Sister's Choice Quilts

How I Do Machine Applique

First of all, let me put it right out there that I am not an expert on this subject by any means.  I am learning as I go, and I am loving how fun machine applique is.   Several of you have emailed me to ask what technique I use, so I thought I would do a post on my methods.

There are dozens of ways to do machine applique, all which give good results.  This is just the way I happen to do it and so far so good as far as I am concerned.

A product that is so essential, I doubt I'd get good results without, is Seam A Seam 2.  It comes in sheets, but I find it more economical to buy it by the roll.

It comes with helpful instructions in three languages, telling you how to use it.  A picture is worth a thousand words, so here goes.

Basically, the stuff is a fusible interfacing that has paper on two sides.  One side of the paper comes off without hardly trying.  I am lifting that layer up in the photo above.  The layer on the bottom is the sticky iron on interfacing and another more secure layer of paper.

You want to trace your applique design *on the paper that is adhering most securely*.  You can also use a plastic template if you prefer.  Trace the design on the template, cut it out and trace around it on the top of the Seam A Seam 2.

I am using a Sharpie pen to trace my design.  The thing about applique is (and you will realize this at some point once you are into it), sometimes you need to reverse the design.  I don't know what to tell you about this, except to keep your wits about you.  If you want your kitty cat to be looking to the right, you may have to reverse the design in order to achieve that.  Nothing worse that cutting out your shape, ironing it onto your fabric, and then realizing Kitty is looking in the opposite direction.  Sometimes your pattern gives you a clue, but often not.  These simple star shapes don't have that issue since the design in the same no matter if it is reversed or not.

NOTE:  As some readers have commented, if your applique piece is large (such as my pumpkins), you may want to cut out the center of your Steam A Seam 2 shape to eliminate extra stiffness.  For the tiny shapes I don't think it matters so much.

Cut your paper pattern out, leaving a rough seam allowance all around the edges.

So, then remove that piece of paper that is practically falling off anyway, and iron the side that is now exposed to the WRONG side of your fabric.  This may seem obvious, but if you are a beginner, then God bless you, you might do it wrong the first time.  I did.  Use a pressing cloth.  The fusible stuff is sticky and will really mess up your iron.

Now you are ready to cut out your shape, just like playing paper dolls.

Cut on the lines.

Now you are ready to peel off that second layer of paper that wants to stick better.  It comes off pretty easily but you might need to use your fingernail or the point of your seam ripper to get it started.  What you now have on the wrong side of your applique shape is a sticky surface. 

Position your applique piece on the right side of your background.

Iron it down.  I am not using a pressing cloth in this picture in order for you to see things clearly.  But, when you iron your piece down *use a pressing cloth*.  Promise me. 

Now your little shape is all ready to applique in place.  You are going to use a blanket stitch and sew right over those raw edges, which are all stablilized by the Seam A Seam 2.  It will be a nice stiff surface to sew on.

I match my thread (top and bobbin) to the piece being appliqued.  I use an Open Toe applique foot.  In my case, a  #20 for my Bernina.  The thing about the open toe foot is that you can see just where the needle is going to go down, and therefore fudge it around a bit to get it in exactly the right spot. 

Tools, friends.  Use the right tool for the job and you will be a happy camper.

I set my machine to the Blanket Stitch, which on my Bernina is #25.  Your machine may have a different number, but see the little picture?  It is like a backwards comb.  That is what you want.  The needle goes down on the very outside edge of the applique piece for a couple of stitches, then takes a little bite into the body of the piece.  Isn't it neat and tidy?

Here is a finished star.  Some folks have asked if the star points are tricky and they really aren't.  With that open toe foot, you can totally see where you are, and going slowly, position your needle just right every time. 

Oh, that is another tip.  Go slowly.  And if you are working with a really teensy piece, you may want to shorten (make smaller) your stitch length.

I have not been doing this long, but I tell you, when I look at what I have accomplished, I am really satisfied!  I think applique adds a fabulous touch to a quilt.  If you haven't tried it, do give it a chance.  It is so fun.

 

 

 

Hill Country Baskets Blocks and a Recommendation

I have made some progress on my Hill Country Baskets blocks.  Aren't they sweet?  As I make them I am just tossing them up on the design wall, but when they are set into the quilt top properly, there will be a lattice separating the blocks.

