Creativebug We asked our Quilting Corner Facebook community for their best tips for beginning quilters. Here are some of our favorite pieces of quilting advice. Did we leave anything out?
Before You Start
Have dinner ready in the crockpot so you don’t have to stop. Heck, just feed the family beforehand and leave them to it.
Measure twice, cut once.
Never cut more than four layers of fabric at once.
Put a fresh blade in your rotary cutter and a new needle in your sewing machine.
Pre-wash. Pre-wash. PRE-WASH. You don’t want to find out that the fabric dye bleeds the first time you wash your finished quilt.
Read the instructions. Then read them again. Then start.
Have lots of bobbins wound and pins at the ready.
While Quilting
Have your iron ready.
Press — don’t iron — as you go. There’s a difference.
Don’t be afraid of an ugly fabric — that may very well be the color that makes the finished quilt pop.
Take breaks to stretch and walk around. Think of trips to the ironing board as “exercise.”
Keep track of where you leave off in a small notebook, as well as other relevant details about the quilt pattern. It will come in handy later.
In General
Don’t be afraid to rip something out and start over if it’s off or doesn’t look right – you’ll be happier in the end when you do.
Don’t look for shortcuts, especially as a beginner.
Buy a little extra material.
Stop when you’re tired. It’s better than making mistakes you’ll have to fix down the road.
Have fun. Remember: there aren’t any quilting police.
Don’t point out mistakes to the recipient – chances are you’re the only one who will notice them. Besides, they give the quilt personality.
You can read the full post here.