250th quilt celebration!

This past summer I finished my 250th quilt and today I am happy to be hosting a HUGE giveaway to celebrate this milestone. This summer also marked my 14th year as a quilter and it has been quite a ride! I'm very thankful for my journey. I can't wait to see what happens next!

People always ask, "what do you DO with all of your quilts?" That is a VERY good question. We use them in our home, of course! We use lots of quilts on our beds. (Obviously.) I have a well stocked quilt cupboard, which stores the ones that aren't currently in use. The quilts stacked on top of the cupboard are my "work" quilts (ones that I take to trunk shows or have patterns for).

I have started rolling them up and putting them into baskets.

I have filled my quilt ladder as well. Spreading them throughout the house makes it seem like less of a problem. Hahaha!

They also make great wall art. For some reason I used to be opposed to hanging quilts on the wall. I have no idea why, but I got over it. (To hang them, I use heavy duty stick pins and shove the pin right into the sheet rock. Thankfully my husband doesn't mind!) I recently hung this one in my sewing room and I LOVE how well it fits in that spot. It makes me happy to see it every day.

In addition to that, I give some quilts away to friends, family and to charity as well, but I need to do more of that. Let's just say....no one in my house has reason to complain about being cold. EVER. :)

Ok, now on to the giveaway! I have rounded up a fabulous selection of prizes from some companies and friends that have supported me along the way. I'm passing these prizes on to you!

A Beach House thread set compliments of Connecting Threads.

One 50 pack of Clover wonder clips in PINK! compliments of Connecting Threads.

A fat quarter bundle of Lion's Share Fabric by Cotton and Steel compliments of Connecting Threads.

A fat quarter bundle of Leo Lounge by Cotton and Steel compliments of Connecting Threads.

A fat quarter bundle of Calico compliments of Dear Stella.

A "Sewing Makes Me Happy" coffee mug compliments of Modern Textiles. (Heavily creamed coffee not included!)

 A splash rotary cutter (my favorite!) compliments of Olfa.

Wonderful hand made soap compliments of my friend Tara.

 A BUNCH of mini charm packs, compliments of Moda.

21 (!!!) charm packs, compliments of Moda.

And...a fat quarter bundle of the 32 NEW Kona colors, compliments of Robert Kaufman.

 

Those are some pretty great prizes, aren't they?? MANY thanks to Connecting Threads, Dear Stella, Modern Textiles, Olfa, Tara, Moda and Robert Kaufman for donating these fabulous prizes!!!

Here are the specifics. Please read everything carefully!
 

Because of the high price of overseas shipping, the prizes shown above will be limited to residents of  US, with the exception of the prizes from Connecting Threads, which are limited to residents of the US and Canada. I apologize for the limitations. However, I wanted to do something so everyone could win.

 

This may be a little bit crazy, but I'm going to do it anyway. :)

 

Everyone who leaves me a comment on this post will receive a free PDF pattern of your choice from here or here. In your comment, leave your pattern choice, your email address and also the country in which you live. To those of you who are in the US and Canada, your comment will also enter you into the drawing for the prizes above. I hope that all makes sense!! I need a writer to help me out with my disclaimer. :)

 

I will send the PDF patterns out via email. (It may take me up to two weeks depending on volume, but we will see how it goes!)

 

I will pick winners of the prizes shown above sometime later this week.

Thank you for celebrating 250 quilts with me! Here's to the next 250!!!

Happy Monday to you! :)

edited to add: thanks for all your fabulous comments! the giveaway is now closed. winners will be announced soon.

patterns

Welcome to finish it up Friday!

I've been working on updating all of my patterns using my new template, working toward a consistent, printable pattern line. It's a TON of work, but I'm s l o w l y getting there. It's starting to become a reality!!! (Woohoo!)

These four are DONE. (Complete with barcodes and everything. I feel so official!) I have a few more in the works....and a hundred ideas to work up after that. :) I can't even begin to fathom how many hours are represented here...but I think it's better not to know. Right?

