Making Quilts, the Pain-Free Way

Cooking is fun, messy, and can be very delicious. Gardening is quite rewarding because its fun to watch things grow. Sewing, however, is my main jam! I love making bags, gifts for others, clothes, and so much more. Sewing is definitely my most beloved hobby. However, I was never a fan of quilting. To me, quilting and sewing are two different hobbies. Are you team sewing or quilting? 

I never loved making those strip pieced table runners, or small quilts. Too many rules to follow. Too many tiny pieces of fabric to cut. Cutting all of those small pieces to then sew them together again, is my absolute nightmare. But, something wild and crazy happened during this past Fall. A  Halloween quilt came to life! I don't remember what planet I was visiting, but I decided to make a quilt. Spoiler alert, I made a Christmas one too. And, I loved every minute of it. It was so fun! Why did I change my mind? Well, I didn't follow a pattern. I did my own thing entirely and loved the process and final result.

If you're not a quilty fan, I beg you to try making a quilt following your own rules. Read along for some easy tips to create your first (or next) quilt. Am I a quilter now? I don't think so. But, I did enjoy making both of the holiday lap throws. As you read, you'll notice more of the Halloween quilt. I took more process photos of that one but, there are some Christmas ones too. 

Disclaimer: I am not a professional quilter. I probably do some cringe-worthy things here but, this is how I made my two quilts. The best part? I didn't want to set them on fire in the process. Sewing is supposed to be fun and not stressful. And, after all, it's just fabric and we all own a seam ripper or two. Let's get quilting!

Supply List

1. Fabric. Lots and lots of fabric. 1-3 yards for the backing. 2-3 yards of various coordinating colors, patterns, and styles of fabric. It might be easier to start with 4-5 different fabrics first.
2. A package of batting
3. Rotary cutter and mat
4. Quilting rulers
5. 2-3 Spools of thread
6. 3+ bobbins
7. Quilting Gloves (I use Grease Monkey auto ones)
8. KK-100 Spray adhesive
9. Free motion quilting foot
10. Sewing machine 
11. Patience and lots of snacks

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All The Fabric Pieces

A quilt is a fabric sandwich, more or less. You have a top, which is all the pretty pieces. The middle is the batting layer. The bottom or backing is the fabric on the back. It is usually a solid or printed piece. If you make a larger quilt, you'll need to have a seam or two running along the back. 

• First, decide on the size. Are you making a table runner, a lap quilt, or going for the gusto and making a Queen bed-sized one? You don't need to stick to this exact size but, a general idea is good. Keep in mind the size of your backing as well. Quilting cotton comes in 44" widths so unless you want a seam or two running down the backside, you might want to keep it smaller. 
• Next, you want to decide on shapes. Do you want rectangles, thin strips, squares, or more intricate shapes? 
• You'll need to also include border strips. These will frame your inner quilt pieces. Traditionally, you add these to the sides first, then top, and then the bottom. However, it's your quilt. You have my permission to make it however you want. Go ham!
• Be sure to choose similar colors or patterns. For a first quilt, it may be easiest to purchase fabric in the same design family. That's what I did for the Christmas one. The fabric was all made by Singer and I bought it from Michaels.
• Decide on a rough layout, it doesn't need to be set in stone, it's just to get you started. Then cut the pieces using a rotary cutter, mat, and ruler. Example: You can start out with cutting 10 pieces of red, 10 of yellow, 10 of blue, 10 of checks, 10 of polka dots, etc. You can always add more or take away. This just gets you started. You can also buy a set of pre-cut squares to make it even easier. Set each pile aside. You'll work from the piles.

*For reference, I'm going to use my lap sized quilts I made, which were roughly 4'x6'.

The Halloween one had squares and strips running vertically.

The Magical Layout

This, in my opinion, is the most important part. Yes, crooked seams want to be avoided along with wonky stitching but, the fabrics need to look pretty. So, this step is very important. 

• Clean off a huge area on the floor and start laying out your pieces. You usually want it longer than wider but, again, your quilt. 
• Lay the squares down in a rough pattern. For my Halloween one, I did 6 across, and 7 down. I didn't want the same colors or patterns touching. This can be impossible sometimes. Switch them around until you get something you like. If you're losing your mind over this part, walk away and come back later. It can also help to have a second opinion. Ask a family member, text a photo to a friend, or DM an Instagram bestie to ask for their opinion. I even found that just taking a photo and looking at my quilt in the photo helped me fix a few snafus. Call me crazy, but the layout can make or break your quilt. I've seen some less desirable ones that could have been saved by a different layout. 
• I decided to make my quilt larger than my original planned size. To do this, I cut 3" wide strips the length of my top piece, and sandwiched them vertically, between the squares. This is easy to do and it can make it longer or wider. After you stitch all the small pieces together, your quilt shrinks quite a bit. Who knew a 1/4" seam allowance was so big? Haha
• Place your long border strips on the top and bottom. They frame your quilt and "seal the deal", so to speak.

Add some easy strips to lengthen or widen your quilt.

Most machines come with a quarter-inch sewing foot, have marks on the machine plate, and some might even have a quilting guide bar. Make use of one or all of these.

• Use a 1/4" seam allowance at all times, for all the pieces. It might seem small but, it creates less bulk. You don't trim the seam allowances like you would in garment sewing.
• Use cotton or polyester thread. I used polyester. I've honestly never sewn with cotton thread. You'll have to do your own Google search on that if you're interested. (I think purists use cotton thread but, I could be wrong. Again, not a professional).
• Start by sewing the first vertical row from left to right. You'll sew the squares to form a really long strip. 
• Press each seam to one side. Don't press open like you do with garment sewing. For example, press each seam to the left side in this row. 
• For the second row, sew all the squares (or strips) to each other the same way you did with the first row. 
• Press each seam to the right side. Give a quick press to the front side of the seams too. 
• Sew the second row to the first row making sure to line up the seams perfectly. Press seams to one side.
• Repeat this until you're at the end of the length. 
• If your quilt is easier to sew the strips/squares across, do that and work your way down.
• You could use a walking foot to sew your pieces if you'd like. It helps to "walk" both layers evenly at the same time. I used the quilting foot my machine came with for the Halloween one. For the Christmas one, I didn't. Both turned out beautifully without issues.

After the middle portion is completed and you're standing in shock and awe at the small sized quilt, you might want to make it bigger. I know I did! Ha! I still can't believe how much it shrinks after sewing all the pieces together. 

If you'd like to make it bigger, you can sew a few extra strips to add to the sides, top, and bottom. In that order. My Halloween quilt shrank after I sewed the middle area together. I didn't realize how much a tiny 1/4" seam allowance would eat the fabric. 

This quilt was sewn left to right because strips were placed between the squares.

Sewing the Pieces Together

Press your seams to one side, and then the opposite side to avoid bulk.

Press, press, press!

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