Trimming Points

Is trimming points before sewing a waste of time?  I've always thought so, and I still do, but when sewing a trapezoid piece to a quarter square triangle to make this frame for my old blocks, there are two places that must line up perfectly.  

Here's what the finished piece should look like--straight on the bottom, and with a quarter inch seam allowance at the top so you don't lose the point.  Eye-balling the placement for this is hard.  Believe me I know.

So I thought I'd give Judy Martin's point trimmer tool a try, and I'm a believer, at least for this.  It took some experimentation for me to work this out, so in case anyone else needs to do the same thing, here's what I learned.

To trim the 45 degree angle on the trapezoid that goes at the top of the join, I used the C trim, lining it up with the point of the triangle.

The triangle has its tip cut off, also with the C trim.  (If you use a quarter-square triangle tool, the tip is already cut off.  More about that another time.)

Then use the B trim to cut off the 45 degree points, like so.

Triangle trimmed:

When the pieces are lined up for sewing, they look like this, a perfect match:

And the result is also perfect, or almost:

You just repeat the process with the other side.

Now this is rather tedious, I certainly admit.  But it makes the sewing so much faster that I think it's worth it.  But I still wouldn't want to trim hundreds of these pieces like that, would you?  

A Satisfying Finish

Once I went back to the nine-patches, the addictive quality of these little blocks kicked in.  I had only intended to make a few more, and then go back to another project.  Instead, I finished this, which can be a lap quilt for the veteran's hospital where one of my guilds sends quilts.

It turned out to be quite a stash buster; when I started cutting the longer sashing strips I was no longer using tiny scraps and had to use larger pieces.  That's a good thing.  The final outer border used up a piece of amazingly hideous dull green and brown fabric, and I pieced the back, using up even more fabric which seemed a bit dated to me, but works perfectly here.  So I'm very pleased with the whole thing.

I'm also happy with the batting I used.  I like polyester batting for service quilts because of the easy care, and this time I bought a new product from Mountain Mist called Quilt-Light batting.  It's very low loft, which makes it light, non-bulky, and easy to manipulate for quilting in the Janome, and I had no problem with the fabric creeping and producing tucks.  It's soft and drapey when finished also.   The king-size batt I bought should make three more quilts.

A few other things to be pleased with:  Peppermint Stars is packed and on its way to Paducah, I have a place to stay when I go there, and all my Alzheimer's quilts have sold.   If anyone reading bought one, thank you so much!

Knotty Problems

The Janome automatically knots the thread when you begin zig-zagging, but after almost two years, I finally realized that to keep the knot on the underside, you have to hold the BOBBIN thread.   Then you can cut the top thread short and pop the knot to the back by tugging the bobbin thread.  If you hold the top thread or no thread, the knot and the bobbin thread always pop up and look ugly.

Two or three thoughts:  why did it take me so long to figure this out, why did no one tell me this when I took a class on the machine, and why did Janome design it that way?  It requires some contortion, as you can see.  When you end the stitching, the machine knots the thread, and then the scissors tool cuts the thread and pulls the knot to the back.  Pretty slick.  Wouldn't it have been nice to pull the knot to the back at the beginning too?

No matter though.  I'm thrilled to have figured this out.  It improves the look of the stitching tremendously.

Two Methods for Facing the Edges of a Quilt

Rian asked about the facing method I mentioned in my last post, so here's a brief explanation.  This technique comes from the book Circle Play by Reynola Pekusich.  I didn't go back and look up the details, so although she gets credit for the idea, the details and any mistakes are mine.  Here's a photo of a quilt I made using this technique.

Cut a square with sides about twice the width of the facing, and round one corner of the square so it will make a smooth curve joining the facing.  The facing strips for the sides are cut length of side, minus width of two squares, plus one inch for seam allowance.  One side strip is cut in two pieces to make the join.  (On a large quilt you might want to make a join in the middle of every side.) You sew the strips to the squares, turn under and stitch a 1/4 inch hem,  and attach the entire facing to the front of the quilt, right sides together.  The final join is made by overlapping the two ends.  I don't have a photo of this because it's under my hanging sleeve.  Then turn the facing to the wrong side, pushing the bulk firmly into the corners and squaring them, and slip stitch the facing down, or fuse if you want.  This makes a neat facing.