I may be weird, but I kind of like packaging them up. My kids are looking forward to being hired to do some packaging, but so far school has been getting in the way of that. (Ha!)

These boxes represent one movie (You've got mail), one episode of "Everybody loves Raymond", 4 episodes of Call the Midwife (I just discovered it and I love it!) and a phone call with a friend. It was good to have an excuse to sit down and relax while working.

I packed up and shipped off one HUGE order this week and I'm counting that as my finish. Phew! (isn't that the most unglamorous photo ever???) Now, I can't wait to get back to the sewing machine!!!

 

If you've ordered a pattern from me in the past, THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! I appreciate it more than I can say. I suppose I should clarify, I will continue to sell my pdfs through my big cartel and craftsy shops. The printed copies are for wholesale orders. If you are a shop and would like to carry my patterns, please email me at crazymomquilts@yahoo.com Thank you!

 

Now it's your turn! Please link up your finishes for the week. Thanks for joining me for finish it up Friday!

finish it up Friday, 9/26/14

1.	Kat & Cat Quilts	80.	Frankie Carson
2.	Melissa @ Happy Quilting	81.	Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts
3.	Janet @ Simply Pieced	82.	Cindy@Live a Colorful Life
4.	Sarah @ CraftBite	83.	9 Patch @ The Amateur Librarian
5.	Nancy@PugMomQuilts	84.	Julia in Mississippi
6.	Our Busy Little Bunch	85.	Brenda@scrapsandstring
7.	WM Diva's Hospice Quilt	86.	Erica @ Kitchen Table Quilting
8.	Heidi @ Buttons and Butterflies	87.	Gayle
9.	Eva-Bambi-Johansson	88.	Wendys Quilts and more
10.	Spools quilt	89.	Sarah C.@ Confessions of a Fabric Addict
11.	Kim @ Ties That Bind Quilting	90.	Easy Quilter
12.	Julie @ That's Sew Julie	91.	Lana @ It Seams To Be Sew...
13.	Emmajane stitchandpieces	92.	Iris Quilt @goldshoegirl
14.	Michelle @ Frustrated Quilter	93.	Terri Faust Quilts
15.	Rene' Creates	94.	Adrianne @ On the Windy Side
16.	Cheryl @ Meadow Mist Designs	95.	Mary Stori
17.	Brigit @ brigitgail	96.	Amanda @ fabric engineer
18.	Paint the Rainbow	97.	Clamping K Zippered Pouch
19.	Jasmine @ Quilt Kisses	98.	Wee Wander P Pouch
20.	Tina G @ Modgeometry : LDBs	99.	April Showers Baby Quilt tutorial
21.	Jasmine @ Quilt Kisses	100.	Liesel's Heart Pixelated Heart Tutorial
22.	Mari @ The Academic Quilter	101.	Kate @ asometimesquilter
23.	Toes in the Sand	102.	Monkey Business: A Finished Quilt
24.	Iris@crazydutchbirdquilts	103.	Rustique Sew Together Bag
25.	Judy@Quilt Paradigm	104.	Terra Australis Super Sew Together Bag
26.	Lucy @ Charm About You	105.	Scrappy square quilt
