I've been looking for a comprehensive book on t-shirt quilts. I've made many quilts but never one from t-shirts and was looking for tips about using jersey knit fabric and interfacing. This book left a lot to be desired. It was really unhelpful because the author assumes we know a lot more about cutting, design, and construction and doesn't go into a lot of detail or give much description (which includes pictures-there are hardly any). I like studying books and patterns rather than YouTube videos, but honestly, those videos were way more helpful. I do like that the author teaches how to incorporate different fabrics to make a "Cinderella" t-shirt quilt rather than just a bunch of squares sewn together.
Though not the most intricate, this quilt means more to me than any other I've ever made. Technically it is my first quilt ever. I don't know exactly how old I was when I started it, but it was right around the time I began to learn how to sew on a machine. I can't give credit to any one seamstress in my life (my mom, grandmother, or aunt) for teaching me, but I learned everything I know from the three of them.
I made this quilt top during the long summer days I spent at my grandmother's house. She gave me a stack of Christmas fabric scraps that were hers, my aunt's, and my great aunt's left over from their own Christmas projects. I cut big 12" x 12" squares out of my favorites and laid them all out on the floor, deciding how to arrange them. I remember being concerned that the reds didn't touch other reds and the whites didn't touch other whites. I think I did pretty well except in one row! I also remember being concerned that the blue fabrics didn't match my color scheme but they were my absolute favorite, so I had to incorporate them somehow!
A few years ago my grandmother found the quilt top in her back bedroom. We were both overwhelmed with nostalgia, thinking back to my first days on a machine and how I pored over quilting books. It was also fun to see my beginnings compared to how hooked I am now! She gave the top to me and I took it home with the full intentions of finishing it soon. I bought the large print poinsettia fabric for the back (her favorite) and the batting. A few years and about five quilts later, I decided to stop letting it sit there and just get it done. I found the cutest candy cane fabric, perfect for the binding. Since binding is my favorite part of the process, I think that was the real motivation to finish.
Through pressing and pin basting the quilt, I realized how very little I cared about seam allowance when I was young, and how very important it really is to me now! I had to take out a lot of seams or reinforce them by hand. This was my first time pin basting, and I can't say that I hate it...but I really love fusible batting most. I did a simple diamond quilting pattern all over (also one of my favorites). One of these days I'll get fancier, but I'm not quite ready for more detailed designs just yet.
This quilt is also an odd size, but I decided not to add another row in order to maintain the charm of the old days and keep it exactly how I originally made it. I snipped all the threads, washed it, and gave it to my grandmother this weekend. She immediately recognized the fabrics and was so happy to see them again after all this time - a finished quilt! I couldn't be more happy with it. This is what quilting is all about to me. Making meaningful gifts for the people you love that they'll cherish forever.
This quilt is, without a doubt, my greatest accomplishment thus far. Every quilt has a story, so I'll share it here. I fell in love with Urban Cowgirl by Moda many months ago, and bought a layer cake when it went on sale this summer fromFort Worth Fabric Studio, my favorite online fabric shop. My original intention was to make a quilt for myself because this fabric speaks to my country girl side. I wanted something I could take to picnics or cuddle up with in the winter. My house has a ranch feel to it, so the fabric worked perfectly.
A few weeks ago, I realized I was bored with watching TV, uninterested in books at the moment (weird, I know!), and needed something to do. That's when I remembered the stack of awesomeness I had stored up! I immediately started researching quilt patterns that would work well for a layer cake. (I've never used pre-cut fabric before - LOVE it!) I love big, central star patterns and decided on a Carpenter's Star design and got to cutting! Half-square triangles were so easy to work with and all the measuring and math were already done for me. Couldn't have gone any smoother. For the background fabric, I used a sheet that tore during our last garage sale. I was frowned upon by an older quilter that I know for not buying new fabric, but after sulking on my way home, I decided to forget her - quilts were originally made out of leftover clothing and sheets anyway. Nothing wrong with it at all. I'm proud to be thrifty :)
When I quilt, I have the TV on for background noise, but my mind is far from whatever show is on. I kept thinking about my friends' upcoming wedding. Their shower was at the end of the week and I'd need to go shopping at the places they were registered. The more I kept looking at the fabric, thinking of them and their dynamic as a couple, the more I came to realize...I could give this to them as a wedding present. They love the country. The fabric spoke of them as much as it did of me. And who wouldn't love a quilt as a wedding gift? It had to be done.
