5 Things Every Quilter Should Know

Learn About Fabrics

What good is a quilt without having some nice fabric? Fabrics are the most essential pieces to your quilts, and so you should educate yourself about them. There is a wide variety of fabrics out there in various shapes, sizes, colors, patterns, grains and other factors to consider. Knowing a little bit about color theory will give your quilts a harmonious, logical quality to them that will raise your quilt’s visual appeal. Also, learning how to identify different patch blocks and how they can mesh together can make your quilts more dynamic than ever. And just as a quick tip, save the little leftover scraps, you never know when they’ll come in handy!

Remember Your Quarter-Inch Seams

Often times, beginning quilters have troubles with ¼-inch seams, especially those who come from other sewing backgrounds where a ⅝-inch seam is more common. However, it is extremely important to have that quarter-inch to work with since you do lose a little bit of fabric as you go. This allowance is standard for all types of quilting, because it is the most versatile while still conserving the most amount of fabric. Better yet, check out our Block RockiT machine that can help you get optimal results with the least amount of headache.

Strip and Quick Piecing Techniques

Strip piecing and other quick piecing techniques can greatly speed up the process of getting a finished product, and give you limitless options with different patterns you can put together! There are several different techniques out there and you can explore what works for you and what you find effective.

Quilting Terminology

By keeping a quilting glossary handy, you’ll spare yourself a headache when you get lost and need to turn to Google or your local quilting expert. Whether it be on a piece of paper, a bookmarked tab on your computer/tablet, or simply memorizing the terms, the more knowledge you have, the better off you’ll be. So whether you are looking for a bobbin case for your machine or you need some help with your bearding technique, keep that glossary right there close by!

Pressing Basics

You might think that pressing your quilt blocks as you make them will cut into time that you should spend elsewhere. However, you’ll find that by making this extra effort at the start will save you from major headaches by keeping all of your quilting blocks uniform. This prevents you from having to go through and tackle the seams you just put in, and then redo work that could have been easily prevented. If the pros do it, then you should too!

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