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Transcript: 

Helen: We are recording today on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw peoples, including Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish, Musqueam, and K’ómoks first nations.

Hello, and welcome to Love to Quilt. I mean Love to Sew. I’m Helen, the designer behind Helen’s Closet Patterns and Cedar Quilt Co.

Caroline: And I’m Caroline, the owner of Blackbird Fabrics.

Helen: We’re two sewing buds who love to sew our own clothes, and blankets, and want to encourage you on your sewing journey, too.

Caroline: We’re gonna talk about all there is to love about quilting and walk you through the process.

Helen: Hi, Caroline.

Caroline: Hello!

Helen: How are you?

Caroline: I’m good. How are you?

Helen: Oh, I’m so good. I could not be more excited for today, as you can imagine.

Caroline: Oh, I know, Helen. I can imagine. I don’t have to imagine, actually. I can see you, and I know you’re excited.

Helen: I’m beaming. I’m so excited. Yes, as some of you may know, I recently launched a quilt pattern company called Cedar Quilt Co. And it has been a blast so far sharing my love of quilting with others and encouraging people to try quilting who haven’t before.

And we actually launched a great free introduction pattern called the Playful Placemats. And it’s perfect for anyone who’s new to quilting because it covers all the steps from start to finish. Nothing is left unexplained. It’s a great beginner project, nice and small and doable.

And by the time this episode comes out, I’m hoping to have our first paid quilt pattern in our online shop, too. And this one comes in many sizes from wall hanging to bed size. So you can head on over to my website or my Insta to take a look at our first design. I’m at CedarQuiltCo.com or @CedarQuiltCo on socials.

Caroline: Ooh. Okay. Does this pattern have a name?

Helen: Yes. This pattern is called Forest Flowers, and it is inspired by all of the wildflowers that pop up in the woods when I’m walking around with my dog. So beautiful in the spring, just little tiny flowers poking out from under the undergrowth…

Caroline: Ohh!!!

Helen: And they’re so beautiful. And this, yeah, this pattern is inspired by them, so, yay.

Caroline: Oh my gosh. Okay. Well, speaking of design, I’m curious for your quilt pattern designs what can people expect to see as far as aesthetic goes?

Helen: Well, many of my designs are gonna be inspired by west coast nature, so, of course, the forest, like we mentioned, but also beaches and wildlife in my area. And I’m still very much exploring and finding my style, but I would say that my designs have a modern look with traditional design elements.

So I think my quilting style falls into modern traditionalism. And from what I understand, this is a re-imagining or remixing of traditional quilt blocks using a more modern aesthetic with bold colours and a lot of graphic impact. Quilt design groups are hard to nail down, I’m gonna be honest.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: And I feel like from my experience, witnessing people discussing this in the sewing community and the quilting community, that it is really tricky to, kind of, put yourself in a certain camp with your designs.

Some of my upcoming designs are more modern with lots of negative space and asymmetry, and then some are more traditional and block-based and use a lot of traditional quilting elements. And our first design, the placemats, is a more traditional style, and that’s intended to offer people a really fun gateway into quiltings, and then they can change up the look with the fabrics that they choose.

So, honestly, I’m just getting started, so who knows where this design journey is gonna take me?

Caroline: It’s so exciting to think about where you could be in a few years with this business.

Helen: Right?

Caroline: Because seeing you build Helen’s Closet and the amount of patterns that you have now, and how even your aesthetic has evolved since starting Helen’s Closet. I’m just really pumped to see where you go with Cedar Quilt Co., and I think it’s gonna be awesome.

Helen: Me, too! I’ve been designing for the past year. I have so many designs in the queue, the canon, or whatever you wanna call it. Obviously, not all of them are gonna make it to become patterns, but I probably have about a hundred designs, but I have three or four that I’m really excited to put out into the world in our collection right away. So those are the ones I’m working on, and then who knows where we’ll go from there. I’m sure it’s gonna evolve fast and furious.

Caroline: Oh, I’m sure it will, too. You’re always full of ideas, and yeah, I’m just excited to see what comes next.

Helen: Yeah! Thank you so much. And thank you to the community, too. Like, the response has been so great, and I’m just so grateful for you all.

Caroline: Aw, well, congratulations.

Helen: Thank you.

Caroline: Another baby out in the world.

Helen: Yes.

Caroline: Okay, so today we wanna dive deeper into the world of quilting with you all and encourage you, our listeners, to give it a try if you’re interested. So I’m gonna be asking Helen a lot of questions today because I am not a quilter myself, but I’m super excited to learn, and I would love to try making some quilted home decor items. Maybe a wall hanging or a blanket or maybe some placements.

Helen: Yes.

Caroline: So I’m really excited to learn more about all of this.

Helen: Oh, there’s so much you can do. I love the different home decor items, especially wall hangings. Like, if you’re not into quilts on your bed, that’s okay. There are lots of uses for quilted things in your home that don’t involve your bed. So, yeah, it’s a really fun place to explore. But before we get into the episode, we have a listener question.

Caroline: Janet says, “I’m so excited about Helen’s new quilt pattern company, and I can’t wait to try quilting too. One thing I’m not sure about is whether I need any new tools to do it, or if my existing garment sewing tools are sufficient. Do I need a special sewing machine? What thread and needles do I use? Are there any other different tools that I might not even know about? Thanks!”

