Making Your Sandwich

Time...

A quilt for a crib, or baby quilt can easily take 40 hours of your time. The bigger the quilt, the more time it takes to make. I have spent 120 hours on a single quilt. That's not continuous time, that's a couple hours a night, after work and all day on the weekends. That's a month or months on a single quilt. 

Quilt in a day? Not likely. Maybe you can finish a simple quilt top in 24 hours of work. That's definitely do-able. Then you add in building the sandwich, top-stitching or quilting and binding, well, your back up to a lot of time.

Making the sandwich and preparing the quilt for quilting doesn't take a lot of time, it does take a lot of patience and pins!

Building Your Sandwich

It starts with your backing fabric. This can be a piece of cotton fabric, it can be flannel, it can be fleece, or a new sheet. It can be one solid piece, or a multi-pieced design. It's important that it's bigger than your quilt top by a couple of inches. It should be ironed, without fold lines and wrinkles.

For this quilt, I used dark blue fabric on either side of the figured fabric.

Lie this fabric on a flat surface, and smooth it until it lies completely flat. Layer on your batting fabric. This can be big, fluffy, comforter-like thick batting, flatter cotton or synthetic batting or for warm climates, it can even be a sheet. I like to have my batting just a bit bigger than my quilt top. If your backing is a fleece product, you probably won't have a batting fabric too, as the fleece is used for both products. Lay your batting flat on your backing fabric, and smooth it until it lies flat.

Fleece backed quilt

King-sized cotton batting

To the left is the King-sized quilt I made, I had to put two pieces of batting (cotton, low loft) together to make a piece big enough for this quilt. I used my bed, with a hard surface on the mattress to build my sandwich. 

On the right is an example of fleece being used as the backing fabric and the batting. It makes a very soft sided arty blanket, and is very easy to work with. You must still follow all the steps, building, turning, smoothing, turning and smoothing again when using just the top and backing. 

Next comes the quilt top you have created. It, too, needs to be wrinkle free, with no fold lines. If it's been ironed all the way through the process, it should be ready to lay flat upon the batting and backing. 

Starting in the center, begin pinning the three pieces together, putting a pin in every 6 inches or so. You will wan to use safety pins, so that you don't prick your fingers in the next task. 

Once you have pinned the entire quilt top, batting and backing together, you will want to very carefully flip the quilt over. You will probably notice places that the backing is not laying completely flat. Beginning in the center, you will start smoothing to the outside, moving pins (yep, those pins are on the other side, you will have to reach under, move and repin from underneath) as you need to, to get the back completely smooth. You will want to pay attention to the batting as well, being sure it's still laying flat. 

Back with bubbles and folds, ironing didn't take all the lines out.

After smoothing the quilt, the back looks much nicer.

These are the same backing, I know the colors look different, but they aren't. This is what this quilt back looked like when I flipped it and started smoothing, and when I was nearly finished smoothing the back out. This flipping really makes a big difference to how your quilt looks when it's finished.


When the back is completely smooth, once again, you carefully flip the quilt over so that your quilt top is up. Beginning in the center, make sure that the movement of pins didn't make bubbles in your quilt top. Adjust pins to be sure that the top is laying flat against the batting/backing. 

When it is completely smooth, you will want to add more pins, to keep everything in place as you are sewing. Adding another pin between each set of pins you have already placed wont be too many pins.

When your last pin is set, you are ready to take this sandwich to your sewing machine, and begin top-stitching, or quilting these pieces together! You will begin in the center, and will be mindful of the layers, keeping everything smooth as you quilt your quilt.

Quilting

Making Squares look like Circles

Block 1, busy!

Block 2, very simple

I have made this pattern in a king, queen and twin-sized quilts. I love that two blocks (on the right and left) create this curving, moving artistry. 

There are only 4 different squares in the 2 blocks. I used a lot of different colors, patters, fabrics in these quilts, and patterned whites and creams to help those colors pop. 

Of course, you have to get close to see the colors, because the pattern almost overwhelms the individual blocks!