Unfortunately, this gave me quite a deadline to reach. I still had to find fabric for the back and the binding, as well as get batting. So I started shopping online again, but knew I needed the fabric the next day if I was going to reach my goal. I went straight to Cabbage Rose Quilting and asked for help! The woman took me straight to the few bolts they had left of Urban Cowgirl. It wasn't my first choice, but I had to settle on Pony Ride Grass Stain for the back and find a coordinating fabric of a different line for the binding.
I also used fusible batting for the first time. It's magic! I've always heard bad things about it, but decided to give it a try because the #1 thing I hate about quilting is trying to keep all three layers together. It's next to impossible for me. But I finished the top, sandwiched the quilt, and outlined all of the diamonds easily and quickly. I knew I wasn't going to be able to finish the rest of my idea by the shower, so I had to bind the quilt, give it, and take it back home! I felt terrible, but the couple really loved it and couldn't see how I wasn't finished. But you will soon! (And yes, I'm aware that I was working out of order, but I had no choice! Quilting after binding turned out fine in the end.)
I had quite a task before me. I decided to hand quilt a range of different patterns on the squares, triangles, and corners. I have such a great respect for hand quilters. I don't think I'll ever do it again myself! (Though I do really enjoy the look of hand quilting.) I worked every evening, and sometimes all day on it and finished in about a week and a half. Here's a close-up of the designs.
Ugh I don't want to give it away! But at the same time, I really, really do. I'm excited about the wedding this weekend and can't wait to see this in their house this winter!
Wow, it's been a while! A lot has happened over the summer that I'm sure I will get to at some point. But for now I'd like to share a new venture of mine that I'm very excited about. I'm branching out from my sock monkeys to sock owls. Here's my first and only so far!
This little guy is for my sister's first classroom, fully decorated in owls and orange. They're so much easier to make than monkeys! I'm considering sharing a tutorial soon. Meanwhile, I'm sure they'll be popping up on my Etsy site!
Also, I've finished my R quilt! Pictures of the end result to come soon. I'm extremely pleased - thank God!
One of the many joys I find in long, hot summer days is getting carried away in a new book. Since I've finally graduated, I have loads of free time and absolutely no money. This is when my library card becomes my best friend. Reading and writing are one of my passions, and I'm always encouraging people to read. The leading article in Shelf Awareness this morning is titled: "The Real Competition: NOT Reading." Read more about this argument here. I couldn't agree more. Anyways, this little gadget was also interesting. I've always thought myself a speed reader, and I do read 46% faster than the average person, but apparently fall short of the college students category. See how fast you read and click through to see how long it would take you to read through some classics at your own pace. Happy summer reading!
I've finally got a completed back for my quilt! Like I mentioned in a previous post, instead of making the back out of one kind of fabric, I decided to be a little more creative and add some of the fabrics I used on the front to create a horizontal stripe across the back. Since the fabrics are from the same collection, they coordinate perfectly and I couldn't be more pleased with how this turned out.
Everyone who sees the butterfly fabric can't believe why I'd use it for the back, since it obviously won't be seen as much as the front of the quilt. Why wouldn't you show off such an awesome print on the front? Believe me, in retrospect I wish I'd done just that. But with all the design issues I've had in this project, I'm happy to be able to include a fabric I really, truly love--if only on the back.
Here's a picture of the completed quilt top as well. Taking them both outside for a photoshoot against the chain link fence made me very happy. It's such a beautiful day! So though I'd like to take the next step and actually lay down the quilt sandwich, I'm afraid I'm going to enjoy the sunshine this weekend. Happy April, everyone!
After classes ended last Friday, I decided to swing by JoAnn's to waste time and obviously tempt myself with buying more fabric. I'd been thinking of the blue Spiderman flannel I bought my nephew a year ago and realized his birthday was coming up in a few weeks. He's turning 7, so I figured I need to actually make something out of the fabric before he grows out of Spiderman. (As if anyone ever gets too old for Spiderman!) I got solid blue and red flannel fabrics for $2.50/yard and found a coordinating red Spiderman print! And then I splurged on a fuzzy solid red fabric for the back. I don't even want to disclose the cost of that fabric, but I think it was well worth it.