27.	Leanne @ Devoted Quilter	106.	Dresden Quilter
28.	Judy@Quilt Paradigm Stars	107.	Hannlib@Sewing & Slinging Travel Duffel
29.	Table Topper	108.	Kim S. @ Leland Ave Studios
30.	Ruth @ CB Crafty Corner	109.	CJs Sewing Room
31.	Cute Baby Quilt	110.	Ruth @stitchingimpressions
32.	Michelle's Romantic Tangle	111.	Sophie in Santa Fe
33.	Vera @ Negligent style	112.	Plus Quilt for a Finish
34.	What's One More Project	113.	Lina @ Smultronbopieceful
35.	Quilting is more fun than Housework	114.	Nana
36.	Heather @ Modern Parti Quilts	115.	Carla @ Creatin' in the Sticks
37.	Rachel @ Quilt Or Dare	116.	Paula@TheSassyQuilter
38.	Pieces of Cotton	117.	My new Studio!
39.	syglad	118.	Deana
40.	Pumpkin Pillows	119.	dreamworthy quilts
41.	Darcy @ Modern Cozy	120.	Bernie @ Needle and Foot
42.	Logo Locomotion Train Warm Wishes Quilt	121.	Kirsty @ Bonjour Quilts
43.	Perfect Y Seam Tutorial	122.	Sue
44.	Elaine/MuddlingThrough	123.	Fall Topper
45.	KatyQuilts	124.	Pinwheel Twister with prairie points
46.	Rachel @ Snippets of Sweetness	125.	Fresh Strawberry Bread
47.	Beth @ plum and june	126.	Autumn Mason Jar ~From My Carolina Home
48.	beth@lovelaughquilt	127.	Sew & Sews Arkansas Crossroads Quilt
49.	Lindasquiltmania	128.	Megan @ Crooked Tail Crafts
50.	Judy@Quilt Paradigm Sewing Studio Redo	129.	Angie in SoCal
51.	DIY Liberty London Patchwork Top	130.	triangle quilt @snug harbor quilts
52.	Fabric Scrap Sun Hat	131.	Shauna
53.	DIY Quilted Jacket	132.	Julia
54.	Gunilla in Sweden	133.	Kim @PersimonDreams
55.	Barbara	134.	Alissa
56.	sylvi	135.	karen @CapitolaQuilter
57.	Gail	136.	Dona@grateful4quilting
58.	Janeen@Quilt Art Designs	137.	Denise at CrafTraditions
59.	Shauna of Shauna's World	138.	the Colorful Fabriholic
60.	kathie	139.	Amy @ 13 Spools
61.	karen @ badlands quilts	140.	ZigZag- moniquesmess
62.	Stackable Scrap Bucket	141.	spoke wheel scarf moniquesmess
63.	Sew Crafty Jenn	142.	hummingbird stamp cushions
64.	Karabeta Castle	143.	Carla
65.	Maja	144.	Susan
66.	Roxi's ramblings	145.	Christmas Corner
67.	Mini Spools and Doll Quilt	146.	SewPsychd 241 Tote and Tutorial Round Up
68.	Improv Quilted Pillow Covers	147.	Bower Bird Patch; Mt Rainier
69.	Baby Bibs	148.	Space for the Butterflies: Pink Sherbet
70.	cath@wombatquilts	149.	Taryn (forkandneedle)
71.	The Little Red Hen	150.	Lorraine
72.	Something Something Quilts	151.	Jeni B Quilts
73.	Karabeta Castle	152.	Julie @ Julie's Quilts
74.	Mary @ SeeMaryQuilt	153.	Val's Baby Quilt FInish
75.	snips- Sewvivor top 3 quilt	154.	Baby Bag@Augustsnow
76.	HollyBeth @ whatknotgirls	155.	greg @ grey dogwood studio
77.	Melissa G	156.	Francesca @ SGQ
78.	Alison @ Little Bunny Quilts	157.	Nesta @ Ella and Nesta's Little Room
79.	gina @ Party of 8