Fabric Needed: 

This is to finish 9 blocks, 3 x 3. Add or subtract as your need warrants. These are exact numbers, I always add a bit, to be sure I have enough, should I need to make an additional square or two, to keep from having matching squares.
Plain fabric = 1 1/4 yd
Colored fabric= 1 1/4 yd

Cutting instructions: 

Each block finishes at 9". (You could, I suppose, add an inch to each square, design these to finish at 12". It would make for a different quilt, through very similar.) Each square finishes at 3".
4-square = 4-2" squares or 2 strips of 2-2" fabrics, cut into 2" strips, and joined
Full square = 3 1/2" squares
Half-square triangle = 3 1/2" half-square triangles
Triangle square = there are templates you could buy, or not, instructions below

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  3 1/2" and 2" strips for square creation

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  Pieces cut in to shapes to begin building

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  Using template for triangles

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  Adding first side to triangles

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  Iron as they are, then open them out and iron

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  Chain stitching strips for four squares

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  Finished squares

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  Begin building rows for the blocks

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  Rows for one block are ready

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  Building the block, one row at a time

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  Blocks built, and set to begin making sets

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  Sets of blocks being created, then ironed

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  Block sets finished, you can almost see a curve

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  Sewing two sets and it becomes four blocks

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  Left overs for the next quilt

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  After creating the sandwich, ready to quilt

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  All the blocks sewn together, but not quilted (not ironed yet)

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  How I quilted this big, king-sized quilt

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  I use a non-pattered fabric when I want the stitches to show

Triangle Squares without a triangle template:

Begin with a 3 1/2" colored block. You will also need a 2 1/2" x 4" rectangle that you will cut diagonally, creating two angled side pieces. Find the center top of your 3 1/2" block, and pin the wide end of one angled piece to that point, so that your 1/4" seam will be at the center. Pin the other end to the bottom at the edge of the square, leaving space for a 1/4" seam, and sew. Repeat for the other side, press and trim. When putting this sample together, I used a 4 1/2" x 2 1/2" white square, which you can see is too much.

This is a great star point pattern. I know, because I made a quilt with bigger star points just this way.

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  Start with a 3 1/2" square

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  Add diagonally cut 2 1/2" 4" strip (4 1/2" pictured)

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  Sew 1/4" seam to add first diagonal strip

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  Add diagonally cut 2 1/2" 4" strip (4 1/2" pictured)

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  Sew and press the square, trim to 3 1/2"

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  Trim extra fabric behind the diagonal strip to 1/4"

Half and Quarter-Square Triangles

I use both half and quarter-square triangles in a lot of my quilts, and there are several ways to create them. They are not the same, not even similar, and you can't interchange them, or you will end up with a weird, stretchy block, or even puckers in your quilt. Here are some easy ways to create your triangles.

Half Square Triangles:

Method 1:

Using your ruler, cut out each side of the triangle in your individual colors, and then sew them along the long side. Press, then press open, and trim if needed.

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  Cut out using your ruler

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  You will end up with two pieces like this.

Method 2:

Creating two half-square triangles at a time, determine the finished sized of your triangle square, and add 7/8". If you are looking to create 2 half-square triangles that are 3" finished, then start with 2 pieces of fabric that are 3 7/8", and with right sides together, draw a diagonal line (the black line below). Stitch 1/4" from that line, on both sides (blue lines below), and then cut along black line. Press, then press open, and trim if needed.

Method 3:

This method gives you 8 half-square triangles. It's very easy to do, and if it's more triangles than you need today, put them in a box, for another quilt on another day. With this method, you determine the size of the half-square triangle you need and add 1 3/4" to two different colored blocks. Put the two blocks together, right sides together, and draw a line in the center of the fabric, turn and cross that line with another line in the center of the fabric. Coming down 3/8"-1/2" from the edge, draw angled lines from your crossed lines. This makes what looks like a big 'on point' square on your fabric. Now, sew 1/4" from the angled lines in a continuous pattern (red line below), on the inside of the square you drew, turning the fabric when you come to a line. Turn the fabric and do the same thing along the outside of the square (red line below). When sewing is complete, cut along each of the lines you drew on the fabric (black lines below.) Press, then press open, and trim if needed.

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  Creating 8 half-square triangles at once.

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  Setting up your lines to sew 8 half-square triangles.

