Most quilters are firmly in one camp or the other when it comes to prewashing quilting fabric.  Sometimes because they believe strongly in the reasons for their side. And sometimes because that’s what they were taught and it’s become a confirmed habit.  There are advantages to each practice.

Washing your fabric will let you know ahead of time if a color is going to run.  It’s so upsetting to put hours and hours into finishing a quilt and then have a color bleed and ruin your work.  Tossing a color catcher in the wash water with your fabric or your quilt can prevent a disaster…. it’s a small price to pay.

A pretty red fabric.... much prettier if the red stays where it belongs!

The wash water (and it can be just plain water, you don’t really need to add soap) will wash out the chemicals added when the fabric was produced.   If you are sensitive to this kind of thing, washing first is a good idea.   Both the washer and the dryer will cause the cotton fabric to relax and to shrink a bit.  Your finished quilt will be more true to size if you have pre-washed.

Now, if you don’t prewash, you get to play with your fabric right away!  Washing will usually require that you press the fabric…. no washing = no pressing (unless it was really wrinkled on the bolt).   The fabric will also be a little stiffer because of the chemicals and because the fibers are still stretched from the manufacturing process.  This means it will be easier to rotary cut.

And when you finish your quilt made from unwashed fabrics and run it through the washer and dryer it will come out all crinkly and puckery…. a ready made vintage look!

So which camp are you in?  Do you prewash?  Or do you just jump right in?  Do you have any other reasons for which rule you prefer to follow?

Suns Out has a variety of Quilt Jigsaw Puzzles.  Here’s two with quilting as the main theme… 

Morgan Weisling’s Quilting Bee brings you back in time to an old fashioned quilting bee with all the women, young and old, sitting around the quilt frame.  You can almost hear them chatting away as they sew.  And little brother is under the frame listening and probably pestering his sister.

Several prize-winning quilts are being admired by attendees in The Quilting Show Circuit Jigsaw Puzzle.

Several of the puzzles combine quilt images with landscapes.  Here’s two of those…

The quilt in Cactus Flower And Quilt Jigsaw Puzzle uses colors found in the desert landscape. 

In Floating Quilts Over Sisters Jigsaw Puzzle quilts hang on a line in the foreground while quilty hot air ballons float in the sky in the background.  There are chairs just waiting for you to “set a spell” and maybe do some hand sewing.

And here’s one where the quilt IS the puzzle.  Well, the quilt AND a couple of playful kitties.   Wedding Rings And Kittens Jigsaw Puzzle has 1,000 pieces and looks challenging!

This was just a sampling.  There are more than three dozen Quilt Jigsaw Puzzles to choose from.

In the last post you saw a few quilts and a wall hanging offered by Ursula Riegel of Designs To Share With You.  As I mentioned there’s lots more than just quilts. 

A Handful of Fancy Placemats has five different borders, and they’re EASY to sew!  Get ready to dress up your table.  Also included are matching coasters and “party dresses” for your glasses. 

Now that your table is covered, here’s A Handful of Cushion Covers for your chairs.  You can skip the pillow pocket portion of construction and use these as little table toppers.  They finish at 16″ square.

Handy Bags have three compartments and two pockets.  Perfect little bag to add to your purse collection.  They’d make great gifts too!

Pretty Aprons have five deep pockets and four different finishing options.  And they are EASY to make!  Make one for each holiday or one for each season.  Another great gift.  You have started sewing for Christmas already, haven’t you?

 

It seems a year doesn’t go by that we don’t have a baby to sew for whether it’s a friend’s baby or a new grandchild or maybe your own! Quilted Baby Gifts includes instructions for bibs in two sizes, a baby quilt, a blankie and a pillow.  Designs To Share With You’s “magic mitering” technique makes these quick and easy.

Give that refrigerator artwork a decent frame! Fridge Quilts & Magnets has instructions for a magnetic quilt with a slide in pocket for artwork, a calendar, or anything you want!

Now, that was a lot of variety and you STILL haven’t seen everything that Designs To Share With You has to offer.  Browse through the rest and don’t forget to check all the other quilt patterns before you leave!  Happy sewing!

Whether it’s a dedicated room, a section in the basement, a corner in the family room, or the dining room table when it’s not being used for eating, everyone likes a neat, organized sewing area.  We have fabric to store, pins & needles, thread, rulers, patterns and more.

This storage box is perfect for storing WIPs (Works In Progress), or patterns.  If you are new to quilting and just starting to build your stash, it might hold all of your fat quarters of one particular color.  Or if you’ve been quilting for a while, perhaps it would store all of one color of fabric scraps.