(Cannot add links: Registration/trial expired)

playful petals blog tour

Today I'm happy to be a part of the Playful Petals blog tour. Playful petals is written by the uber talented Corey Yoder of Little Miss Shabby. She has a great post about why she wrote the book here. (I love reading the story behind a book!)

The book features 9 full quilts and also 9 pillow options. (You know how I love a good throw pillow!) All of the projects include petal shapes using fusible appliqué. It's a beautiful book and the technique is fast and fun! I know that a lot of people are scared of applique, but really, there is no need to be.

I took inspiration from the quilt on the cover (love it!) and made this mini based on it. Can you believe I passed up an opportunity to make a throw pillow?! (hahaha) I traded in my normal candy colored palette and went with a red and tan color scheme instead.

This was a fun way to play with scraps! I used my blanket stitch on my Janome to appliqué the petals down. (It always feels good to use some of those "fancy" stitches on the machine.) I added some quilting around the petals to add more texture. I love how it turned out!! It measures 15" square and it's scrap project #88/101.

So, what are your thoughts on applique? Do you love it? Hate it? Scared to dip your toe in the water? I'd be curious to hear your thoughts!

Be sure to check out all the other stops on the blog tour. Corey will be giving away a copy of the book at the end of the tour as well!

September 15: Amy @  Stitchery Dickery Dock

September 16: Melissa @Happy Quilting

September 17: Jessica @ Quilty Habit

September 18: Faith @ Fresh Lemons Quilts

September 19: Amy @ Diary of a Quilter

 

September 22: Sherri @ A Quilting Life

September 23: Amber @ Gigi’s Thimble

September 24: Lori @ Bee in My Bonnet

September 25: Amanda @ Crazy Mom Quilts

September 26: Lee @ Freshly Pieced

crocheted trivets and itty bitty trousers



I've found yet another way to use up some scraps! These are very similar to my crocheted rag rugs, but in a trivet (or pot holder) size. I had to use up my skinnier strings somehow, right? :) I am planning to use these as soup bowl holders. It's perfect timing, because I do believe soup season is JUST around the corner. (Hurray!!!)

 

To make them, I basically used this tutorial, but I cut the strips a bit narrower....between 1/2" and 5/8" wide. I used a size M hook and I crocheted 15 stitches across for each one. I crocheted as many rows as needed until the piece was square-ish. That's it! Easy peasy! These are scrap project #87/101. (Woo-hoo!)

 

I also sewed up these little trousers from my friend Tara's little guy. She said that he was wearing 12 month clothes already, so I panicked. (These are 6-9 months.) I had to spill the beans and have her measure her little guy's legs to make sure that they would fit. I think we are still clear, so these need to get into the mail TODAY! No more procrastinating!!!

I used the highly acclaimed quick change trousers pattern by Anna Maria Horner from her book Handmade Beginnings.

They were really fun to sew up! I can see why this pattern has been so popular over the years. Besides, what baby doesn't need a pair of elephant butt pants? I just wish I could hand deliver them.

 

Happy first day of Autumn!

miscellaneous Monday

Well, it's Monday. I'm happy to see a new week and I'm grateful for a fresh start, aren't you? Thanks for all of the kind comments on my last post. They are much appreciated--more than I can say. xo

 

On October 10 & 11, 2014 I have the chance to visit and teach in Fargo at Modern Textiles. They have a great selection of modern fabric and the owners are AMAZING! It's such a fun place to hang out and I'm super excited about visiting again! On Friday there will be a meet and greet where I will be demonstrating spiral quilting, so come by and watch me wrestle a quilt. (Hahaha!) On Saturday I'll be teaching one of my favorite classes "Make Good Choices", which is all about fabric selection! You can read more about the class and sign up here if you are interested. If you live in the area, I hope to see you there!

 

Now, to play a little catch up from last week, here's my scrappy ribbon pillow. No ribbons were used in the making of the pillow, just cute little scraps and kona cotton....but when it's all assembled, it looks like ribbons, so there you go!



The pillow measures about 20" square.

While I don't NEED another pillow, I'm happy to have one finished rather than another quilt WIP. My husband is making his peace with the fact that the house will soon be over run by pillows.

It was easily finished with an envelope backing.

I just love those dots for backing! They are by Denyse Schmidt from the Picadilly line at JoAnn's. I should have bought bolts of it.

This is scrap project # 86/101.

One more thing...I'm planning on a HUGE giveaway this week to celebrate my 250th quilt finish. I've rounded up some fabulous prizes to give away. I can't wait to celebrate!

Happy Monday to you!!!

the linky party that wasn't

Do you ever have one of those weeks? I've certainly had one.