For this block, you need to make four half square triangles for each one.  The method I am using is the Star Singles papers.

I've blogged about these before, and think that they are a great product. In the Paula Barnes class I took, I picked up a few tips to make using them even better.

You put your two fabrics right sides together and pin.  One pin is plenty.  Don't go crazy.  Sew on the dotted lines, and cut on the solid ones.

Tip #1.  Shorten up your stitch length.  Really shorten it.  This makes tearing off the paper a breeze and not the horrible chore it can be when you use a normal stitch length.

After stitching, trim the sides off first.  In the photo above, I have trimmed away three of the four sides.

Tip #2.  Not a biggie, but do you see that the horizontal and vertical cutting lines are not the same?  One is totally solid and the other is broken due to the printing on the paper?  I am pointing to the broken line.  After trimming the sides off, cut on that dotted line first, as it easier to keep your ruler straight when you have the entire square to look at.

Tip #3--best one ever.  I love shortcuts and here is a good one.  Stack those squares up with the cutting line going down the middle.  You can stagger the squares as I did in the picture, or just stack 'em up evenly.  Just make sure the cutting line is going down the middle, and cut ONCE instead of four times.

Rip off those papers, open your half square triangles, press and trim.  Eight perfect little half square triangles, enough for two of my Hill Country Baskets blocks.

 

My Ironing Board

Do you know how hard it is to take a picture of your ironing board?  Good grief, I never had such a struggle.  It is surprisingly difficult to make those things look good.  You have to get way back to get the whole thing in the photo and then all sorts of other ugly things you don't particularly want to share sneak into the picture.

I found an awesome tutorial on how to make an ironing board cover.  Eva over at Sew Much Good (is that not the best blog name ever?) made one, and has featured the clearest instructions on how you can make one too.  It took no time at all, and I am so pleased with how I transformed my grody looking ironing board into something much nicer.  I highly recommend that you check it out. The best thing is, with two yards of fabric, you can make TWO ironing board covers, one for you and one for your best friend!

Here is one photo, not the best, but it is what it is.  I was moving this darn ironing board all over the room trying to get good lighting.  Excuse the mess of wires under the sewing table.  I still have not figured out how to deal with them.

The cover has a simple casing with 1/4 inch elastic passed through it to make it fit nice and snug.  One great feature is how simple it is going to be to get it off and on again if I want to wash it.  Honestly, this was so darn easy to make, and I did not need to even leave my house to buy anything.  The fabric was left over from a quilt I made years ago and the elastic was on hand in a drawer of sewing notions.  That's all you need.  You know you have two yards of fabric and a package of elastic somewhere, don't you?  Go on, find them, check out Eva's tutorial, and make a cute new ironing board cover!

 

 

 

Last Word on Spray Basting

Didn't I get some interesting comments on spray basting?  I thought so too!  I was particularly interested in Sandy Brown's comment that referred to a video that Patsy Thompson did concerning how she spray bastes her quilts on her design wall.

http://www.patsythompsondesigns.com/free-video/  Check out this link for a video tutorial that is enormously informative!  I am definitely going to try this method, as it surely beats groveling around on my hands and knees.  Patsy also favors the 505 brand of spray baste.

The only caveat I would add, is to be sure that you have really good ventilation if you spray baste inside.  That adhesive spray is not at all good for you if you breathe any quantity of it in.

Patsy is known for her video tutorials on machine quilting.  She is truly a master.  If you check out her website, there are numerous instructional tutorials on that subject. 

Luckily I came upon her videos before I launched into quilting my T is for Thelma Schnibble!

Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts-Day Three

Welcome to Day Three of the blog hop to launch Monique Dillard's new book "Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts".  Today you have TWO sites to visit to see amazing quilts made from patterns in this book, as well as two chances to win the book!  So, without delay, you must go visit Denise at Quilter's Window, and Monique herself at Open Gate Quilts.

I promised to show you a tricky bit in my block construction and give a little tip to make things come out right nearly every time.

See those intersections where the red half square triangles meet?  It is REAL easy to have those be askew.  Much easier to have them be wonky than nicely lined up.  And that kind of wonkiness makes me seriously crazy.

So, what's the trick to making them line up perfectly?  Besides paying attention to where you are stitching I mean?