 

The Multi-Craft Rack Storage will hold all your pins, needles, thimbles, quilting marking pens, extra bobbins, seam rippers, and more.   If you like to embellish your quilt projects, think of all the materials for embellishment this will hold.

 

Are you on the go with your quilting?  Do you head out to a quilt day at your local quilt shop or to an evening of sewing with your quilt guild?

The Total Tote will hold everything you need to take with you.  It has storage on each side with adjustable elastic bands to keep things organized and in place.  There are several interior pockets.  You also have the option of removing the center divider to provide bulk storage.

 

If you are taking your sewing machine along with you this wheeled sewing machine bag will be sure to hold it and still have room for your projects.  It has an inside pocket to hold your quilt patterns.  When you are not on the go, it collapses and stores easily.

Ok, now, no excuses . . . get organized, then get sewing!

You’ll find so much more than quilt patterns at Quilters Warehouse.  Here’s a sampling.

A scrapbook cover and totebag. Aren’t these just the cutest?! So festive. Use your buttons (you know you have a stash) or embellish your own way.
And for a baby. What new mom wouldn’t like this?  Both of these are by Briarwood Cottage, who also has a couple Block of the Month quilts, and several books.

Good Intentions has several sweatshirt projects, including this patriotic sweatshirt. There are a couple flower patterns, a couple winter patterns.

And this Log Cabin Sweatshirt. At Good Intentions you will also find several “Laps From Fats” quilt patterns and several books.

 

 

Cookie’s Creations has several pincushion patterns including these adorable chickens – so cute!  There are pumpkin pincushions in three different sizes and baby shoe pincushions.

Cookie’s Creations  has a count down calendar for Halloween with pockets for treats and pockets for photos.  Your little trick-or-treaters will love it.   It’d make a great holiday decoration.   You will also find a few quilt patterns including one that is a tribute to chemo survivors made out of bandanas.

Then there is Sew Baby, gee, I wonder what they have?  So many baby projects!  And most of the projects are unique.  There are cloth books, hooded animal towels, stuffed animals with attached blankets, bath puppets, bibs, car seat covers and more!

We’re quilters at heart but most of us enjoy other projects, too, and there’s no lack of projects available . . . check them out!

I wanted to take a few minutes to introduce myself.  I’ve been writing for Quilters Showcase since the end of June and have been having a great time doing so.  I am Kathleen (Kathy, Kath, whatever) and I’ve been quilting for about five years.  One morning I stumbled on the show “Simply Quilts” on HGTV and watched every show after that. I was hooked. I remember when I walked into Prarieland Quilts for the first time.  So much fabric, so many quilts displayed, so many patterns and books and notions.  The sales person suggested that a log cabin quilt would be a good place to start.  After choosing A Quilt In A Day by Eleanor Burns I was so excited I nearly left the store without paying for the book.  The next day I was back to select fabric… fun, fun, fun.  A quilt in a day was a bit of an exaggeration for me.  More like a quilt in a few months… I learn slowly!  But what fun.  After making all the blocks I laid them out on a bed to decide which layout I liked best.  It amazed me how the same blocks laid out in different ways could change the look of the quilt so much.  After literally hours of playing around, I decided on the “barn raising” layout.  Finally the top was finished and it was time sandwich the quilt, then actually quilt the quilt…. I did a simple stitch-in-the-ditch.  Start to finish my first quilt probably took 6 to 8 months and it’s far from perfect but has been in use in one of our guest bedrooms ever since and I’ve haven’t been without a few works-in-progress at all times since.  Most of my quilts are pieced; only one or two have been appliqued – I want to try more applique and some paper piecing.  I’ve made and given several baby quilts (what a special feeling to be able to make a quilt for a grandchild) and a few lap quilts. I’ve made wallhangings and placemats and queen size quilts. I got tired of cramming my larger quilts in my sewing machine to quilt them, so I purchased a Grace Quilting Frame and another Janome machine to go with it… I LOVE IT!!! When Project Linus day at the shop comes around I make a quilt ahead of time ’cause I never seem to be able to attend.  I’ve been putting tops together for Marine Comfort Quilts, and making blocks to donate to MCQ.  I’ve been buying patterns, and fabric and thread and planning and sewing and quilting and loving it all.  Quilters Showcase has opened a whole new world of patterns to me and I keep seeing more and more projects I want to try!  I’m on the list for the On Point block of the month and we’ll talk more about that in a few days.  Well, that’s enough about me… if you’re reading the blog, feel free to introduce yourself or leave a comment or ask a question (use the “add comment” button at the top of the post)… it would be great to hear from you.  Happy Quilting!  ….Kathleen