Quilting Vs. Patchwork H276 Ms. Haushalter

What is Quilting? Quilting: is the together of two layers of fabric and an in- between layer of padding with stitches. The stitches are both decorative and functional. The stitching can be done by machine or by hand.

What is Patchwork? Patchwork - The process of combining fabrics of various shapes and sizes to make a quilt top.

Quilting/Patchwork Terms Basting: A means of temporarily holding together the quilt top, batting, and quilt backing. Basting can be done with safety pins, special adhesive basting sprays, plastic quilt tacks which resemble those used by stores to hold tags onto clothing, or with needle and thread using a large running stitch. Binding:A strip of fabric which is folded over the edge of a quilt. The binding encloses the raw edges of the quilt top, back and batting and is the finishing step in completing a quilt. Bindings can be cut on the straight of grain of the fabric or on the bias if the binding is to cover edges which are curved.

Terms Continued… Fat Quarter: A quarter yard of fabric cut with the dimensions of 18" x 22" rather than 9" x 44". Basically, a half yard of fabric cut in half to produce a more square piece of fabric. Many quilters feel that a fat quarter cut gives them more option than a tradition quarter yard cut of fabric. Siggie or Siggy: Short for signature block or signature square. When exchanging blocks or charm squares, quilters will often exchange a plain charm or blocks which the quilter has signed. Sometimes other information is included with the signature such as city, state and country in which the quilter resides.

More Terms… Stitch in the Ditch: Used in both hand and machine quilting. In this technique, a quilting line is sewn right next to the seam in a pieced block - in the "ditch" that is formed by the turn of the cloth made when the seams of a pieced block are pressed to one side. This type of quilting is normally not very visible after the quilt has been completed.

Safe Rotary Cutting Rotary cutters are extremely sharp and caution should be used when rotary cutting. Always close the blade or make sure that the blade guard is engaged EVERY time the rotary cutter is put down. Use the rotary cutter only with a specially designed rotary cutter mat. Using any other surface can damage the cutter blade, the surface, and can cause the cutter to slip while cutting. Devote full attention to the ruler and rotary cutter while cutting. Many a quilter has received a serious cut because of a distraction. Keep the rotary cutter clean. Lint and fluff can build up under the blade preventing it from rotating smoothly. Change the blade in the rotary cutter as soon as it becomes dull.

Preparing the Fabric for Rotary Cutting All fabric should be pressed before cutting. Carefully fold the fabric in half so the selvedge edges are aligned. Smooth the fabric making sure that the fold runs along the lengthwise grain of the fabric. Fold the fabric in half again brining the folded edge into alignment with the selvedge edge. The crosswise fabric edge must now be evened. To do this, place the folded fabric on the cutting mat and place the straight edge of the plastic ruler perpendicular to the folded fabric edge and align the plastic ruler about 1" away from the right hand crosswise fabric edge.

Rotary Cutting Continued… Once the ruler has been placed, the quilter should carefully place his/her left hand on the ruler to hold it in place being careful not to shift the position of the ruler. Holding the rotary cutter in the right hand, place the rotary cutter so it touches the right side of the ruler and, applying a slight amount of pressure, push the rotary cutter along the edge of the ruler away from the quilter's body. (Left handed quilters should reverse the right and the left.) The crosswise edge of the fabric should now be cut even with the crosswise grain of the fabric. Now, move the fabric so that the just cut edge is on the left hand side. The fabric is now ready to be cut into the desired shapes.

Strips Place the plastic ruler on the fabric so that the cut edge of the fabric aligns with the markings on the ruler for the desired strip width. Following the cutting directions described earlier, cut the strip. After several strips have been cut, it may be necessary to even the crosswise edge of the fabric again. This is a normal occurrence caused by slight shifting that will occur when cutting the fabric.

Squares Cut a strip, following the previous directions, the desired width. Place the strip on the cutting mat so that the longest edge of the strip is parallel to the lower edge of the mat. Trim the fabric selvedge off from the end of the strip making sure that this cut is perpendicular to long side of the strip. Now, place the ruler so that the marking for the desired square size aligns with the just trimmed edge. Cut along the edge of the ruler to produce the desired size square.

Right Triangles Following the previous directions, cut a square in the desired size. Next, take the ruler and carefully place it so that the straight edge runs from one corner of the square to the opposite corner of the square. Cut the square on the diagonal. This will result in two right triangles.

Quarter Triangles Following the directions previous, cut right triangles. Now, place the ruler so that the straight edge runs from center of the diagonally cut line to the remaining corner of the square. Cut on the edge of the ruler to produce four quarter triangles.

Sewing Pieces Together Place Pieces right sides together. Sew at ¼ inch also known as edge of the presser foot. Backstitch all pieces so they are secure. Trim threads. Try to put pieces together in rows. Then connect rows, matching seams. Remember to press as you go.

Pressing When pressing sewn strips of fabric or quilt blocks, do not slide the iron, but instead lift the iron up and move to the next area to be pressed and put the iron back down on the fabric. Sliding the iron can cause the fabric to become distorted especially when pressing seams cut on the bias. When pressing a seam, first press the seam together. This will help to eliminate any slight puckering that may have occurred while sewing the seam. Then place the seam so that the side to which the seam allowance will be pressed is on the top. Then, carefully press seam allowance to the side from the right side of the fabric. By pressing seam allowances from the front, the quilter eliminates the possibility of pressing a fold or pleat in the seam.

Batting vs. Fiberfill Fiberfill Made of polyester or cotton Comes in a ball or big puff. Used in pillows and crafts (stuffed animals). Batting Made of polyester, down or cotton. Comes in sheets. Used in blankets.

Few Tips! Be very precise when cutting. Take your time and don’t rush. Remember to press as you go. Trim all threads as you go. Have fun!

Question? Is the pillow you are making quilted or patchwork? Will you be using batting or fiberfill? Answer: Patchwork Answer: Fiberfill

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