I did huge amounts of computer work this week getting some of my patterns ready to print. That's a HuGE job with a bazillion details. I think I spent more time at my desk this week than when I had a "real" job. I made some great progress, but man, it's a lot of work. All the while I was wondering what on earth I could finish for Friday that wouldn't be lame. I was sewing yesterday afternoon and I was able to finish a pillow cover that I love. I was in the zone and it came together without being forced. I had fun! I took lovely photos in that fleeting moment in the afternoon when the light was just perfect and 10 minutes later I was headed to a guild meeting with a quick sandwich in hand for dinner. I locked my keys in my van at the meeting. (Ugh.) This morning as I was trying to post, I encountered a million technical difficulties too boring to list and I have to admit defeat. My in house tech guy happens to have a full time job. (I'm so glad he does!) But that means I'm posting with no link up party this week. I have no photo to share here, but it is on flickr (there is a link on my sidebar to my flickr group) and I'll be posting it to Instagram shortly. So. Here's to keeping it real. And honest. I can't do it all. I have no cape. :) So, thanks for your understanding and I plan to return it regularly scheduled programming as soon as possible. 

"you can't rush art"

There is a line in the movie Toy Story 2 where the artist who is repairing Woody says, "you can't rush art". We've quoted that movie a LOT in our house over the past several years and I feel like that one line sums up this quilt project precisely. In fact, I may have found the title for this quilt!

I started this one to just play with my solid scraps and to do some mindless sewing. It's come a long way from the first blocks. It's taken turns that I didn't plan on and I always enjoy that...to "just see where it goes". But then. THEN! I get to a point in the project where I just want it to be done already. I'm at that point with this quilt. I want it to be done, but I know that it isn't done. I guess I need to learn some patience. And quick! Ha!

 

See this little strip? It finishes at about 1" wide. This will probably be my favorite part of the whole quilt! I have a small scrap sickness. (I realize that's not news.)

I feel like I've been able to throw off some of my color inhibitions (I actually used brown and hunter green) in this project. In addition to that, I was able to push myself out of my improv box a little bit. Now if I could just find some more sewing time to see this through to completion, I'd be one happy camper. Or sewist. :)

dress up diamond pillow

Do you ever have a stack of fabric that you wonder what to do with, then one day, out of the blue you have a light bulb moment that marries the perfect idea to that stack of fabric? It's a fabulous thing when it happens and it's even better when you find the time to make that idea into a reality. I wish it happened to me on a more regular basis and faster, but you know.... :)

That's kind of what happened with this pillow. I had a cute stack of Wild fabric (by Dear Stella) since May. In July I had a light bulb moment....I could showcase the cute dress me fabric in the center of my diamond pillow pattern. This past Friday I finally sewed it up! It was SUCH a fun project (not to mention quick) and that was exactly what I needed.

The dress up fabric is appliqued on and then top stitched for durability. I worked with purples and violets because my daughter loves those colors and I thought they were a nice compliment to the blues/grays/blacks. I can't tell you how many times I squealed over making these teeny tiny clothes. I had SO much fun playing dress up! But those little heart shorts. Oh Mylanta. They are my favorite!!! My boys wouldn't readily admit it, but I could tell by the look on their faces that they thought they are pretty cute, too. (Shhh. Don't tell!)

When it came time to make the backing, I dug into the stash and unearthed this fabric. I don't have a lot of purple/violet in my stash and I really don't have that many larger cuts, so you can imagine my delight to find this fabric, which was EXACTLY the right length. I love it when that happens! Hurray for using the stash!

I'm so happy to have this one out of the old noggin and sewn up! My daughter saw the finished pillow, scooped it up and gave it a big hug. I'd call that success! I think it goes without saying, but I LOVE how it turned out, too!

Happy Monday to you!

Terri's quilt

Welcome to finish it up Friday!

You may or may not know this, but finishing things is a big deal to me. My dad always impressed on me (and my siblings) "if you are going to start something, you need to finish it!" The end. I'm passionate about finishing what I start and sometimes I even adopt other peoples' WIPs and finish them! (No, I'm not offering to finish your WIPs!) :)

This past summer at the annual Gruber's retreat, Terri showed this quilt top that she had pieced a few years ago at that same retreat. Isn't it beautiful??? She was "over it," to use her words, so I offered to finish it. We decided it will be donated to Margaret's Hope Chest. Terri has one less WIP, I busted some stash, worked out a little bit of stress while quilting and I have a finish to share today. Plus, we get to support MHC. Everybody wins!

