The Weekend Quilter: 25+ Fabulous Quilts to Make in a Weekend

By Rosemary Wilkinson

The Weekend Quilter is the perfect book for those who love to quilt, but don’t have time for long, laborious projects. Featuring 26 step-by-step projects for traditional and modern quilts that are easy to make in a weekend, create beautiful patchwork designs using a rotary cutter and sewing machine. Learn specialist shortcuts from five di

• Language: English
• Publisher: Landauer
• Release date: Feb 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9781607657576

Book preview

Quick Quilt Techniques

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Equipment for the quick quilter: an acrylic ruler, a bias square, a set square, a rotary cutter and mat, a rectangle ruler (the BiRangle™ is shown); a handheld hoop; various marking pencils, quilting threads, and a selection of fabric pieces.

DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNIQUES

The art of quiltmaking has been with us for many generations. Quiltmaking techniques were first brought to British shores by the Crusaders, who found them much in use in the Middle East. By the time of the Victorian era, quilting was an established art form in many households in Britain. The skilled needlewoman was indeed both an artist and a designer, piecing together intricate designs from an array of wonderful fabrics.

Much of the patchwork done at this time was either the style known as crazy patchwork, made in sumptuous fabrics and embellished with stitches and beads, or geometric piecing, made of simple geometric shapes stitched over papers before being joined together with a whipstitch. This latter method has come to be known as English paper piecing. In the United States, pioneer women developed a technique—the patchwork block—that has become an American art form; this method enables quiltmakers to piece their quilts in small units before assembling the quilt top. The revival of patchwork in Britain in the 1970s was very much based on these blockmaking techniques.

If we look at many patchwork quilt patterns, they can be broken down into smaller units consisting of strips, squares, and triangles. For decades, quiltmakers have cut these shapes using templates and then pieced them together either by hand or by machine. Such templates have been invaluable tools for the patchworker, and they still are when more intricate shapes are used. However, modern lifestyles often demand a quicker approach. The advent of the rotary cutter has sped up the process, allowing the quiltmaker to achieve pleasing results in much less time, for example, in just a weekend.

All of the quilts in this book are quick projects in which the pieces are cut with a rotary cutter and machine-pieced. These projects allow you to express creativity in a short period of time.

FABRICS

Selection

Selecting fabric for a project is a personal choice. You will make the projects in this book according to your own preferences, and each quiltmaker will develop a unique style and taste. Some projects are made from soft flannels and brushed cottons to produce warm and comforting quilts; others are made from cottons to produce bright color arrangements suitable for display or for use in interior décor.

In each of the following five sections of this book, you’ll find suggestions for using different color schemes for each project, and your fabric choices will stamp your individuality on the projects. It is never possible to recreate a quilt exactly, as fabric designs and color schemes are always changing. To achieve interest in your quilt, use different tonal values. The tonal values of your quilt should include light, medium, and dark fabrics. These values are relative to each other, so one person’s medium may be another person’s light; the fabrics can even play different roles in the same quilt.

Popular Quilt Sizes

A favorite and versatile quilt size is between 54 and 60 inches (135 and 155 cm) square, which can be used for a baby as a wrap, play rug, crib quilt, or toddler-bed quilt, or for an adult as a lap quilt. Larger square quilts can be used as throws. This book also features rectangular quilts for use as baby stroller and crib quilts, twin-bed quilts, throws, or elegant wall hangings.

If you are unsure of the value of a fabric, you can view it through a value finder, which is a red screen that eliminates the color and allows you to see the degree of light and dark—the value. You can achieve a similar effect by photocopying a fabric in black and white and looking at the values of the grayscale. Another technique is to stare at the fabric and gradually squint at it; the darker fabrics disappear first. This is a good technique when you may be confused between brightness and lightness.

If you are using print fabrics, the scale of the print is a very important factor. Your quilt needs to hold interest both at close range and from a distance. Keep in mind that small prints will look like solids when viewed from a distance, and try to use a variety of scales. Geometric designs add movement, encouraging the eye to move over the surface and allowing you to see the other fabrics. There are also monochromatic prints and textured solids available; these are good substitutes for a solid fabric, giving a softer overall finished look.

You can always experiment with coloring a quilt design on paper before making your fabric selection, but remember that no colored pencil or felt-tip pen can recreate a fabric or its effect when placed next to another. If you are unsure of your fabric selection, purchase only a small amount and try a fabric mock-up. Quiltmakers are avid collectors of fabric, often buying without a project in mind. If you already have various fabrics on hand, you can use them for some of the projects in this book. If, however, you plan to purchase additional fabrics, take the existing fabrics along with you to see them all together, as it is very difficult to carry an image of color in your head. Finally, always be prepared to change your mind.