Here's the other method that I don't recommend, although perhaps it would work better with a bit more care than I used.  I don't remember where I saw this, so I can't give credit or blame.

A facing strip is cut for each side, about an inch shorter than the quilt.  Then cut four squares large enough to cover the facing when it's folded into a triangle as shown.  Fold the squares in half, press them and pin a triangle to each corner of the quilt on right side.  Pin the strips to the sides of the quilt on top of the triangles.  Stitch around all sides, and turn to the right side.  The folded triangle should cover the raw ends of the side strips.  Turn under the edges of the strips and slip stitch or fuse them down.  Slip stitch the triangles over them.  This method is easy, because there are no joins and the measurements don't have to be so precise, but I think it's bulky, and I had trouble making a smooth square corner.

On a very small piece those triangles could be left un-sewn, forming a place to slip a hanging rod.

Terrific New Foot

 Janome just announced this new foot a few months ago, and I ordered one as soon as I saw the information.  I've had it now for several weeks, and I absolutely love it.  The clear plastic allows a wonderful view for accurate 1/4" or 1/8" seams.  It rides over seams fairly well also.   If you want, you can attach the 1/4" guide.  I don't want.  I hated that guide on the older quarter inch foot and the fact that it is removable was the main attraction for this foot.  The other guide is for stitch in the ditch.  This would probably be helpful, but I haven't tried it since I don't stitch in the ditch except for quilting.  I can think of uses for it in garment sewing however.

So if you have a Janome that this foot will fit (horizontal rotary hook models), I'd really recommend it.  It cost about $17, as I remember.

February Interpret This

Indigestion  

31" x 32"

It was a rocky road this month.  It never occurred to me to be thematic, I think because I've done Chinese before, so I tried to keep a visual relationship to the original photo (which you can see here).  Since I don't draw, and prefer to work with shapes, this was difficult.  I could only see the circle and the diagonal.  You can read more about my struggles on the Interpret This blog.  Be sure to look at all the other interpretations too--two already posted and more to come today through Sunday.  There's a fascinating range of approaches.

Some technical points that might be interesting:  1.  Quilting with a walking foot at an angle that's not a straight bias is difficult.  The quilt tries to move back to the straight and narrow, producing lines that are wonky in a different way than intended.  It also distorts the quilt a great deal.  2.  Twelve weight thread and batiks are not a good match, at least on my Janome.  Even with a #14 topstitch needle I had problems with skipped stitches and thread breakage.  I've ordered some #16/100 needles for next time.  3.  I was using a scrap of Quilters' Dream Poly batting which has been recommended as good for wall quilts. Having used it twice now, I don't think I'd agree.  Its denseness compounded the stitching problem, and being polyester, it didn't help in blocking the quilt back into shape.  Now that it's gone, I won't buy more.

I have this piece hanging in my studio, and I like it more all the time.  Odd how your feelings about things change.

Thanks and a Recommendation

Thank you to everyone who visited my self-portrait and made such kind comments.  I'm pleased with the way it turned out.  The idea was a while in coming, but once it did, everything went together smoothly. Sometimes that happens, I guess.

The February challenge photo has been posted, and if you're curious about what we're up against, go over and check the Interpret This blog and take a look.  A lovely picture, but challenging.  I've made some notes, and may have an idea of how to proceed.

As I was hanging the self-portrait, I remembered a tip to share.  Did you know that used sewing machine needles make great nails to hang lightweight pictures or small wall hangings?  They're very strong and make such a small hole that the wall isn't marred.  I have a TicTac box full of dulled needles that I use for this purpose.  Now if there was only a perfect use for dull rotary blades...

Quilt Batting

Cotton or wool batting seems to be the preferred choice for most quilters now, and that's all I've used for quite a while.  But recently I haven't been happy with the way cotton batting looks in the quilts I make for guild service projects.  The flatness of the cotton doesn't seem to say warm, cozy, and cuddly for a small child.  Also, the easy care of polyester seems a good thing for these quilts.  Not all families have access to washers and dryers with gentle settings, or the time for line drying.