Helen: Hi, Janet. These are great questions and if you already garment sew, chances are you have a lot of the tools that quilters use. There are certainly some specialty tools that you can add on as you go, but many of them are just not necessary to get started. So you’re probably gonna be able to get going right away.

You will want a rotary cutter, cutting mat, and large ruler. I like a six inch by 24 inch ruler to start, and that comes in really handy for garment sewing. You may already have one. There are so many quilting rulers, pretty much every size and shape you could imagine, so just get one or two to start.

If you cut with scissors for garment sewing, now might be the time to invest in the rotary system. You can quilt with scissors, but it takes a lot longer because you’ll have to mark out all of your cut lines. And your cuts might be less accurate in the long run.

Caroline: And you can use your home sewing machine, so no special machine is needed. If you wanna do the quilting part on your home machine, as in the stitching on top of the finished quilt, you may wanna get a larger machine for larger quilts, but for just getting started, your sewing machine is just fine, right, Helen?

Helen: Yes. I’m sure your sewing machine is just fine. You can definitely give quilting a go. And all-purpose poly thread is also just fine. Some quilters prefer cotton. I use poly ‘cause I have so much of it already in my studio. And size 80 needles will work for most piecing, as in, you know, sewing the patchwork together. And then you can go heavier weight, like 90, for quilting through all those layers when you’re doing the final stitching on your project.

Caroline: Yeah. And other than that, you have everything you need: snips, pins, marking tools. Ooh. And also quilt basting pins are a thing. And I have used these before. They’re kind of curved, right? So that when you pin your quilt, they’re not pulling up the fabric and, like, skewing the fabric. So these are nice because they don’t poke you as you work as well, and they also don’t fall out when you roll or fold the quilt up, which you’re gonna need to do for bigger pieces.

Helen: Yeah. And these are basically safety pins. Having a curve in them is really nice, like you said. But if you have a bunch of safety pins at home, you can use those, too.

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: And there are lots of unique quilting tools out there for lots of different types of quilting, lots of different steps in the process. We’re not gonna get into them all today, but in general, you can get by with very little specialty tools for quilting. So you can totally just dive right in.

Caroline: Love that.

Helen: Okay. Speaking of diving, before we dive into this episode in full, we wanted to mention that we do have a previous episode all about quilting with past guest by Bhiravi Rathinasabapathi from Strawberry Creek Quilts. And we loved our conversation with her about her experience getting into quilting and running a quilted goods and pattern business, so go and check out that episode if you’re enjoying this topic. That’s Episode 195.

Caroline: Yes! And on today’s episode, Helen is going to share some of the many things she has learned in her foray into quilting, and hopefully inspire us to give quilting a try.

Helen: Yes!

Caroline: That’s the goal.

Helen: That’s the plan. But before we get to that, Caroline, I wanna know, have you ever quilted?

Caroline: Does a quilted coat count?

Helen: I mean, totally. Yeah. It’s got quilted stitching on it.

Caroline: No, I’m kidding. I have pieced, but I have never quite finished an actual quilt. Like I’ve quilted fabric that hasn’t been pieced, and I’ve pieced fabric that hasn’t been quilted. Except, like, really small items, like I made a dog bed for Pepper that had a quilted top, but, like, nothing crazy.

I think the reason why I’ve never made it to the finish line is because I lose a little bit of steam. I’ve definitely enjoyed piecing. I’ve done two large quilt tops, one of which I’ve given away. The other one is gathering dust in my sewing room, but I’ve, kind of, stopped when it was time to pin and baste and actually quilt the blanket because it just feels really daunting.

So I, kind of, think now after talking to you about quilting more, that if I ever a bed-size quilt again, or maybe if I ever decide to finish the one that I started, I think I’m gonna send it to someone for that quilting part because yeah, that sounds like it would be a worthwhile investment ‘cause I don’t have a long arm machine. And I’m sure we’ll probably talk about that later in the episode, but I think I should probably start small. So I’m really excited to try your new placement pattern.

Helen: Yes. I learned from experience starting with that bed-size quilt for my first project. It’s so nice to be able to get from start to finish faster so you have that feeling of accomplishment. And we give that advice to people all the time with garments, too, you know? Like, don’t start with jeans, you wanna start with a top so that you can actually finish it and have that, like, win.

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: Yeah. It’s so important. I’m really excited for you to try quilting. I know I’ve been, like, pushing it hard on you. Pretty hard.

Caroline: Oh, yeah. I’m taking it though. I’m excited.

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: Okay. Tell me more about your journey with quilting and, kind of, where you’re at right now?

Helen: How did this happen?

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: Well, considering how excited I am about all of this, it may surprise you to learn that prior to maybe a couple years ago, I didn’t have a whole lot of interest in quilting. I admired quilts and enjoyed looking at them at quilt shows. Or whenever I saw one in somebody’s house, I could appreciate the effort and the beauty and the design and all those things. But I just always thought that the act of quilting wasn’t for me because I’m such a diehard garment sewist.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: And I think it was also in part due to the fact that the fabrics and colours that are traditionally used in quilting were just not really appealing to me. But of course, since becoming really involved in the sewing community online, I have seen so many amazing examples of quilting that do appeal to me more that do use those, like, bold, bright colours.

And about three years ago, I started to think maybe I should try quilting one day. Maybe I would enjoy it. I mean, I love sewing, and quilting is sewing, so I would probably love it. I should try it, right? And then I did, and here we are.