When I got home, I immediately went to YouTube to find a rag quilt tutorial. They seemed easy enough to make, just a matter of sewing a bunch of squares together, but I was unsure about how to make the quilt "raggedy." Here's the video I watched before I made my own:
Though the music is terrible and I didn't follow the directions word for word, I did gain a clear understanding about how to proceed. So Iwith the help of my dog, I cut all of my squares (120!) and then layed them out to arrange some sort of pattern.
After laying out all the squares, it was simply a matter of sewing them all together, flattening the quilt top onto the back fabric, and sewing that together as well. I won't bore you with the details, but the cutting and sewing took just one day, while messing with the back took another two.
The fun part about rag quilts is cutting up the flannel, washing it, and seeing how the agitation of the washer and dryer creates the "ragged" edges. When the weather finally got nicer, I took the finished quilt outside for a better photo shoot. (I also found my good camera this week, yay!)
It measures about 5' x 7', large enough for my nephew's twin-sized bed. I wasn't expecting it to be a hit at his birthday party yesterday, but he went absolutely crazy over it. He and his friends used it first as a "tent" to play under at the park. Later that night, after playing on it with baby brother, he decided to fold up the green Hulk comforter on his bed, put it in the closet, and replace it with the Spiderman rag quilt. I guess it's nice to have a change in superheroes once in a while! Definitely a successful sewing spring break.
I finished the quilt top! Really finished, for real this time. This week I added my second border (the green outer one) which completes the top. Now it measures about 57.5" x 68.5".
So a quilt is basically a sandwich. The top is the patchwork, in the middle is the batting, which is a thin layer of cotton. Batting is what makes a quilt thick and cozy. Then there's the back layer of fabric. Here's a picture of a quilt sandwich:
A lot of traditional quilters use one solid fabric for the back, but I've recently been inspired by Elizabeth Hartman's book The Practical Guide to Patchwork. Elizabeth sees the back of the quilt as another opportunity to be creative. Why have a solid back when you can make a coordinating back? I'm currently sketching out ideas for the back of my quilt, but I do know that I won't be buying any more fabric. None. Absolutely no more money goes into this project. As of this week, I have everything I need to complete it. The white fabric with black butterflies & various designs is the main fabric I bought for the back of my quilt. However, I'm playing around with designs that would include more solid black strips as well as my leftover green fabric. More on that when I settle on a design!
I decided on a black fabric with tiny polka dots to be the binding for my quilt. Binding is basically fabric that closes up the raw edges of the quilt sandwich, as you can see here:
The binding is the last chance quilters have to add another fabric or another color to the finished quilt. I think my small printed polka dots will coordinate quite nicely with the white butterfly fabric of the back as well as the green fabric bordering the top. I can't wait to get going on the next steps! My outlook on this project has become increasingly more positive with the introduction of more fabrics that I like and more opportunity for creativity. Knowing that I won't have to spend any more money makes me happy too!
Unfortunately most of my Saturday was spent looking for this little contraption called a rotary cutter. It's an essential tool for cutting fabric. But with the luck I've had in creating my quilt, I shouldn't have been surprised to discover my tools disappearing and another frustration added onto this project.
My sewing room (which used to be a living/dining room but now doubles for crafts and my 5- and 1-year-old nephews' toy storage room) isn't as cluttered as one might think. At least not to me. But I was paranoid that one of the boys would find my cutter before I did and have fun flipping up the sharp handheld circular blade. After hours of going through every stack of crap in the house, my mom finally found it in a drawer that was hidden by a tablecloth covering it. I'd forgotten that piece of furniture even had a drawer.
So then I got to cutting! The gray mat beneath the black fabric is the rotary mat, a padded plastic mat with a grid to help measuring, also ensuring that nothing such as a table gets damaged by the blade. The clear ruler also has a grid for measuring, and by placing it on top of fabric and running the rotary cutter alongside the edge, you get a straighter cut with less effort and in less time than you would cutting with regular scissors. My idea for a black satin border also didn't work. (Surprise, surprise.) Satin is just too slippery to keep a straight line, much less to sew. So I switched to black cotton that I thankfully already had in my stash.