U-shaped pins.  If you haven't tried these, you must give them a chance. 

Here's how they work.  A picture is worth a thousand words.

Snuggle up your seam intersections so they abut nice and tight.  If you have sewn your HSTs with a proper scant quarter inch seam and pressed your seam allowances in opposite directions, this should happen without a struggle.  Stick your U-pin in place so that the tines hold down each seam allowance.  When you stitch the seam, go slowly (so you don't break your needle stitching over the pin) and try to get the needle to come down right in that "sweet spot" where the stitching lines form an X where they meet.

You will be amazed at how perfectly aligned your finished results will be.  Now, you can certainly achieve this with careful stitching and regular straight pins, but I find the U-pins to be far more consistent.  Besides, those pesky seam allowances are held down nice and secure, so there isn't any of that nasty folding up and mis-stitching underneath.  Don't you just hate that?  When you turn your piece over and the back side shows you a big mess of folded over seam allowances and you have to un-sew and do it again?  Those days are over with U-pins.

 

Make a Thread Catcher in Less Than 30 Minutes

Lisa Bongean's Thread Catcher

This is Lisa Bongean's triangular thread catcher.  If you don't recognize her name, Lisa is the force behind Primitive Gatherings, one of the best quilt shops in the country.  She also has a blog, so be sure to check it out.

So, last week, I was blog hopping around, and saw that Paulette of Sweet P Quilting and Creations had made one of these little things, and I thought it was adorable.  In my mind, I was thinking "what a great gift this would make".  Everyone needs a little container to hold their snipped threads so they don't end up as dust bunnies on the floor.  This takes up no space on your sewing table, and folds flat as a pancake if you want to keep it in your On The Go sewing kit.

I started googling around to see if I could find a tutorial on how to make these, and stumbled upon Lisa's.  If you click on this link, you can download the pdf instructions for yourself!  Paulette used the instructions found on Needling Things to make hers.

All you need to get started is a couple of layer cake squares (or two ten inch squares of coordinating fabrics), some fusible interfacing (I used Pellon), and three cute buttons.  Here is a photo journey of my experience in making one.

I printed out the instructions from Lisa's pdf, which includes a pattern for the triangles.  The fabric I used was two layer cake squares of a recent Kansas Troubles collection.  Lisa's version has rounded corners.  I chose to make mine pointy.

Ironed on my fusible interfacing.

Make a little sandwich with the two triangles RIGHT sides together.  Use the pattern to mark with pins the places for stitching and not stitching.

Sew around the triangle sandwich, leaving a space between your pins to turn it inside out.

Snip off the little points at the triangle tips.  Turn piece inside out, poke out the triangle tips so they are sharp, and press.

Nice.  You could top stitch all around the triangle at this point, which I think I will do next time.

Mark in 2 1/2" from each triangle tip and mark with a pin.

Fold the piece over, and pin two opposing ends of the triangle together at that 2 1/2" mark.  You are going to stitch from the fold on the left to the pin.

Do this on all three sides of the triangle.  In the photo below, I have done two of the three sides, and the third is pinned, ready to be stitched.  I used a light colored thread so you could see it.  In real life, I would try to match the outside fabric so the stitching would be less obvious.

Here's my last side to be stitched.

Woohoo, almost done.  In the photo above, I am pressing down the triangle points, but I am not sure it is strictly necessary.

I used perle cotton thread to attach these cute little "findings" to each side, for the purpose of decoration as well as securing the triangle flaps down.  Just stick the needle down and up again and tie a knot to secure.  It's ok if the little snipped tie ends show.  In my photos the opening looks small, but trust  me, it is plenty big enough for dropping your little threads and fabric snips into.

Can't you just see making a gazillion of these for all the girls in your sewing group, or for goodies to give out at a retreat?

Oh, and they fold flat too, for travelling:

Photo from Needling Things

Check out the tutorial at Needling Things as well.  I see she topstitched her edges for a nice finished look.  Next time...

Thank you so much to Paulette who showed this on her blog and gave me the idea to look for a pattern!

 

 

 

 

Tie Offs Tutorial

Good morning.  I got a lot of queries about tie offs yesterday when I posted about finishing up my Another Year of Schnibbles project.  What are they?  What did I mean, that I needed to do them? 