Caroline: And the rest is history. Okay. I think this is the perfect segue into our first topic in which Helen tries to convince us that we should try quilting.

Helen: Well, I’m gonna do my best here. This is the hard sell. No, I’m only joking. Obviously, quilting’s not for everyone. And we know that a ton of our listeners also out there already quilt. But we do want to share some of the fun things about quilting, particularly as it relates to garment sewing, which we know we all love.

So my first point is that when you quilt, you get quilts. Okay. Let me explain. I am at a point in my garment sewing journey where I have a lot of clothes, and obviously, this is related to me being a pattern designer and having a high sewing output, but I’m sure we have listeners out there who can relate to this. Maybe your closet is getting a little full, too.

This is not to say I never wanna sew clothes again. I definitely do and will continue with Helen’s Closet, but quilting has given me a great alternative that doesn’t produce more clothes. It produces quilts. And I mean, don’t ask me what’s gonna happen when all my beds are covered. I don’t know.

Caroline: I don’t know. I feel like you can fill a chest. You can get some underbed storage.

Helen: Oh, yes!

Caroline: Also, quilts make amazing gifts.

Helen: They do.

Caroline: So you got options.

Helen: I’m gonna cover every wall in my house in quilts.

Caroline: Perfect. The next thing to note is that quilting doesn’t involve fitting to your body. And this can be such a nice break from sewing garments, if you find fitting to be a challenge or to be something that you need to take breaks from, quilting could be a nice outlet for you.

Helen: Definitely. Quilting is done with cotton, uh, quilting cotton usually, to be exact.

Caroline: This is such a lovely fabric to work with. It’s stable, it’s easy to cut, it’s easy to press, and easy to sew. Most quilters don’t even pre-wash their fabric, so you can just buy it and sew it.

Helen: Yes. That’s exciting. It feels like you’re breaking the rules when you do that.

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: Not only that, but, like, it comes in, like, a million bajillion different colours and prints. There’s truly something for everybody.

Caroline: Okay. This is where I get tripped up sometimes though, Helen, because there are so many options and you’re mixing so many fabrics and, like, how do you even know that it’s gonna look good? How do you realise the vision that maybe you have in your head? Or if you don’t have a vision, how do you create a vision?

I think we’re gonna touch on this a little bit later in the episode, but I just wanna name that this part can be super overwhelming and is probably part of the reason why some people are, like, afraid to get into it, ‘cause there’s so many options out there.

Helen: Yes, it is so hard to choose. It’s definitely a stumbling block for a lot of folks, and that’s why in the quilting world, there are a lot of fun kits for quilts where you get all the materials that you need from the fabric store, and it’s all, like, cut already. Not all, like, cut to the little pieces, but the yardage that you need is cut already.

Or bundles is really popular in the quilting world. So designers will come out with their line of fabric, and then, they’ll cut up half yards or fat quarters, which are different sizes of fabric, and bundle it all together. So you’re buying this grouping of fabrics that already is fully coordinated. It has solids in it, it has prints in it, and they all work together beautifully. And then you often just need to choose a background or backing or binding, things like that.

Or you can just make the cover quilt. A lot of people just love the design that the designer came up with, the colours they chose, and they’ll just buy those fabrics. Often designers will have those listed in the pattern because it’s popular for people to just make the cover quilt. So exactly the fabrics that we used, we’ll put that in the pattern, and then, you can just create that exact look.

Caroline: I’ve never heard that term before the cover quilt.

Helen: The cover quilt.

Caroline: That makes a lot of sense. It’s the quilt that’s on the cover of the pattern.

Helen: Exactly.

Caroline: Got it.

Helen: Yeah. And many people will also provide other colour suggestions in their patterns.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: Or in blog posts and things like that. So you can go on their website and you can find alternative colour mockups. It’s a great way to, like, remarket patterns seasonally. You could be like, here’s what this design looks like with more, like, holiday-themed fabrics or with more summer-themed fabrics. And just show people how it changes because the colours you choose really can completely transform…

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: …the look, it is absolutely amazing. It’s one of my most favourite things about quilt design, but as you said, it also can be incredibly overwhelming.

Caroline: Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Helen: I think quilting, also, part of the aesthetic is just putting a whole lot of fun colours and prints together. And that is so much fun to do because as you’re working on it, you have all of these beautiful or cute or, you know, lovely fabrics that you’re looking at and working with, and you get to appreciate as you’re sewing. And in the end it probably is gonna look like a lot of different colours and prints. That’s what I did with my first bed-size quilt. And that can be a lot aesthetically.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: But that’s, kind of, part of the joy of it, is just jumbling all that together, and surprisingly, it works. You know, you can have totally different colours, totally different prints, and somehow because quilting has this, like, jumbled together, beautiful hodgepodge effect, it just looks right.

Caroline: And the cool thing, I think, with quilting fabrics is that because there are so many options, basically, anything that you can imagine, you can realise. Like…

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: …there’s always going to be the colour that you want or the print that you want. There’s just so many options out there, so it’s really cool. Like, the world is your oyster, the possibilities are endless, blah, blah, blah.

Helen: Oh, definitely. And one thing I’ve learned is that there are several fabric companies that make solid coloured quilting cottons, and they all have their own colours. They’re kinda like Pantone colours almost. You can even get colour cards. So you can have a little swatch book of all the colours from a certain company, so it’s easier for you to actually choose when it comes time to make your quilt.

