If you love to sew bags, you love to gift some of your bags, as well. You put your heart into your sewing projects; the bags require so much work and time and money! How to make sure that you sew successful bags for gifts? I sew bags for friends, my sisters and their friends. When they need a special gift, they always come to me for a bag. Here are some of my thoughts on this subject. I … [Read more...]
The best interfacing for bags
Are you still looking for the best interfacing for bags? Maybe you already know that I love to sew quilted bags? There are a few reasons for this: Sometimes you don't have the proper interfacing at hand. If you are a quilter, you probably have batting scraps. With batting and a backing (or no backing), you can make any fabric work for bags. If you are a bag maker, you know how to press a … [Read more...]
How to add borders to octagons
Yesterday a reader asked me what she could do with a 20'' octagon panel, how could she turn it into a bigger quilt? My answer was: add borders! I detailed the response to her and then I thought that maybe there are other quilters that have the same problem so here is a short tutorial on how to add borders to octagon blocks/panels. I needed an octagon so I made quickly this block. I used my … [Read more...]
How to finish quilts without binding
Once again I love the versatility of rainbow fabric. From one piece of fabric, I was able to make a block that required 8 colors! This was the starting point: 1'' octagon, small triangles and the technique from my Loving Hugs pattern series. The second row of triangles added. And the third row. A fast growth in scale of the block... The final block … [Read more...]
Big Dresden block made with small ruler
One of the rulers I use more often than others is the Fan ruler - this wedge ruler used to sew Dresden fan/plate blocks. In this tutorial I will show you how to use this 9'' ruler (15 degree) and sew BIG Dresden blocks, made with strips of fabric wider than the ruler. I used a 17'' wide strip of fabric (cut along the selvages, from 2 yards of fabric - Effervescence by Robert Kaufman). If you … [Read more...]
My favorite rulers and how to piece triangles
I have been quilting for almost 19 years and you may be thinking that during this time I have accumulated a mountain of rulers for making quilts. Well, I am not hoarding rulers! I have a few "speciality" rulers (made specifically for a quilt, they are wonderful, but I used them once and then forgot about them!), but other than these, I own and use all the time these 5 rulers. If you are a … [Read more...]
Folded strips pattern for coasters
Hello friends! Years ago I made this folded star and loved it. There are so many versions on Internet but some pastel stars caught my attention. I wanted to duplicate the texture and the colors but using something different and here is what I have done. This was my first version of a folded strips octagon, made with Kona cotton fabrics. Very excited with the result, I thought to … [Read more...]