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  Cutting your 8 half-square triangles

Method 4: 

An alternate way to draw your lines, to create 8 half square triangles. In this method, you determine the size of the half-square triangle you need and add 1 3/4" to two different colored blocks. Put the two blocks together, right sides together, and draw lines diagonally, creating a large "X" on your fabric. Then find the center from left to right and draw and intersecting line. Turn your fabric and find the center again and draw another intersecting line. You should have an X and an intersecting cross, like the image below. Stitch 1/4" from each diagonal line, above and below the line, as shown with the blue lines in the image below. Cut along the black lines, and you will have 8 half-square triangles. 

Quarter-Square Triangles

Method 1:

Using your ruler, cut out 2 of each color, or 4 triangles for each square, and then sew the first two along the short side. Repeat with the second two pieces. You will create 2 half-square triangle sides, and then sew them together along the long side. You should now have a square that looks something like an hourglass. Press, then press open, and trim if needed.

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  Cutting individual quarter-square triangles.

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  A quarter square triangle square.

Method 2: 

Making 4 quarter-squares, or two quarter square triangle blocks. With this pattern, add 1-1/4" to your quarter-square triangle size. Beginning with two different fabrics, right sides together, draw lines diagonally from each corner of the fabric (black lines below). On only one of those diagonal lines, sew 1/4" from the top and bottom of that line. Cut along the diagonal lines (black lines below. You now have 4 half-square triangle blocks. Select 2 of these, where the colors are opposite, and stitch along long edge. You now have 2 quarter-square triangle blocks.

Method 3:

This method starts with half-square triangles. You might have a box filled with half-square triangles you haven't used yet, and if you do, this will be an easy way for you to create the quarter-square triangles you now want. Begin with 2 opposite half-square triangles, and lay them with right sides together. Draw a line diagonally, that will create a cross with the seam on the half-square triangles (line is in black below). Stitch 1/4" from the top and bottom of this line (orange lines below), cut along the line you drew, and you have 2 quarter-square triangles.

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  Half-square with blue on top

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  Half-square with lavendar on top

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  Stitching the half-squares together.

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  What your quarter-square triangles look like.

Quilting it Whole, or in Portions

Quilt made in 4 sections, and then put together after top-stitching,

After making literally dozens of quilts, from beginning to end, on my home machine - and quilting them at their full size, I have caught on to the 'quilt-as-you-go' phase, sort of. The bigger the piece, the harder 'free motion' quilting is, too. But this isn't really about the quilting, it's about the size.

I don't actually 'quilt-as-you-go', which has each block quilted before it is assembled in a quilt. I have made the process my own, and have started making quilts in halves (twin-sized or smaller) or quarters (double-sized and larger). Quilting, in its full-size, a king-sized quilt, was quite a chore. Getting all that material, batting, and backing into the harp, so it could be quilted... not something I want to do again. Which is why I have made this change to my process! I have done this two different ways, both are similar and have the same results. In one, I connect just the quilt top, and then separately the quilt backing. For this quilt I did it like this...This is the third time I have made this pattern, I really like it.

My own peculiar Quilting Almost As You Go

First, you must put together a quilt top, but in quarters, not as a complete queen-sized blanket...

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  First, be sure that the patterns match!

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  Make a sandwich for each quarter, pinning, flipping, smoothing, flipping and smoothing again, and adding lots more pins. Just like any sandwich.

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  Top-stitch or quilt in the same manner on all 4 quarters, up to at least an inch from all rough edges that will later go together (non-binding sides).

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  Lay your quilted pieces back out, to be sure your going to match them correctly.

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  Trim backing and batting to the top of the quilt edge.

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  Trim batting an additional ¼" to avoid bunching too much batting together.

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  Lay the quilt pieces together, matching all corners, pin at each corner.

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  Pin at each corner, but through the backing material. Attach a 2½" folded strip of the backing fabric to this seam

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  Sew a quarter inch seam of backing and top fabric.

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  The strip of backing fabric you added, it will cover the seam you just made.

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  Iron and pin that strip of fabric down to the backside of the quilt

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  Turn and top stitch those edges (and through the strip) completing the quilting of the top. Hand stitch the flap of the backing strip to the quilt back.

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  When finished, you can't tell it wasn't all quilted together as one piece!

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  On to binding and finishing!