After cutting 2.5" wide strips, I sewed them around my quilt top and ironed down the seams. Ta da! One border done. And I'm actually really starting to like the way it looks. Never underestimate how an outline can bring a design together. I think this is all I will have time for this week since so much time and stress was spent recovering my rotary cutter from the dungeons of dark and forgotten drawers, but at least now I know where it is, so when I have a moment to cut my outer green border it should be easy going.
Here's a close-up of the quilt's two fabrics since I know they're hard to see in the pictures. All in all, a succesful weekend of sewing.
This quilt truly is the project that will not die. By "die" I mean "finish." This blog was created to force myself to work on it weekly so that I have no choice but to complete it.
I began sketching this quilt about three years ago and I regret almost every choice I made about it. From the initial idea, it was supposed to be an "R" in a Times New Roman-style font. Excited about my new project and addicted to black and white, I shopped for the right fabrics for months. Probably over-excited, I bought fabric that I liked but didn't love, and now kind of hate. The black is your ordinary flowered/swirly design, and the white is a pinstripe that you can't even see. In retrospect, I would've chosen many different black fabrics and many different white fabrics to create the same design, but honestly that idea just didn't come to me until later. The style of the "R" also changed as I began cutting my fabric. I realized I'd have trouble with the curved seams and matching them to the straight seems while also allowing for a 1/4" seam allowance. The math nearly killed me. So I searched for an easier pattern and eventually settled on this angular, straighter "R." I don't like it, but it works. All that fabric I'd already cut for the first pattern? Can't use it. So what would've been about a 5' x 7' quilt is now about 4' x 6' because I ran out of usable fabric and can't match the patterns. As if these weren't enough problems, when I sewed up the rows of pieces, my seams didn't match up. It was bad. Extremely noticeable and terribly frustrating. So I took them all out and tried to stretch the fabric. Still didn't work. Leave it to my dad to come up with the idea of adding a fringe to outline "R" and cover those seams that don't line up. Eventually, that will happen.
My next step is adding a border of black satin around the quilt top, and another of green fabric. The white/black/green/gray butterfly fabric I plan to use for the back. As for the actual quilting, this is the pattern I've chosen. It's simple, and will hopefully speed the finishing process. I don't even care about being happy with the final product, I just want to be done with it. (Though I'm sure I'll probably like it and be proud of myself for not giving up.)
I'd like to introduce you to my four greatest sewing accomplishments and share a bit about each of them. I can't explain how I pick up many of the projects I take on, except that I see a book and think it looks cool and decide to try it out. That's literally how I came across quilting, because though there are a few seamstresses in my family, no one quilts but me. One summer betwen junior high and high school I picked up a quilting book from the library, decided I wanted to make one, and told my grandmother. She bought me all the fabric I needed and let me bring the sewing machine into her living room so I could watch TV with her and work on it. Later she told me that she was just appeasing my interest and never really thought I'd make a quilt! Well, here it is! Don't get me wrong, it didn't take me just one summer. In fact, when school started again I had to put it away and honestly forgot about it until another summer about two years later when I actually finished it.
And then I was hooked. After my first trip to the beach with my best friend and her family just days after my high school graduation, I decided to make a quilt to commemorate both the trip and as a gift for my friend's birthday. I was inspired by the sand, waves, and sky of Galveston, Texas, which of course isn't the prettiest of beaches, but you get the idea.
I immediately started on my next quilt the same summer for another friend to match her newly repainted bedroom. I was rudely interrupted by my first few years of college, but again finished during a long stretch of summer days the following year.
My fourth and latest quilt was made for my sister (technically, my nephew). It's a 3' x 3' baby quilt that I gave her for a baby shower gift. Though it's the smallest, it's the quilt I'm most proud of. I also made a matching clutch ball (atop the box on the right), bumper pads for the crib, a diaper stacker and organizer, but the quilt is definitely the most impressive piece.
I'm currently at work on two quilts and collecting fabrics for three more. But as always, college gets in the way and takes the majority of my sewing time, and sewing takes the majority of my paycheck, so for now those projects are on hold!
Last night I hemmed a pair of really awesome Express jeans for my friend Kenny, and also taught him how to sew by hand. I was so proud of myself for actually taking up a hem. Usually all I do is repair holes in stuff or sew buttons back on things, and usually it's old stuff, but this was a brand new pair of jeans he bought that were just a bit too long.