All of the fabric sizes in this book give a margin for error so that you can purchase fabric with confidence. Most rotary cutting projects involve cutting strips first; these are best cut from across the width of fabric. Therefore, take care if a design calls for a quarter: most quilting-supply shops sell quarters either fat or long. A long quarter is cut 9 inches (25 cm) deep by the width of the bolt. A fat quarter is cut 18 inches (50 cm) deep by the width of the bolt and then split at the fold to give a piece that measures 18 x 22 inches (50 x 56 cm). Only buy a fat quarter if the design specifies such a size.

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Preparation

You must wash each fabric for your project separately to ensure that any excess dye is removed. You do not need to use detergent, but you must use hot water. Keep rinsing until the water runs clear, which may take several rinses. If you are using a washing machine and have no means of collecting the waste water to check for dye, place a piece of white cloth in the machine with the fabric. If the dye bleeds, it will do so into the white cloth. Repeat the process until no more dye runs. If the dye continues to run after repeated washes, you may decide to abandon this fabric. It is not advisable to try setting the dye with salt or vinegar, as it will only set it until the next wash, and if you intend to wash your quilt, the color will run throughout the quilt. Instructions are given later in the book (see here) for preparing fabric that you are dyeing yourself.

After washing, partially dry the fabric and then iron it while it is still damp to restore its original crispness. Press with the selvages together just as it came off the bolt.

Note: Fabric preparation is not included in the length of time indicated for each of the quilts. The overall timing of the project begins when you start cutting the fabrics.

ROTARY CUTTING

Equipment

There are many different pieces of rotary cutting equipment on the market. You will need the following basics for the quilts in this book.

Acrylic rotary ruler: Use a rotary ruler with a nonbeveled edge. Never use a metal ruler, as it will ruin the blades of your rotary cutter. Markings should be on the underside of the ruler, laser printed, and easy to read. A ruler with the markings on the top surface will give a parallax view of the measurements, which will not be accurate. Any angles marked on the ruler should be marked in both directions. A good-sized rule to have is 6 x 24 inches (15 x 60 cm).

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Bias square ruler: This special tool will aid you in cutting and squaring up half-square triangle units. A good size to have is 6 x 6 inches (15 x 15 cm).

Rectangle ruler: The BiRangle™ is one example of this tool, which is designed to help you stitch rectangles twice as long as they are wide. When you cut rectangles from contrasting strips that have been stitched together, you can quickly and accurately make long, thin pairs of triangles. The Creative Grids Perfect Rectangle Ruler and the Bloc Loc Half Rectangle Triangle Ruler are other examples of this type of tool.

Rotary cutter: Rotary cutters come in small, medium, and large sizes. The medium size is classified as heavy duty and is good for all-around use. The small size is good for trimming and for cutting curves. The large size is excellent for cutting large multiple layers, but if you are a newcomer to the technique, you may find it slightly more difficult to control. Keep your cutter well maintained because blunt blades will ruin your mat and make cutting difficult and unpleasant; replacement blades are readily available. Rotary cutters come with safety covers that should be engaged at all times when you are not cutting. Also make sure that cutters are stored safely, out of reach of children. Safe habits prevent accidents from happening.

Self-healing rotary cutting mat: It is essential that you do not cut on any other surface. These mats come in a variety of sizes; a good size is one on which the fabric will fit with only one fold. There is a grid on one side of the mat, but this grid is roller printed and is not always accurate, so do not rely on it for measurements. To avoid confusion, use the reverse side of the mat.

Set square: This is for straightening up the fabric before cutting. A second rotary cutting ruler will substitute for this.

Most of this equipment is available with either imperial (US) or metric measurements, or both.

Measurements

All measurements in this book are given in both US imperial and metric equivalents. Fabric allowances are interchangeable for the purpose of buying the required fabric. However, all cutting instructions are not. Use either imperial or metric measurements; do not mix the two.

The seam allowances (unless otherwise stated) are ¼ inch if you are working in imperial measurements or 0.75 cm if working in metric measurements. Although 0.75 cm is bigger than ¼ inch, these seam allowances

Reviews for The Weekend Quilter

[Laura Hernández · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Ideal para principiantes. La primera parte tiene muy buenos gráficos para comprender las técnicas de patchwork. Los proyectos son sencillos y variados.