I pieced the back using larger chunks from my stash. I was able to eek out the backing using the width of fabric. It was close....within a 1/4" in some places, but it worked!

I stippled it using Isacord thread. This is my second time using this thread for quilting and man, it's smooth! I just wish it wasn't so shiny, or I'd use it all the time.

Apple green binding finishes things off. And another quilt is complete! Feels so good!

The quilt measures 42" x 56".

Now it's your turn! Please link up your finishes for the week. Thanks for joining me for finish it up Friday! And please, when visiting the blogs from the links below, be kind in your comments. Thank you!

Have a GREAT weekend! xo

finish it up Friday, 9/12/14

1.	Melissa @ Happy Quilting	69.	Charlotte@GrammieQs
2.	Kat @ Kat & Cat Quilts	70.	Valerie @ MeekManor
3.	Sarah @ {no} hats	71.	Kitty @ Night Quilter
4.	Greta @ Because I Sew So	72.	Tilkunviilaaja
5.	Rachel @ The Life of Riley	73.	Beth
6.	Amanda - Moda Bake Shop tutorial	74.	Darling Tea Towels
7.	Amanda @ Material Girl Quilts	75.	Anna (The Crooked Banana)
8.	Jan O @ the Colorful Fabriholic	76.	Angela A @ betterndogbiscuits
9.	Karin @ Leigh Laurel	77.	Jasmine @ Quilt Kisses
10.	Erica @ Kitchen Table Quilting	78.	cath@wombatquilts
11.	Kate @ Quarter Mile Quilts	79.	alidiza
12.	Hubblebird	80.	Carla @ Creatin' in the Sticks
13.	Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts	81.	Pie Wedge Pincushion and Tutorial
14.	Mary Stori	82.	Michelle's Romantic Tangle
15.	PorcupineStew	83.	Yvonne @ Quilting Jetgirl
16.	Michelle @ From Bolt to Beauty	84.	Sweet Bamboo
17.	Grace and Favour	85.	tubakk, Norway
18.	Melissa @ my fabric relish	86.	Amy Butler Unruly Quilt
19.	Kim @ Ties That Bind Quilting	87.	Gemini Jen NZ
20.	Sailboat paper piecing | Ants to Sugar	88.	Crafty Ashley B
21.	Judy@Quilt Paradigm Family Tree	89.	Miss Kate Baby Quilt @ goldshoegirl
22.	Judy@Quilt Paradigm Metallic Thread	90.	Rachel @ Farm Gal Designs
23.	Emmajane @ stitchandpieces	91.	Cheryl @ Meadow Mist Designs
24.	Alphabet Quilt-Julie @ Julie's Quilts	92.	Wendys Quilts and more
25.	Brain rehab unit quilt donation	93.	PorcupineStew
26.	Ruth @ CB Crafty Corner	94.	Katie @ In Stitches!
27.	Bernie @ Needle and Foot	95.	Mina@Kinda Quilty
28.	Alycia @ Quiltygirl (Blue and white)	96.	Frankie carson
29.	Pam @ Mama Spark's World	97.	Quilting is more fun than Housework
30.	Alison @ LBQ -- Valentine's Mini	98.	Megan @ Crooked Tail Crafts
31.	Cindy@Live a Colorful Life	99.	Business shirt pijamas
32.	Heather @ Modern Parti Quilts	100.	Alice @Blossomquilts
33.	Kerstin@sunset sewing	101.	Super Mom - No Cape!
34.	I QUILT FOR FUN	102.	Angie in SoCal
35.	Geta Grama	103.	Maria Shell @ Tales of a Stitcher
36.	Mod Owls @ OurBusyLittleBunch	104.	Friday Fassett Finish
37.	A Quilting Chick - Texas Quilt	105.	Rebecca Grace
38.	Gifts from CJ	106.	gina @ Party of 8
39.	Terri Faust Quilts	107.	Alison@thechainpiecer
40.	Lindas Quiltmania	108.	Tricia - HandmadeWhimzy
41.	Maja	109.	Nat @ Made in Home
42.	cathy@blueberrypatch	110.	Tanya Quilts in CO
43.	MPC Pegs Quilt @CarpentersDaughter	111.	Beth @ Cooking Up Quilts
44.	Eva-Bambi-Johansson	112.	Liz @ LizzyClips Design
45.	Mari @ The Academic Quilter	113.	DeborahGun @ Sunshinethroughtherain
46.	Love Natalie	114.	Islington Station Finish @ LoGoQuilts
47.	Sew Crafty Jenn	115.	Jenn @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge
48.	Rachel @ Quiltineering	116.	Deana
49.	Paula@TheSassyQuilter	117.	Farmer's Wife Pony Club
50.	Anina @ Twiddletails - Boo! Runner	118.	Patch the Giraffe
51.	Sarah @ CraftBite	119.	My 60th jubilee quilt!
52.	Vicky @ veni vidi vicky	120.	North Star Mini Quilt
53.	Edige	121.	beth@lovelaughquilt
54.	Jana Machado	122.	Sarah C.@ Confessions of a Fabric Addict
55.	Shauna of Shauna's World	123.	Cathy in Ontario
56.	KatyQuilts	124.	Liz @ Shush I'm Quilting
57.	Ruth @stitchingimpressions	125.	Alissa
58.	Guest room finish w/ Antique quilts	126.	Myintzu
59.	Something Something Quilts	127.	Triangles & Squares
60.	Rainbow 16 patch	128.	Dona@grateful4quilting
61.	Jess @ Quilty Habit	129.	lisa@hilltophouse
62.	Lisa at The Quilting Bird	130.	Son's First Project | Factotum of Arts
63.	Afton Warrick @ Quilting Mod	131.	Steph Blair Sews: Winter Geese Cushion
64.	Janeen@QuiltArtDesigns	132.	April@Little Mama Hen
65.	Vicki	133.	DIY Quilted Jacket
66.	Charlotte's gRACE for a Cure	134.	Fabric Scrap Quilted Pouch
67.	Preeti	135.	Karol-Ann
68.	Trish @ Love, Laughter, Insanity

