Friday, March 25, 2011

learn something new

I've been quilting for over 10 years now, and I'm amazed at how much I still don't know. Ok, let me rephrase that. I am amazed at how many things I keep learning. I'm not complaining....it's awesome! I've been wanting to share a few links that have been helpful to me.

First off, Carol wrote a great tutorial on single fold binding. I saw this tutorial, tried it and loved it immediately. I wouldn't use it for quilts, but for coasters, mini quilts, etc, it's perfect. She calls for cutting the binding 1 1/4'' wide, but I used a honey bun strip (which is pre-cut at 1 1/2'' wide) for this little coaster and it worked great. In fact, I think that it's the best use of a honey bun that I've come across to date!

Secondly, Anita did a wonderful tutorial on machine sewn binding. After reading her tutorial, I started thinking it was actually feasible for me to bind quilts this way. I was very scared to try it (it took me 6 months), but really, I didn't know how painless (and QUICK) it would be. I used the technique on this quilt, and I will definitely try it again.

I'm just delving into hand quilting, and this video on how to make a knot is awesome. I mean, I know how to make knots in my thread all too well. But this video helped me to learn how to be intentional in where the knots end up. :)  This helped me a ton when I was working on all my applique leaves, too. (I just finished them this afternoon!!! YAY!) There is also a great video on tying off, or making an ending knot. Super duper helpful!

Lastly, I am sooooooooooooooo excited, because my husband gave the the go ahead to go to this retreat!
I met Penny at a retreat last November and her work is amazing! In fact, it was after seeing her paper piece at the retreat that I was inspired to re-work my band aid block idea into something a little more realistic. It was fun and this is something that I've been wanting to do more of.
But, have you seen Penny's paper piecing??? I mean, seriously!!! Check out her kitchen aid mixer block! I'm blown away and I can't wait to learn her techniques and some of her tricks. Plus, Tara hosts an AWESOME retreat. I know this from personal experience, so I am sure a good time will be had by all. I can not wait! There are still some spots left. If you are a last minute planner like me, it's not too late! :)

26 comments:

Mama Urchin said...

I wish I could go! I want to see you and Tara and sew all weekend!

Angela Nash said...

Ooh - I love that plan for the honey bun strips! It does look like a great way to bind little things. Thanks for sharing the link. I love learning new stuff.

Kekibird said...

I'm finishing up a quilt right now and what's got me stuck for the past couple of months is the binding. Stitching it by hand is kind of a pain but looks nice (I'm self taught and a complete noobie so I know I have room to learn and grow) and machine binding seems to scary to me. I'm interested to see the suggestion for machine binding. Thanks for sharing.

Shannon Wallace said...

Great post! It's encouraging to hear that you are still learning after quilting for so long. It gives a newbie like me hope! LOL

Question: I would prefer to learn to bind by machine, not by hand. Is this okay for a newbie like me? I shudder at the thought of having to bind by hand! :o) Thanks!

Victoria Paige @ Boutique Uniquely said...

What great things to learn! I always machine bind.

PunkiePie (Jen) said...

Have a super time on the retreat and I will have to look into machine binding my binding on a bit more closely. Looks totally do-able in my book!

Kim said...

Okay so you packed so much into this post I'll be here awhile!
Thanks for all the great info....its just like life...quilting....always learning something new and meeting great people along the way :0)

Happy sewing, enjoy the journey

carol said...

So glad you like the single fold binding. I love it! give it a good pressing when you're done and it looks even better.

Kris said...

Thank you for all these amazing links! I'm off to check out the machine sewn binding one. I have done that to a couple of quilts, but I think I could do it better. Then I would machine sew every binding!

sewtakeahike said...

Yaaaaaaay Amanda!!! You have no idea how freaking excited I am that you're going to be at the workshop!!! Good grief we're gonna have fun and make some fab creations!!!

Allison said...

thank you, thank you, thank you! for the links about knot making/ending knots. These kind of details are so often skipped over, and I wonder if I'm the only one who reads 'knot to finish' and has at least 3 questions about how it is done :)

Tara said...

I'm with penny! Yeah!!!! This is so exciting!!!! Feeling very blessed right now! I started to call you about 4 times this afternoon! Bought some supplies for goodie bags too! Can't wait to work on them!

Maria said...

Thank you sharing the links. Will check them out.
I have done smaller bindings for small projects for some time and also machine sew bindings on kids and charity quilts but not the other things.

Shauna said...

Such great information! Thanks for posting this!! I had to bookmark a few things for future reference :)

send flowers pakistan said...

Cant wait to work on them.so beautiful.

Suzanne said...

Thanks for all the links. If you think Penny's mixer is cool, go look at the toaster that Ayumi made for Penny: http://ayumills.blogspot.com/2011/03/toaster-pieced-free-japan-pattern.html

Thanks for the links. I really need to start binding by machine.

Carmen said...

Yay! Can't wait to see you again at the retreat!

April (Polkadot Sparrow) said...

Happy retreating! I dream of going to a sewing retreat someday, too.

Thanks for the links. One can never stop learning. Especially if it can make my sewing even better! :)

AnnieO said...

Every quilt teaches me something still! Thanks for the links to techniques--the only time I ever used a single fold binding it was a big hassle. I've done machine sewn binding lots of times, usually for quilts I know are going to be washed over and over :)

Have a blast at your retreat!

audreypawdrey said...

I am going to check out the link for machine binding. I used to bind all of my quilts by machine, but I switched to hand sewing it down because it never looked very good. I would love a way that looked great and was quick to finish off a quilt!

Thank you for posting the link about the retreat! I may be going as a birthday present from my husband! I am a last minute planner, too.:)

http://quiltsbagsgardens.blogspot.com/ said...

And the process never ends :)

Thimbleanna said...

Oh how fun! You guys will have so much fun -- Penny's a sweetheart -- I met her in Houston. And did you see the awesome toaster block that was made for her with her name on the side? She's going to have some super cute blocks!

Val said...

I love learning so I really appreciate the links you have given us. I also have to say thank you for leaving the star quilt along up for us who have not finished yet. It is on my design board and is one of the next 3 big things I am determined to finish. I am so glad that you are back blogging. You are a great teacher.

Bonnie said...

Thanks for posting about the binding tutorial, machine binding still freaks me out so I will have to give this one a try.

Andrea, the little collector said...

Holy toledo, you've got lots of fun things to check out. And done with your leaves?? Awesome! I remember seeing some of the first of those way back when.

You may have to pass along what you learn about paper piecing. We're not even going to talk about my unpicking several paper piecing blocks tonight on a block for V. A simple block, mind you! Sigh.... I am sure you will have loads of fun at your retreat! Wahoooooo!

Margarita said...

I love to learn new stuff too. In regard to the machine binding, I use my fancy stitches on my machine. I think it looks great.