So, for example, there’s Art Gallery Pure Solids, there’s Moda Bella Solids, and then there’s Kona Cotton Solids, and there’s lots of other companies, as well, that have solid lines. And quilters often have a personal favourite company and even a personal favourite colour.

Caroline: Okay. You’re speaking my language. I love a swatch book.

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: You should see my swatch library.

Helen: I can imagine.

Caroline: But, okay, what is your favourite? Do you have a favourite yet?

Helen: Well, I have tried working with all three of those companies, and I really enjoyed working with Art Gallery, so that’s the company I’ve decided to, kind of, go with for now. Their fabrics have this beautiful, like, lustre to them that’s just, mwah, so good.

Caroline: Mm-hmm. Chef’s kiss.

Helen: Yeah. And my favourite colour currently is Evergreen. That’s colour PE-517, if you’re curious.

Caroline: Well, that’s predictable, Helen.

Helen: I know. How perfect, right?

Caroline: How perfect for you! Can you get the different lines at most quilt shops, or have you found that a quilt shop will carry just one of the solid lines?

Helen; That’s a good question. I feel like I haven’t shopped around enough to answer that…

Caroline: Okay.

Helen: …accurately.

Caroline: Okay.

Helen: But the, the shop that I have been shopping with carries Art Gallery fabrics, and I don’t think they carry the other lines. I mean, it would be a lot to carry multiple different companies’ entire collections.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: So I imagine for smaller shops, they probably do pick one and stick with it.

Caroline: Ooh. Ooh. I have another question.

Helen: Yes.

Caroline: Do you primarily shop for your quilting fabrics online or in person?

Helen: Now that I have this colour card and I can actually, like, look at my desk at all the colours I’ve been buying online for my solids. And then for prints, I find it’s easier to shop in person because it’s so much easier to, like, tell what it’s actually gonna feel like and look like. So I’m using mostly solids for my designs, and then I’ll sometimes put a print on the back. So it’s fun to take the quilt top to Fabricland or to my local sewing shop, The Spool, and have a look at their selection and, like, find something that pairs really well.

Caroline: And like I said, there are so many companies out there making quilting fabrics. And one company in the quilting space that we currently love is Fableism Supply Co. Their fabrics have a line of yarn dyed wovens coming out this spring called Monarch Grove, and it’s super stunning. The soft coloured yarns are woven into beautiful geometric designs. They’re great for quilts but also could be used for garments. So I love that dual purpose.

Helen: Yes! I’m in love with this collection. I wanted to buy all of them.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: And you can do that if you wanna buy a full bundle of a release…

Caroline: Ohh!

Helen: …which is, yeah, pretty cool.

Caroline: And is that all, like, quarter yards and you get a bundle of like, everything?

Helen: Often… Yeah. Often, it will be half, or I think even full yard sometimes. And then, yeah, there’ll be smaller bundles of, like, fat quarters or full bundles of fat quarters. Yeha. There’s lots of different options.

Caroline: Excuse me, Helen. New term. What is a fat quarter?

Helen: A fat quarter is when you take a half yard of fabric, so if you were to cut half a yard off a bolt. And then instead of cutting that into two quarter yard strips, you cut it in half along the fold line, so you get two quarter yard chunks.

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: And so they’re fat quarters.

Caroline: Yeah. You’re getting, like, squares instead of long rectangles.

Helen: Yeah, exactly. You’re getting, like, fat rectangles. And so a fat quarter size is 18 inches by 22 inches, and that can vary a little bit depending on who’s cutting it, so…

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: …don’t count on it being exactly that size. But yeah, it’s a great size ‘cause you can cut more pieces out of that larger piece than a skinny piece.

Caroline: We don’t really do fat quarters in garment sewing or garment fabric cutting. But no, maybe we should. It’s a really cool concept.

Helen: It is cool. Yeah, for patchwork garments and things like that, that would be cool.

Yeah. Quilting cotton even comes pre-cut smaller than fat quarters. You can get those fat quarter bundles. You can also get strips and squares in many different sizes that are already cut out, so you can just get right into the quilting. There are patterns that are designed for specific precuts, so it makes it really easy to get started.

So for example, if you buy a roll of strips, which is called a jelly roll, you can get a pattern that’s designed for a jelly roll, and it will use one jelly roll or two jelly rolls. And you just get those bundles. And then, you get the pattern. And then, you’re just good to go. You can get right into the quilting.

Pre-cuts usually come in those bundles, so the colours and prints are all beautifully matched and coordinated already, so it’s a great choice if you’re finding, yeah, the decision process of colours and prints overwhelming.

Caroline: Amazing. Quilting can also be a great scrap buster, and this is especially true for smaller home decor items. Cotton and linen scraps are great for quilting and you can use up tiny little pieces for patchwork and larger pieces for backing and binding.

Helen: Totally. And improv quilting is when you just go with the flow and sew fabric together into interesting patchwork pieces. There are lots of different styles and approaches to improv quilting, and this is an excellent way to work through the scrap bin in a more, kind of, creative, free-flowing process.

Caroline: I have this dream of making, like, a giant improv quilt out of scraps at Blackbird and, like, hanging it in the warehouse.

Helen: Oh.

Caroline: Like, maybe having everybody on the team, like, whenever they feel like making a block. I’ll just give them, like, a size parameter, and then, we’ll, like, put them all together one day and make, like, a giant Blackbird quilt.