Here's the deal.  When you do machine quilting, you end up with long threads at the beginning and end of your stitching lines.  You do not want to just clip the dangling threads off flush to the fabric, because over time, your stitching will come out.  Maybe not all the way out, but enough to spoil the look of your quilting design.  So, a secure way to get rid of the long threads  and to secure your stitching is to do "tie offs".

I am by no means an expert on this subject.  I have not been machine quilting very long, and I am not particularly skilled at it.  However, someone who is an expert (Marie at Prairie Queens) showed me her method, and this is how I do tie offs.  I did what I could to take decent photos of the process, but it is tricky to do these close up shots!  Hope you can get the idea.

So, pretend this is the back of your quilting project:

See those arrows pointing to two of the dangling threads?  If you lightly tug on the thread, you should be able to pull through a little loop of thread that is the corresponding top thread that is dangling away on the top side of your project.

See how if you lightly pull on it, the loop starts to appear?  You just need to use a pin or your stiletto or something like that to tease that top thread the rest of the way through to the bottom.

In the photo above you can clearly see that the top thread has been pulled through to the bottom side of the quilt.  Now you have two threads dangling on the bottom side of your quilt!

So, now you must tie off those threads using a square knot.  Don't know how to tie a square knot?  Google it, or ask a Cub Scout.

Not a great image, but trust me, what you see there is me in the process of tying a square knot.

So, now you have two dangling threads tied in a square knot.  Think you can snip those tails of thread off and be done?  Oh no. We are not finished.  We must make that knot disappear.

Get out your needle threader (or you can get an easy threading needle that is slotted at the eye and you can just pull the threads through).

Crummy picture, but the two ends of the thread are through the needle threader, and soon will be through the eye of the needle.  We are going to bury that knot and the threads.

Stick the needle right into the last hole made by your sewing machine needle and poke it through an inch or so through the middle of your quilt sandwich.

Pull the two  threads taut, listen for the little sound of "pop" as the knot gets pulled through, and snip off the end of the threads.

You have just eliminated all evidence of your dangling threads and the little knot too.

And just so you know, if you want to, you can pull these threads through and do this same process on the topside of your quilt.  It does not have to be done on the back side.  The tie offs are completely invisible, so you can do it either side of the quilt.

Hope this was helpful, and not too boring.  But really, tie offs are tedious.... Seriously?  The seventh level of Hell?  That would be having to do tie offs through all of eternity.  You know those nightmare dreams you have when you are sick, where you do some repetitive thing endlessly?  Yup, that would be tie offs.  Sorry, that's just me.  If you love tie offs, God bless you.

 

 

Getting Precise Seam Abutments

 
Here are my block units for Rummy (from Monique Dillard's new book Fat Quarter Winners), all laid out ready to stitch.  One thing that you will need to concern yourself with if you make this block, is getting those seam abutments lined up perfectly.  This can be an issue that drives quilters nuts, but I have a couple of tips that may help.

 
See where my ripper is pointing?  These are the points that are going to go wrong on you, if anything is.  Because of the strong light/dark contrast of my fabrics, if these seams are not perfectly lined up, it will show up like a sore thumb.  Seriously, if the seams are off by a thread, it will show and look uneven and make you cry.

So.  Take a deep breath.  Line up your block units and have a calm look. Put the two units together, and place a pin *precisely* where the two seams meet.  Put your pin straight in.

 

Turn the pieces over and look at the back side.  The pin should be coming out in exactly the corresponding point--right on the seam line and at the intersection where the two seams meet.

 
Can you see that?  Look close.  If the pin doesn't come out at exactly the point where the seam is, jimmy it around until it does.  There is only ONE sweet spot, and you need to find it.  This is SO important.

 
See where my pin is?  See how the sewing machine needle is coming down exactly in that same hole that the pin is making?  That is what you need to do.  Yes, it is fiddly, but you will be so happy that the seams abut perfectly and you don't have to do any ripping, you will thank me for this persnickettiness. 

 
Ideally, you do not want this seam to be off by a single thread, or you will see it and be unhappy.  It is an easy thing to get right, but you have got to pin.

