Magic in a can!

As a long time quilter I have worked with different methods of basting my quilts.

I always used to simply use a needle and thread to baste the quilt sandwich together, which worked incredibly well. But is was very time consuming - a king size quilt would take well over an hour to baste.

The other down side is that the quilt would shift sometimes, which is really annoying when you have worked so hard to centre the back pieces!

I have been using quilters safety pins for a year, I love these on smaller projects, but I have found they shift the quilt too much on a larger quilt. On smaller quilts shifting is much less of a concern. Small shifts over a huge space builds until the centre of the back is completely off.

I have also found that as I FMQ my mind tends to wander off and I zone out. I often miss the fact that I am approaching a safety pin until it is too late and my machine is almost on top of it!

Still I prefer the pins to the needle and thread method!

This leads me to the magic in a can method!

The curvy quilt I shared with you yesterday is full of curvy seams and the backing was pieced so I was really keen to make sure I got the front and the back positioned properly. So I started investigating my other options and the most obvious was a spray adhesive.

I got some from The Village Haberdashery.

From The Village Haberdashery

The instructions on the can are really clear.

You lay the quilt layers out - preferably outside, which isn't an option in freezing England. You peel back one half of the quilt top and spray the basting glue onto the wadding. Then gently smooth out the quilt from the middle out, smoothing out the top as you go.

You repeat the process for the other side. Then you can flip the quilt and repeat the process for the backing.

I found this video on You Tube that shows how to use the spray:

Having used it on 3/4 large quilts I won't be going back to pins or needle and thread. It has allowed me to work on huge quilts both in my machine and by hand without having to worry about everything shifting around.

As an experiment I also left the curvy quilt for a few weeks after I basted it to see if the glue would wear off - it hasn't! It is still just as strongly put together as it was when I sprayed it.

The beauty of the spray basting is that I can re-position the quilt top and the back if I need to - but I haven't had to yet!

What's you favourite way to baste your quilts?

PS I don't receive any form of incentive from either the shops or manufacturers I chat about on my blog.

Quick Machine Applique

This is a tutorial for making super fast machine applique blocks without using Bondaweb or pins!!

You will need 

• Fabric Scraps

• 12.5" square of background fabric

• Fabric glue

Step One

Cut out 6 leaves, a stem, flower and circle centre piece from your scraps.

Step Two

Lay out the design, making sure you note the order the pieces are placed, For example the centre of the flower comes after the stem and flower.

Step Three

Next take the design off and carefully put some glue on the wrong side of the stem. You don't need a lot, jut a few small dabs along the length of the stem.

Place this onto the background fabric and gently press down.

Step Four

I like to relay all of the pieces back on and glue them carefully into place, this way I can see the overall design:

Again you only need a little glue. Once they are all glued into place, it is time to have a cuppa! The glue needs about 15 minutes to dry so it doesn't clog up your machine!

Step Five

Next comes the fun bit! Sew the pieces into place!

You can use a free motion foot to do this, especially if there are lots of curves!

Step Six

Once you have finished stand back and admire your wonderful work!

Please respect the work putting this tutorial together has taken. Do not be so rude as to steal the content without asking me first - I am a pretty friendly person. and I don't bite!

New Toys...

When I started my Hexy MF quilt along, Katy from Fat Quarterly suggested all sorts of new sewing toys!

I bought most of them as I had not used them before and I thought it would be a worthwhile investment. Some of the them have been a success... others I am not sure I will use again....

Everyone is different so I thought I would share my thoughts on the things I have tried out:

Sewline Glue Pen

I love this glue pen. It is easy to use and really does work. The down side is that you have to use a lot making so many hexagons, which means they run out very quickly... I have found that I need a buy refills too quickly, so whilst I love the glue I have returned to the traditional method of attaching the paper - needle and thread!

If you want to try it out Pollyanna Patchwork has them and they are super fast with delivery!

Wonder Clips

I got these at the Festival of Quilts a couple of weeks ago. Katy recommended using them to help when attaching the fabric and paper hexagons. I tried this, but found the clips heavy and bulky whilst I was sewing... But I have been using them for the next step of building the flowers:

They work really well to keep everything in place. I also used them to help when I was binding my new quilt:

I got mine from Creative Grids at the Festival, but they have them online too.

Thread

I was also introduced to Aurifil 50/2 thread, which has changed the way I work completely! I have bought this thread in a number of shades and it is now the only thread on my sewing machine!

It is amazingly versatile - it pieces, appliques, hand pieces and quilts.... perfect!

The best range is at Quilt Direct, who are fantastic at getting them out fast!

I hope I have given you some inspiration... what new toys have you tried that worked well?