Helen: Oh, my gosh. I love that idea. That is so, I mean, brilliant. I can picture it. Are we talking giant, like 40 feet by 40 feet?

Caroline: I don’t know. I feel like I could probably not find someone to long arm that, but maybe it would not be quilted. Maybe it would just be pieced. I haven’t thought this through clearly, Helen. It’s a dream.

Helen: It sounds so cool. I love this idea.

Caroline: Okay, I’ll workshop it. I’ll workshop it.

Helen: Appliqué quilting is also great for scraps, too. You can, kind of, paint designs with different fabrics by cutting out shapes and then appliquéing them on, so stitching along the edge of the fabrics and the shapes. And this way you can pretty much do anything. I mean, truly the world is your oyster with appliqué. Very, very cool. I have not personally dabbled much yet, but you know, I will be.

Caroline: Oh, yeah. Okay. So something to note is that quilting can be expensive, but quilting actually comes from a pretty frugal place. In the past, people created blankets and other textiles using smaller pieces and scraps because a new blanket was really expensive, and they were often made from reclaimed or upcycled materials, which still persists in quilting today. You can absolutely quilt on a budget and make really unique and gorgeous creations, especially if you’re a garment sewer and you have lots of cotton scraps.

Helen: Oh!

Caroline: ‘Cause I feel like that’s just…

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: …that’s just quilting gold.

Helen: It is. It’s quilting gold. With all that said, if you’re using new materials, quilting can be quite pricey. Ask me how I know. This is especially true if you’re making large projects like bed-size quilts. You need a lot of fabric. It’s honestly, kind of, shocking coming from the garment sewing world where you know you need two or three metres to make something.

If you’re making a bed size quilt, you could need, you know, six to eight metres for the front and then, like, eight or nine metres for the backing. Like, it just really starts to add up. There’s the fabric on the top, there’s the batting, the backing, the binding. And at the end of it, you might even choose to have a professional long arm-er quilt your finished creation. And that can really be an expense, as well.

It’s an investment piece that you’ll cherish forever, hopefully. And it, I’m not saying it’s not worth it, but it’s something to consider before you embark on your quilting project is what is your budget for the project and how are you gonna achieve what you want within that budget?

Caroline: A good thing to know, getting into it, and I think, similarly to garment sewing, some folks get into it and they’re like, I’m doing this to save money. And it’s, like, kind of, hard to make clothes on a budget ‘cause you need so many materials. And your time is worth money, as well. So yeah, but it is an investment, and it’s a craft, and it’s something that is a creative outlet, and I don’t know, I think it’s worth it. And you can do it on a budget if you want to.

Helen: Yes, you totally can. I’ve seen some absolutely incredible examples of upcycled quilts in the community, and that is just, yeah, so fun and inspiring.

Caroline: Okay, so here’s a cool thing. There’s no pattern in quilting. And that means no printing, no taping together, no cutting out your size, no copy shop prints. That sounds so nice, Helen.

Helen: It really is. You don’t need a pattern to quilt, but I will say that some patterns do have, like, a printable template or a shape that you use to achieve the design, but these are often really small, like one or two pages. You might have to occasionally get out your tape…

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: …for, like, one piece of tape, but it is nowhere near the undertaking that it is to print out a garment sewing pattern, so I think that’s pretty cool.

Caroline: And there’s also paper piecing, which involves actually sewing onto paper, so you need to print for that, too. It’s super cool. We’re gonna link some foundation paper piecing, or FPP, patterns in the show notes.

Helen: Yes. And there’s EPP, too, English paper piecing. Again, haven’t personally dabbled in either of those, but I am super inspired by it, and I will be giving it a try.

Caroline: I know you will, Helen.

Helen: The next point I wanna make is that quilting uses small pieces, and this can be a real respite from wrangling larger garment pieces through your machine, trying to get, like, down the inseam of a pair of pants or sewing in a sleeve, um, or gathered tiers on a dress. You can just use these tiny little pieces at your ironing board and you can just, sort of, magically put them through straight lines. It’s, it’s pretty relaxing.

Caroline: The, the fact that there are no gathers in quilting is a selling point on its own. Oh, my gosh. Oh, but it’s true. There is something really nice about just working with a few small squares or triangles. You can even arrange them next to your machine. And many quilters have wool pressing mats near their machine too, so they can do it all in one place.

Helen: Yes, exactly. Quilting also involves a lot of repeated processes, and I think this is a benefit and a drawback at times. You do a lot of things over and over and over again in quilting. So for example, you’ll need to cut out, say, 50 squares of fabric or trim down all of your blocks to the final size. And these tasks can sometimes feel a bit tedious, but they can also feel really meditative and relaxing. And a lot of quilters will enjoy some of the steps in the process more than others and really relish in certain repeated processes and not relish in others. I think that’s normal.

Caroline: Yeah, I imagine it also makes it easy to break up the steps too, right?

Helen: Oh, totally. You can just focus on one thing at a time. It’s easy to break up the project into different steps and work on it over a few days or weeks or even years.

Caroline: In my case, that’s true.

Helen: Okay. Quilts make great gifts or pieces to mark special occasions. We’ve mentioned this already. This is something about the quilting community that I really love. People are so generous. Quilters often love having a reason to make a quilt, such as, like, a new baby or a wedding gift.

