Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Noob Quilt Patterns - Top Choice And Tips To Begin With

By Ayisha Balti


Have you found beginning a massive project like a duvet made of one thousand pieces, a dismaying task to begin, especially if you have not worked on one before? Do not be disturbed, there are plenty of simple covering options, patterns, inspirations and tips that could help you out even if you have not stitched that much before. First off when you pick between beginner quilt patterns choose designs that are made of straight rows or columns, unless you're working on applique quilt patterns.

Keep your amateur quilt patterns simple

If colours are an important part of the over all design effect, don't make your choice of colors too tricky, just stick to an engaging range of 2 to 6 different colors and your covering project will stay reasonably easy to handle. If you would like to use an attractive color palette for your quilt and don't know where to start you can also hunt for a pretty collection of complimentary colors, textures and prints offered by the jelly roll quilt patterns available at many online fabric stores such as fabric.com and Hancockfabrics.com. If you have chosen patchwork quilt patterns begin by stitching your blocks or patch rows or columns together and then sew those strips or blocks together to form your quilt face. You may then stitch on the backing of the quilt with batting sandwiched between if required then finish with an easy but attractive covering.

Rag and applique quilt patterns

Applique quilt patterns and rag quilts are 2 types of covering approaches highly recommended for noobs. Following, are outlines on how to get started on these quilting styles.

The easiest way to sew applique covers

Applique quilt patterns are largely smaller shapes of fabric stitched in place on a larger single piece of fabric. As a beginner you might want to work on a faster image for your quilt with large pieces of fabric making up the different areas of your design. Sew around the perimeter of each piece separately, then snip about to the stitching line and turn down the edge toward the bottom of the applique piece and gently press. When all of your pieces are completed, organize and pin them in their correct places on your principal quilt face and sew into place with either a hem stitch, machine stitch, button hole stitch or any tasty embroidery stitch that would compliment the over all look of your quilt. The most vital thing about finishing your applique quilt patterns is to make certain your applique edges are finished neatly and won't fray.

The way to stitch rag duvets

Rag quilts are usually described as cuddlesome and particularly warm, but the method used to put them together is especially suited to the beginner as it escapes the necessity for pressing and perfect matching of seams. It is a little like sewing faux chenille only not with so many stitching lines and layers. You would like to choose a combination of cottons, flannels and even denims which will look great together once their edges fray and fluff up nicely together. You wish to sandwich these layers together in blocks, then seam these 'sandwiches ' along with 1/2" seams stitched towards the right side of the quilt face only.

If you decide to add batting to your rag quilt

If you'd like to have batting to fill the sandwiches rather than just using flannel, be totally sure to make the batting blocks smaller than the scale of your blocks for example if your rag quilt blocks are 10 x 10, so the batting doesn't get caught in the quilt seams between the blocks, you want to make your batting blocks 8 1/2" x 8 1/2". To keep the batting in place however , you'll need to do some quilting within each block (not through the 'rag ' seams though). When you've stitch all of your rag rows or columns, complete the quilt by stitching them together, again with 1/2" seams on the right side of the quilt face and then doing the same round the perimeter. Then thoroughly snip all the seams and fringe, taking care not to snip too near to the seams. When finished, place your rag quilt in the washer to help the rag 'bloom ' into a soft fluffy grid like pattern, some say using extra soap in the wash can help this along as well as a few more washings.

Wedding quilt patterns for amateurs

If your own or somebody else has a marriage coming up, do not think for a minute that you will not be well placed to make a gift quality quilt for this significant occasion. Similar to patchwork quilt patterns OK for noobs, there are wedding quilt patterns beginners can safely tackle also. Color choice simply needs to have a white base with bright or pastel colours to match the marriage theme. Some simple, amateur friendly patterns to make a choice from are the: Love Bird Block, Heart in Hand, Engagement Statement, Ring Design, Fancy Fan and Rose Wreath.




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