So for this one, I bought Mountain Mist 100% polyester with  medium loft.  At the halfway point in the quilting, I'm very happy with it.  I like the puffiness, and it clings as well to the fabric as the cotton battings do, maybe better. There are no pleats or puckers, at least so far.  When it's been bound and washed, I'll know better, but right now it seems a good choice.  Good thing, because I bought a king size batt at JoAnn's half price sale, planning to make four child-size quilts.

Maybe it's the stiff, cheap batting sold by the roll that gives polyester a bad name.  This is quite different, worth a second look.

Pressing Tip

I always have trouble pressing a block with lots of seam intersections so that the seams are really flat. A hard ironing board and a heavy iron help, but I don't like steam. Lately, I've been trying this method, which I like, and I thought I'd pass it on. It will be familiar to anyone who has done lots of garment sewing, especially tailoring, but I've never heard it mentioned by quilters, and I never thought of it myself until recently.

Here's the basket block; see all the nasty intersections to make flat. There are more on the other side too.



Here's the tool I'm using. I don't know what this is called, but it's used to press seams open before they're pressed together, and it has all those weird curves and points to accommodate different seams. For quilting all you need is a long flat piece of wood; a 12 inch piece of 2 by 2 would work fine. Wood is the best because it is a good conductor of heat and pulls the heat out of the fabric quickly so that the seam cools in the position you want it to be.

All you do is press the seam together, then open the block and press the seam to the side, as usual. While the fabric is hot, put the wood piece on the seam, press down, and hold it for about 10 seconds or so.



You end up with a flat seam without worrying about scorching or puckering from steam. If you really want to use steam, give just a second of steam before you put the wood down.


(Do you think that woman needs cosmetic surgery on her hands? Yikes!)

Another Product Endorsement...

...without the big payment, unfortunately.

I just found the Scotch Fur Fighter. It's intended to remove "embedded pet hair". Since we have a cat, I bought it. But before using it for cat hair, I gave it a try on the nasty little bits of felted batting lint left after I washed the quilt made with that crappy Fairfield batting. I had used a lint roller repeatedly and couldn't get it all. The Fur Fighter worked. So someone might find this useful, for pet hair or lint. The only drawback here is that this gadget was not cheap, and it will eventually require more refill sheets which may be difficult to find.

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down

Thumbs up for the Supreme Slider! It's very smooth silicone (I think) sheet that fits on the bed of the sewing machine allowing fabric to move more easily when you're doing free motion stitching. There's a hole for the needle, and the underside is sticky and clings tightly. I've only used this on small pieces, but it was wonderful, totally living up to expectations.

P.S. Kathy's comment about washing the slider is a good one; I should have mentioned it. I already had to do that, and it seemed to work fine.


Thumbs down here. This batting shrinks more than I expected, it doesn't cling to the quilt very well, causing puckering, and it sheds lint EVERYWHERE. I thought I was buying Hobbs Heirloom, which has the same cotton-poly content, but had a real senior moment and bought this by mistake. Don't do it!

Fusible Web

Quilt Studio is hosting a series of posts about fusible web, how we use it, what brands we like, etc. I don't use fusible web too much, but I will comment on my experience.

Brands: I've tried Wonder Under, Steam-a-Seam, Steam-a-Seam Lite, Misty Fuse, but my favorite is one called Trans Web. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find this at my local JoAnn's so will have to look on line when my current supply runs out. My biggest gripe about fusibles is that the paper sometimes doesn't release after the first fuse. I have most success by scoring the paper with a pin and pulling from the score, not pulling away a corner. I like Trans Web best because it releases better than the others. There is a new product made by Pellon called Wonder Under Web, which is just what it says, web only, no paper. So you would have to use parchment paper or a teflon press cloth with it. I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds promising.

Here's a link to an old post where I talked about fusible brands in a bit more detail.

Fuse the Shape, Fuse the Whole Fabric: I've done both ways. Usually I trace the shape on the paper, fuse, cut out the shape, score the paper and peel it away before the final fusing. But I have cut free hand from a pre-fused piece of fabric for something small and casual, like a post card. That is easier, but you have to be a good free-hand cutter, obviously. You can also trace around a pattern directly on the fusible-backed fabric. This works well for a simple shape.

Finish the Edges Usually. Again, not for a postcard.

How to Clean the Iron Dritz Iron-Off. Works like a charm. The ironing board cover is another matter. I throw those away regularly. :)

Cruise on over to Quilt Studio, read the other links, and add your own.