It’s a really special present. That can mean a lot to people, especially as time goes on, things that will be cherished over time. Yeah. I just think it’s amazing that people put that much time and effort into something and then give it away.

Caroline: Yeah. It’s so lovely, and it’s such a personal way to give a gift, and I’ve also seen people make quilts for holidays or seasons. It’s fun to swap out your home textiles for different times of year. So if you’re looking for a way to, kind of, diversify your quilting, make one for the holidays.

Helen: Yeah. I think this is really fun that people will make Valentine’s quilts or Halloween quilts or Easter quilts and just get them out for, like, one weekend or even one day of the year…

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: …which is amazing. But I mean, any excuse to get creative, whatever inspires you to get to your machine and wanna make something, I think that’s awesome.

Okay. The last point I wanna make in favour of quilting is that quilting builds community. There’s such a deep-rooted tradition in quilting of groups of people, primarily women getting together to quilt, either on their own projects or all working on stitching a bigger project together. And it’s so amazing that these groups and guilds exist all over.

And quilting can really bring people together. And I feel like I’ve only kind of seen the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the quilting community. I’m just delving in, and I can already tell it’s such an amazing space to be in, and I’m just really excited about that. You know we love the garment sewing community, and the quilting community seems equally awesome.

Caroline: Oh, that’s so great. Let’s switch gears a bit here and go over the steps in the quilting process. And the first one is to choose a project and fabrics. There are so many patterns out there to choose from, and there are loads of free designs, as well. There are traditional blocks that you can make and use to create beautiful quilts.

In fact, one really fun thing to do as a beginner is to make a sampler quilt, and this is made up of a bunch of different blocks so you can experiment and learn new skills. And you can use the same or complimentary fabrics to tie it all together. I love this idea.

Helen: Yes. I’m working on one right now actually, because I’ve been experimenting with some of the designs I’ve been coming up with by doing small versions of them or just doing one block, and I’m using all the same colours so that at the end I can make a beautiful sampler quilt that’s made up of all my design experiments, which I think is really cool.

Caroline: That is so cool.

Helen: As for fabric, you can use scraps, as we mentioned. You can choose your own fabrics off the bolt. I talked about earlier the cover quilt fabrics, you can use those, the ones the designer used. You can buy those kits that just give you everything you need. Lots of quilting fabric stores sell kits for specific patterns. They’ll often collaborate with designers during the launch of patterns to have kits available for those patterns. But you can buy precut, as we mentioned. You can buy a pattern that’s designed for precuts and then, get a precut bundle and just be good to go. So you’ve got lots of options.

If you wanna play with colours for your quilt, there’s a really cool website called “quilt ink” that I’ve been having a lot of fun on. So designers upload their quilts to quilt ink, and then, people can easily colour them in and try different fabric arrangements. And it even has all of the, like, colour collections from the major fabric companies listed on there, so you’re using not just, like, a colour picker like you would in Canva or something like that. You’re, you’re actually choosing from the available fabric colours.

Obviously, it’s on your screen, so the colour’s not a hundred percent perfect, but it gets you going in the right direction. And it’s just a click of a button. So you’re like, I want all of the blue fabrics in this print to be yellow. And you just click, and you can just change the design. And then once you have it done, you can save it. And that gets displayed on that designer’s wall for that pattern so other people can see the design that you came up with. It’s, like, a really cool community, really cool app. I’m just so excited about it.

Caroline: Oh, my gosh. Okay. That is so cool. And I feel like that would be so fun to play around with when you’re feeling like you don’t know what direction to go in for your next quilt. And you wanna just, like, see if the colours you have in mind are gonna work together. I love this so much. So cool. Oh, my gosh.

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: I’m gonna check it out.

Helen: It’s really cool. I’m gonna get my patterns up there. Hopefully, by the time this episode comes up, they’ll already be up there.

Caroline: Amazing.

Helen: Then, people can play around with my designs, too. Yeah. Very neat.

Caroline: Oh! Okay. So next up is cutting. Once you get your materials and a pattern or a plan for your design, it’s time to do the cutting.

Helen: Yes, and as I mentioned, the first project I made was a beds sized quilt. It was the Nova Star Quilt from Then Came June. And I was shocked by how long it took to cut out all the pieces. I’m used to garment cutting, which can take a while. You know, it can take an hour or longer to cut out a garment project sometimes, but it was probably about three or four hours of hard work cutting out all the pieces for this.

Now, I’m not trying to scare you because that was a complex and intricate quilt with a ton of different fabrics and colours and small little pieces, and it was bed-sized, and I have since made much easier quilts that didn’t take nearly that long to cut out. But the cutting times can sometimes be quite extensive, and it can sometimes be super fast, so it really varies.

Caroline: Okay. And I imagine it scales based on the size of the quilt, right? So for a baby quilt, it’s gonna be a lot faster than a king size-bed quilt.

Helen: Totally. And quilting involves mainly straight cuts, so it’s pretty satisfying to cut out quilt projects. You’re gonna cut long strips off of your yardage and then, sub-cut them into smaller shapes.

And there can also be curves in quilting. And in this case, you often have one of those printable templates I mentioned earlier, so that you can cut the proper curve. It feels so good when your pieces are all cut and stacked and ready to go. Like, so satisfying, all of the little, like, piles of shapes.