(Cannot add links: Registration/trial expired)

a few binding tips



I've got a few binding tips and tricks to share with you today. Nothing earth shattering, but sometimes it's the little things that make a big difference! I hope you find them helpful as well.

First off, when attaching the binding to the quilt top, I find it very helpful to wrap the binding around an empty thread spool. I saw this tip somewhere awhile back and I thought "how can that work?" but it really does! When you place the quilt in the machine, just pop the spool of binding next to your spool of thread. The binding doesn't get tangled around the bulk of your quilt, the leg of your chair or anything else when you are sewing it on to the quilt. It's especially helpful on larger quilts. (It's a good thing my spool of thread was almost empty because my spool of binding took up so much room. Hahaha!)

 

I've been machine binding (some of) my quilts for about 3 years now using the tutorial here. (I can't believe it's been that long!) Here are a few tricks that I've recently discovered that make stitching the binding down on the front *almost* perfect.

After you have attached the binding strip to the back of the quilt, press the binding out/away from the bulk of the quilt. This helps to achieve a nice crisp edge. If I press it first, I find that the fabric behaves much better when I am folding it over onto the front side. It's even hard to put into words what it does, but this little step makes a big difference! I guess you will just have to try it and see!

When you are top stitching the binding down (on the front side) and you are nearing a corner, fold the bottom piece up FIRST as shown in the photo. I like to use a little clover wonder clip to temporarily hold it in place.

THEN, fold the right side in. The mitered corner turns out SO MUCH better with this folding arrangement. (Rather than my previous method, which was folding the right side in first, then folding the bottom up.)

The stitching on the backside is nearly perfect around the corner pivot. That's so satisfying!!! Usually 3 out of 4 of my corners look this good. I'll take it!

 

And the last thing...I've updated my original binding tutorial (way back from 2008!) to include step by step photos for making a mitered seam when joining the beginning and end of the binding strips. Boy, THAT was way overdue!