Text on Post Card

Since I can't draw, I like to combine fabric motifs and words on fabric postcards, but I've had trouble planning how to place the words so that when I put the fabric through the printer they are in the right location on the card. I figured out a way to do it last week when I made little cards for the grandchildren.

First I made a layout of the fabric motifs, scanned it into Photoshop, and sized it to 4 x 6 inches. ( It has to be reversed on the scanner bed, which was tricky for me at first.)


Then I made a new layer and put in the text I wanted, placing it correctly.


Then I made only the Text layer visible, and fed the pre-treated fabric fused on freezer paper into the printer. This gave me pale blue fabric with red lettering, and no image of course.

Then I fused the fabric motifs into their place on the background, and finished the card as usual. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture before I mailed it, but it was very cute. The outline heart was red, of course, and the edges were finished with red zig zag.

You could also print the entire card from Photoshop, making a colored background layer, but I like the combination of sewing and printing.

This process may be blindingly obvious to many people, but it was a breakthrough for me, and didn't strain my very meager knowledge of Photoshop.

P. S. After finishing this post, I remembered that I CAN treat you to a look at the one where the printing smeared so that I had to do it again. So I guess the final lesson of this tutorial is DON'T FORGET TO HEAT SET THE PRINTING.

A Sweet Tip

Last week I had to bake lots of brownies for a Christmas cookie sale. I found a large size recipe, baked them in a baker's half sheet pan (double the size of a 9 x 13 pan), and used my rotary ruler and a big pizza cutter to cut them. Perfect, even, bars! I've never been able to do that before, so I'm passing on the idea to anyone else who can use it in the Christmas baking frenzy.

Hang It Up!

I love this quilt! I made it several years ago, using an Alex Anderson design. There's not a shred of originality to it, but it was fun to make and put together, and I'm pleased with the blend of colors. The reason for the post however, is to show that I FINALLY was able to hang it where I want to, and to put in a plug for the Hang Ups Company. This is their No See Um hanger; the reason for the name should be clear. I like the way nothing shows but the quilt, but they do make a hanger with a visible wooden hook if that's the look you like. There's a bracket that fastens to the wall by adhesive or screws, and a slotted rod goes into the sleeve of the quilt and hooks onto the bracket through the fabric. The rod telescopes to various lengths. The hanger comes with clear instructions and a little level to make it easier to hang straight, and there's a demo video on the web site. A great product, made in the USA too.

More Stars, and Organization Tool

I've made a couple more stars, the plain ones because I need practice before tackling those split ones. It's fascinating to see the effect of different stripes, and of course the same stripes going around the star instead of vertically look different still. The possible variations help to make something that goes quite slowly interesting.



And here's a free, recycled organization tool. These are the plastic boxes that salad greens come in. I've found them wonderful for sorting different cut-out pieces, threads, or other parts of the work-in-progress mess. They stack, and so don't take up much room, and the items are easily found. I don't save the covers to use because stacking provides built-in dust protection. And of course using the containers like this helps me feel less guilty for buying expensive, wastefully packaged stuff! Also, the soup kitchen where I volunteer gets lots of donated cakes, and the plastic lids from those make good larger bins for storing pieces of fabric I've pulled for future projects.

Terrific Binding Technique

Recently, Debra Spincic mentioned using Sharon Schamber's binding technique as shown on this video. (There are three parts, but it's worth watching.) Sharon uses Elmer's School Glue instead of pins at all stages of the binding to hold everything firmly and it gives amazing results. I tried this out on a charity quilt that I just finished binding, and it's wonderful. Sharon says she does this for her show quilts, but I think it also works beautifully on something quick that you just want a fairly neat looking machine stitched binding. It's actually much quicker than the pinning I have to do for decent looking results, especially on the second stage. I didn't have her glue applicator tip either, just the regular tip of the bottle. You can see my results here. I didn't even try very hard, and they still look good, although they'd look even better if I had my glasses changed so I could see the ditch to stitch in better! The slightly-out-of focus first photo has the same effect :) Forgot to stitch down the miter too--mea culpa.

Towel Bib

Valerie asked how I made the two bibs I showed in the last post, so here's a quick tutorial. This is pretty basic sewing, so I'm not going into much detail, just giving a general idea.

