber fingertips to cover your first and index fingers while feeding the cloth under it.
Beginner Quilting Tip 7: Secure Stitches
While quilting, you need to make sure that your stitches remain intact while not getting unraveled. For this, you need to secure your quilting stitches, especially at the beginning and the ends of the seams.
Secured stitches indicate your professionalism and impart longevity to the finished quilt. One method is to use micro stitching. You can use this technique by sewing the stitches with relatively smaller lengths for a shorter distance at the start and the end.
Besides, you can even exploit the quilting machines’ built-in features like lock stitch, reverse stitch, or backstitch. These techniques save a lot of time and assure quick delivery of the finished product.
Beginner Quilting Tip 8: Marking and Cutting up the Fabric
To design a well-looking masterpiece, you need to follow your designs precisely. The process is greatly eased if you mark your designs before cutting. Although it sounds simple, this step is critical as it directly affects the quilt appearance!
While marking on the fabric, you need to use good quality markers available in the market. This is because low-quality markers can leave their mark on the cloth and bloat after washing, affecting the quilt’s look.
Likewise, even while cutting, you need to use sharp scissors to avoid jitters. Trimming along the edges needs extra care, especially when dealing with sensitive fabrics like knits and stretchy materials.
FAQ:
1.What is the difference between patchwork and quilting?
Patchwork refers to the method of sewing multiple cloth pieces together to form a single fabric, while in quilting, multiple layers of cloth are sewn together to obtain a much thicker material.
Patchwork typically involves preparing individual small pieces that are joined at regular intervals to result in the final deliverable. However, in quilting, 2 or more layers of the fabrics are stitched together in seams.
2.Should I stitch in the ditch before quilting?
Although not mandatory, stitch in the ditch is preferable as it adds stability, ensures straight seams, prevents sliding, adds durability, and increases the quilt’s aesthetic value.
Stitch in the ditch assures that you easily sew along the straight lines, even when the markings are absent. It holds the multiple layers of the fabric together, preventing their wear and tear for a long duration. Besides, it also helps you elevate the beauty of your quilt!
3.What is the difference between a quilting foot and a walking foot?
Although quilting and walking foot are used interchangeably, there are subtle differences between cost, produced effect, applicability, type of feed, size, and appearance.
Quilting foot supports free-motion of the fabric, unlike walking foot that supports only straight-line stitching. The former is larger-in-size and more economical than the latter.
Thus the quilting foot can create beautiful patterns while at quilting and embroidery, unlike the walking foot that holds the cloth layers together, ensuring even feed.