Caroline: Yeah. Okay. I also wanna add that if you’re spending a lot of time cutting for a project and maybe it’s hard on your hands or something, there are some really cool ergonomic tools out there. There’s even ergonomic rotary cutters. We use some of those at Blackbird where you’re gripping it completely differently than a traditional rotary cutter. And you can get handles that, sort of, stick onto your quilting ruler so that you’re holding that in a more ergonomic way, so you’ve got options. Don’t be intimidated by the fact that it’s gonna be really repetitive.

Helen: Exactly. That’s a great point. I really need to get one of those ergonomic cutters ‘cause they, yeah, instead of your wrist being, like, lengthwise. It’s, like, crosswise.

Caroline: It’s, like, a fist.

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: It’s kind of weird at first to get used to, but it is much better on your wrist and your body. And I’ll send you a link if you’re interested.

Helen: Oh, yes, please.

Caroline: Maybe we’ll link it up in the show notes, too, for everybody else.

Helen: No, just for me. Only me.

Caroline: So the next step is sewing those pieces together, right?

Helen: Yes. Next, you’re gonna make, like, the sub-units that make up your quilt, which often include things like half square triangles, flying geese, curves, strip piecing, nine patch or four patch. There are so many shapes and, kind of, smaller blocks that you make.

And then there are so many ways to put those together into larger designs and to increase the efficiency to make multiple units at once. So you’re not just making one half square triangle. You could make four at a time or eight at a time, even 32 at a time. I saw a reel about that recently. I wanna try that. Um, you can make flying geese four at a time.

And this probably all sounds, like, you know, a foreign language to people who are not familiar with quilting, but you will learn all of these terms when you get into it. And there’s not too many things to know. It will all become pretty familiar, but the efficiency hacks are one of my favourite things in quilting. My mind was blown when I made four half square triangles at once. I was like, what?

Caroline: Whoa!

Helen: This is so cool. It feels like magic.

Caroline: Okay. I feel like I need to see this visually, like, in a video or something, so…

Helen: Definitely.

Caroline: I’m gonna go Google that after.

Helen: Um…

Caroline: But, okay…

Helen: …I, the Playful Placemats uses the eight at a time, half square triangle methods, so you will learn.

Caroline: Okay. Well, I’m gonna get on that. I have a question though. Does seam allowance on quilts vary like it does in garment sewing, or is the seam allowance always the same?

Helen: The seam allowance in quilting is typically a quarter inch. And on some patterns it’s important to have it be a scant quarter inch because if you sew it exactly a quarter inch, and then as we know in garment sewing, some of the seam is taken up just by, like, the loft of the fabric and the seam, kind of, folding over and just, like, scooching up that extra little bit of seam allowance.

So often quilt patterns will tell you to use a scant quarter inch, which is barely less than a quarter inch so that you’re not losing that take up in your seams. And that can be important when you’re sewing a lot of little pieces together because over the course of all of those little seams, you’re gonna lose a little, like, it’s just gonna add up and up and up and compound…

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: Over all the seams… And then by the time you’re done, you’re block, it’s, you know, a quarter inch shorter than it needs to be, but a lot of beginner quilts will just say, use a quarter inch seam, and that will be just fine, so…

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: Yeah, quarter inch.

Caroline: Very cool. Okay. And you mentioned strip piecing before, and I’ve never heard that term before. Can you explain that to me?

Helen: Yeah. Strip piecing is cool. It’s when you sew larger strips of fabric together and then you cut them up after to create many units. So let’s say you need a unit that’s two different coloured squares sewn together, and you need 20 of those little pairings of squares. You could cut 40 squares and sew them together one by one.

Or you could cut two long strips of fabric, sew those strips together, lengthwise, and then cut them up into those 20 units that you need. It’s so much faster and more accurate. So that can be, yeah, just really, again, really fun and, kind of, mind blowing when you do it.

Caroline: Okay. Yeah. It sounds like it would eliminate some of that trimming that you’re gonna have to do…

Helen: Exactly.

Caroline: …which I think we’re gonna talk about in a minute.

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: But the garment sewer in me is wanting to ask, what about your seams unravelling? Because I know if I ever cut, let’s say a hem or something shorter, and then where that stitch line where I would’ve backstitched it’s, like, gone.

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: So the seam could unravel but also, wait, hold on. I have a follow up question after, but answer this one first.

Helen: Okay. Yes. This is a really great question. I also felt, like, really uncomfortable when I was quilting over the first few times ‘cause I’m like, but the backstitching. I miss the backstitching.

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: Like, reassurance that it’s gonna be secure. But I mean, just like in garment sewing, if you know that your seam is gonna be sewn into another seam, you don’t have to back stitch. But there’s always the chance that it will unravel when you take it to the pressing mat and you’re moving it around your studio and pinning it in place and all that stuff, it could start to come undone. So backstitching I think is always a nice thing to just do in garment sewing.

But in quilting it would just take forever to backstitch at the end of every little thing. And it adds bulk to your project, as well, which you really don’t want because you already are dealing with a lot of bulk, a lot of intersecting seams, so you don’t want extra thread in there, too. So yeah, to save time and reduce bulk, we don’t backstitch in quilting and it’s okay. I have not found it to be an issue when you go and, like, cut up your seam and you just have loosey-goosey short little threads in there.

You wanna be gentle with your pieces and chances are you’re immediately sewing them together into a block or something else, so the chances of it actually unravelling are pretty slim. You can also shorten your stitch length when you’re piecing. I like doing that for curves, especially, because it gets a little bit more of a smoother line, and that makes your stitching even more secure. So that’s something that you can do if you’re feeling nervous about it.