You start with a hand towel, about 16 x 24 inches, and cut it in half, crosswise. It's better to use one without the plain-weave band, but I just ignored the band and appliqued over it this time. I use a purchased bib as a template for the neck, but if you don't have one, the opening is approximately a 4" diameter circle.



Then you can decorate as you choose. There are lots of options, but for this I was using up a little piece of rather poor quality fabric that I got in an exchange. To make this oddly shaped applique around the cat, I put a piece of muslin on top of the image, drew around the shape I wanted with fabric marker, and then stitched on the line. Then I trimmed around the stitching, leaving 1/4 allowance, and slit the muslin to turn it right side out. After turning and pressing, I trimmed the excess fabric away leaving 1/2 inch seam allowance, pinned the image to the bib, and stitched it down.






For binding, I cut a bias strip 2 1/4", folded it in half and stitched it to the front of the neck. You can use purchased binding, too, but I think this kind works better actually. The curve is rather sharp, and so this is a little tricky, but there aren't any quilt police here, so if it bunches a bit, it's ok. Then I folded the binding over to the wrong side and pressed it. I did use Sharon Schamber's technique of putting a line of Elmer's School Glue on the seam allowance, and then pressing down the binding. This holds it securely and evenly so that you can stitch-in-the-ditch on the right side easily. Then, add velcro strips for closing, wash it to get out the glue and be sure it's clean for the baby, and there you are.



They're great bibs: big and thick enough to sop up lots of STUFF, and the extra size is also good for wiping the face.

Thread Report

Taking a break from quilt wrestling to report on all the different threads I've been using on this project. Maybe that will be of interest to someone. I'm only considering the ease of use in my machine and the general effect, not specific colors or variations because that's of course something that depends on individual taste.

I'm using Superior Threads Bottom Line in the bobbin, except when I use a contrasting color in the top thread and then I've used a transparent thread, don't know which one. I love Bottom Line and use it almost all the time for machine quilting. It's fine polyester, comes in many colors, doesn't knot or make ugly lines and helps camoflage errors, important for me.

Sulky metallics work well for me; Sulky Holoshimmer and Sliver worked for a while, have always worked in the past, but stopped working day before yesterday. I changed needle, changed the bobbin, turned the spool, moved the spool, everything I could think of. It's a mystery to me. Sulky cotton quilting threads in both weights are good threads. I think the color choice is rather limited, but again, that's taste.

Superior Threads King Tut (30 wt. cotton), and Razzle Dazzle (for bobbin work) are three star threads. Beautiful smooth stitching. So is Superior Rainbows (40 wt. rayon) except it's so fine the ends work loose for me. I think I've solved that problem by using my lock stitch THREE TIMES and then burying the ends. I also love Wonderfil Accent. It's a 12 wt, 2 ply rayon with a beautiful shine. I wish I'd bought more colors in Chicago. I also have some Wonderfil Sizzle, which looks just like Razzle Dazzle, but didn't work as smoothly in my bobbin. Wonderfil metallic with a rayon core is an interesting 12 wt. thread that's supposed to work in needle, but I didn't have a big enough needle, so I put it in the bobbin. Worked fine, very little shine. Then there's YLI machine quilting thread which is also a beautiful cotton thread, 30 wt. I think, and Aurifil Mako, a 12 wt cotton that seems heavier than the Sulky 12 wt although they're nominally the same.

Back to work--I'll spare everyone my thoughts on Viking sewing machines--

Tip for Squaring Up

Yesterday I made the unpleasant discovery that the square background for my Hoffman circle wasn't perfectly square in spite of all my supposedly careful marking and cutting. Since the circle has to look exactly centered, I couldn't just trim. I was hopelessly confused about what part to cut, but solved the problem by making a square of paper the correct size (34 inches), and then putting that over the inaccurate piece. I could see the outline of the circle through the paper, so it was relatively easy to move the paper until the circle was centered, and then cut along the edge of the paper square. I don't think I had this idea by myself. It's one of those things that I read somewhere and had buried in the unconscious until needed. I thought I'd pass it on. The top of the Hoffman is finished now; I'm sending my sewing machine to rehab before I quilt it. We need time apart, for sure!