I was scared my sewing machine wouldn't handle denim--it's a lot thicker than most fabrics, obviously, but I'd also be sewing through four layers of it (the two hem layers and also the inner and outer seams). But it did wonderfully. And I thankfully had just enough gold thread to match (as best as I could) the thread already used in the seaming. While I sewed, I put Kenny in charge of taking pictures so I could blog about it.
I'm kind of embarrassed by my thin, blinding white, creepy-person hands, but they get the job done. I folded the jeans to raise the hem about 3 inches and sewed a new hem on the bottom. Professionals would've cut the first hem, but I didn't want to make any irreversible mistakes, so I left it. Seams can always be taken out later if need be, but fabric can't be put back on.
My sewing machine's foot, needle, and throat plate, and the new hem. Good as new, and saved the time and money it would've taken to have them altered. Yay!
TCU has a new club -- "Hooked on Helping," a club for knitters. We'll be knitting currently unspecified things for currently unspecified charities.
I don't know how to knit, but I've always wanted to learn, so I joined! Thursday night we went to Hobby Lobby, bought a bunch of yarn and needles, and camped out at Barnes & Noble. Only the president and our faculty advisor actually knew how to knit. I'm not sure what the learning curve for knitting is, but I think we'll have to help each other a lot more before we can help anybody else!
Knitting loops are called "stitches," but they're much different than the stitches I'm used to making. There are needles involved, but they're mega-needles. Thankfully, they're not sharp. There's no machine, of course. Knitting, and thus stitching, is done completely by hand, making a bajillion knots over and over again. This is the book we're learning from: Stitch 'N Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook by Debbie Stoller
It's funny, feminist, and quite a challenge for me. But I'm definitely one for patterns, and I have to admit, I'm completely absorbed and I think I have carpal tunnel. Seriously. Here's my first creation! It's a simple scarf made of multi-colored yarn (chocolate brown, teal, and varying shades of green). I'm giving it to my sister because she has to love it even if it turns out ugly.
I, like many Americans, have fallen in love with the red-heel sock monkey. The cream and brown Rockford Red Heel socks have been manufactured in the Midwest by Fox River Mills since 1932. I've heard that the "sock monkey" was one of the many things that frugal mothers ingeniously created during the Great Depression when money was tight. They'd salvage their husband's threadbare and tattered work socks, mend them as best as they could, and with a few smart snips, sew up a quick doll for a children's toy. The tradition caught on, and the red-heel sock company began including instructions and a pattern for making the monkey with all of their packaged socks, a tradition that they carry on to this day.
The sock monkey's popularity has come and gone in the decades since then, and it is largely considered an old-fashioned and nostalgic piece of Americana. Most sock monkeys are handmade, like mine, and are one-of-a-kind. However, I've recently seen manufactured sock monkeys in Target, Pier 1, Walgreens, Wal-Mart, and other big chain retailers. I highly doubt these monkeys were made out of a real pair of socks, or even made in the United States, but they are definitely selling in large part due to the Kia Joyride commercial. Though I prefer handmade sock monkeys, you can't help but love this big guy.
Here's the monkey I just finished for a dear friend of mine. She plans to give it as a newborn baby gift to an expecting mother in her family.
Sewing truly is a lost art. It's an art because it requires creative talent. It's lost because only a small percentage of people (traditionally, women) know how to thread a needle, and then know what to do with it.
My mom learned how to use a sewing machine in her high school home economics class. My grandmother made her children's clothes. She was born in the middle of the Great Depression, when sewing was a vital skill for women. Today, we buy our clothes "ready-made." I admit, I've never made a piece of clothing. However, I do mend my own, and my friends' and family's. I'm constantly hit up for repairing the crotch of a favorite pair of jeans, a hole in a t-shirt neck or sleeve, or sewing on a button that popped off. They sit and watch me work, and are continually amazed when their items are as good as new just minutes later. They don't have to throw out those jeans, or the shirt, and a lost button doesn't mean the item of clothing is useless. I'm happy to mend things for them. It's a simple, basic skill, and it amazes me that I'm one of the few people my age that have it.
What I sew for my own enjoyment varies with my mood. I've made and sold sock monkeys for many years, but my passion is quilting. I'll be using this blog to track the progress of the quilt I'm currently working on, the techniques I'm learning, and the many other various projects that pop up along the way.
T-Shirt Quilts Made Easy by Martha DeLeonardis