 
Here is a photo of the whole stitching line, with my pins in place.  See those U shaped pins?  I love them for those places where seam allowances come together.  The U shape holds the seam allowances in place on both sides of the seam, so you don't get any of that fold over nonsense.  I want my seams to lie nice and flat, with no unruly flop over.   Really, is that a pet peeve of yours too?  I just hate it when my seams get sewn in the wrong direction.  These pins do the trick! 

For another look at how to get your seam allowances to behave, check out Lisa's blog post last week.  She presses her seams open (another technique entirely).  Go have a look. You will not ever have seen a more beautiful block in your life.  And it is the BACK SIDE of her block.  She is amazing, truly.

I hope these little tips were helpful to you.  I am a believer in pinning, as you may have guessed.  I admire folks who don't seem to need to do it, but pins are my little fail safe devices!  I think I may sound like a broken record to my daughter Sara, as I am always nagging her to pin more.  Pin or don't pin, as is your pleasure.  However, if I couldn't pin, I would be an unhappy camper!  My little crutches.

 

 

Eventide Tuesday--Let's Make Hour Glass Blocks

Our Eventide quilts require 42 Ohio Star blocks, and in each Ohio Star block, there are four "Hour Glass" units.  I have a couple of tips to share with you that might help make your hour glass units turn out nice and sharp.

Each hour glass unit is comprised of three fabrics:  two dark squares, one light square, and one "something else" square.  Four squares total.  The "something else" fabric can be just about anything you choose, it just needs to stand out from the other two fabrics and your center square.

Take your two dark fabrics and lay them right side up.  Place your light fabric right side down on top of one of the dark squares.  Place the "something else" fabric right side down on the other one.

Draw a line diagonally through the center of each of the two fabric combos.

Stitch on either side of your drawn line.  You've done this a million times when making half square triangles.

Cut those squares in half along the drawn line.

Press open, towards the dark fabric.  You now have four half square triangles, two with a dark/light combo and two with a dark/"something else" combo.

Combine a dark/light half square triangle with a dark/"something else" half square triangle.  Place right sides together.  You will have two of these sets.

Draw a line diagonally through the center of each top unit, and place a pin at the place where the seams abut.  Wiggle the fabrics together a bit, and you will feel with your fingers just how the seams meet up against each other.  Check your pin placement on the back side just to be sure you got it right.

Trust me, this is important.  If this seam doesn't line up right, your hour glass unit is going to be "off" and look funny and bother you throughout the rest of time.

Again, sew on either side of your drawn line, then cut apart on the drawn line.

Ta Da!  Like magic, you have four perfect little hour glass units.  See how the points all come together perfectly sharp at the center?  That is what that little pinning step achieves for you.  Do not skip it.

Trim off your little dog ears.  (I really dislike that term, are those bits ever called anything else?)

Lay out the other components of the Ohio Star block, and get ready to sew them together.  You will need the four hour glass units you just made, four light corner squares and a center square.  Now we are basically just sewing a simple Nine Patch together.  I sew my block together in three horizontal rows, top, middle and bottom. 

When I connect my three block rows together, I like to use U shaped pins to keep my seams lined up.  Pinning is good.  Sew your rows together and your block is done.

Now, just do this 41 more times, and you will be good to go.  lol  Seriously, it's fun.

 

 

 

Tools of the Trade

Thanks to all of you who gave me such great suggestions for making the paper piecing of Half Square Triangle units easier.  I have tried shortening my stitch length and that made a big difference.  Now I need some larger needles!  I will try out some of the other ideas for ripping the paper off and see how I do.

Here is a little tip I can can pass along in return.  I love my Precision Trimmer ruler.  I use it for my non paper pieced half square triangles.

 
You just align your block with the diagonal seam on the diagonal line, and the edges on the solid line and trim away.  Perfect HSTs every time.

If your block units are accurate, your blocks will go together like a dream!

Here is a picture of the ruler.  I know it looks upside down, but this is the orientation for the way I use it.  See the diagonal lines?  See the solid lines and the measurement notations?

 

This is how you use it when making Hour Glass units.

 
The diagonal markings have a little circle that you line up exactly dead center, where all your points come together.  In an ideal world, the dotted diagonal lines also will line up with your seam lines.

Trim the right side and the top, move your block around and reposition the ruler to trim the other two sides.

 
Perfect Hour Glass block!  Love that ruler.  If you don't have one, well, you should!

Have a lovely day everyone!