Caroline: Okay, you just answered all of my questions ‘cause I was goi-, I was having a panic attack, thinking about the fact that there’s no backstitching in quilting. And I was like, I, I don’t get it, but I get it now. I understand.

Helen: I should’ve…

Caroline: You just have to be a little gentler. And I like the idea of a shorter seam allowance. I feel like that would make me feel comforted.

Helen: Shorter stitch length, not seam allowance.

Caroline: Yeah. Oh, sorry. Shorter stitch length. Yes.

Helen: Yeah, it, it can be, kind of, freeing once you get the hang of it and you get over that hurdle of feeling like you’re breaking the rules.

Caroline: Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So what about pressing? Because it seems like there’s a lot of pressing in quilting.

Helen: Yes, there is. And you learn to love it if you don’t already love it. I’m a big fan of pressing, so I was…

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: …I was excited. But after each zone, many quilters will finger press the seam open, or to one side, often the darker side of the fabric. And this helps to make it faster when you get to your iron, ‘cause you don’t wanna be at your ironing board with, like, these tiny little pieces trying to fiddle to get these tiny little seams open under the hot iron by your fingers.

So finger pressing them allows you to get those pieces ready. And then you go to the ironing board and you’re just like, press, press, press, press. And everything’s, like, all ready to be pressed. So that’s a step that I’ve really been embracing. I’m enjoying finger pressing.

It also allows you to get many pieces sewn together at once at the machine before you take your final unit or block to the ironing board so you can sew a whole bunch of pieces together at the machine, just using finger pressing and then you’re just taking your final block to the ironing board at the end for the final press. So there’s definitely ways to be more efficient.

Caroline: Mm-hmm. And pressing each seam flat is important in quilting because there are a lot of seams, right? And a lot of bulk, and you want everything to be nice and square. So wrinkly or un-pressed blocks can kind of throw everything off, right?

Helen: Yeah, exactly. You do really wanna focus on getting everything as flat as possible. Flat, flat, flat.

Caroline: Okay. Got it.

Helen: Okay. Let’s talk about trimming. You mentioned that this step also took me by surprise when I started quilting. Basically, after you sew any unit or block in quilting, you wanna take a moment to ensure that your finished unit is the correct size that it’s supposed to be. The pattern will say, these units need to be this size.

You’re gonna take your ruler and double check that, and then you’re gonna trim it to size if necessary and square it up. So things like half square triangles and flying geese are often made oversized so that you can trim them down at the end and have them be perfectly square and neat when you’re finished, rather than trying to make them the exact size you need and ending up with, kind of, wonky units.

I tried to skip this on my first quilt, and oh, my. It really made putting things together at the end a lot harder because my finished blocks were slightly different sizes. They were a little wonky. I hadn’t bothered to trim all my flying geese, so I had lots of little, like, what they call dog ears, which are those little, like, points that, kind of, stick out after you sew the seam from, like, pressing it open. You’ll have these, like, little corners that stick out. You want to trim those off to reduce bulk. It just made it harder, and I’ve learned in quilting that all of these little steps are important because it makes the end result and the subsequent steps easier.

Caroline: Yeah, I bet. Because wouldn’t it compound as you go? Like, if your smaller units are slightly off, then your block is gonna be more off, and then, your finished quilt is gonna be way off, and then it’s just gonna be, like, baahh.

Helen: Exactly. And you don’t want that because you’re putting so much effort into this, right?

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: You want it to turn out in the end. So trimming is not my favourite step, and I know it’s not a lot of quilter’s favourite step, it’s a bit tedious, but it is necessary and important to the process. And there’s a satisfaction there, for sure, um, with squaring things up and making them perfect. And it does take time. My hands get tired, but at the end of it, I feel satisfied that it’s complete.

There are also specialty rulers and swivel mats and things like that that can make the process a lot easier, and I’ve invested in some of those, and that’s been fun to, kind of, figure out ways to make it a more enjoyable part of the process.

Caroline: Oh, I don’t know. I feel like it would be so satisfying to trim everything down and have it be perfect, and then you can have your little stack of perfect blocks before you attach them together.

Helen: Oh, it really is. Until you need to do it 130 times.

Caroline: Okay, so you’re saying the novelty’s gonna wear off. Okay.

Helen: Maybe. Maybe. I mean I won’t speak for you.

Caroline: Okay. So next up is assembly. I know this one. This is when the blocks become the full quilt.

Helen: Yes! This is often the fun part. You get to see the quilt come to life as you sew your blocks or units or strips together. This is also when the quilt goes from being a small, little fun piece that you’re working on to a larger, sometimes much larger beast of a project.

It can become a bit challenging to move it around, to get it through the machine, to have it on your ironing board, et cetera. So that’s something that you’ll learn to work with as well. Quilting is tiny, but it’s also huge.

Caroline: Yeah, and I mean, you’re taking all these smaller pieces and creating this much larger piece, and how do you even know how to assemble it?

Helen: Well, the pattern will tell you. If it’s a pattern that has blocks made of multiple different colours or patterns, you often get to decide what order to place them in. So you can lay them out on your floor. Or some designers have quilt design walls where they stick the blocks onto, like, a big sheet of flannel or batting that’s pinned to the wall, and they just stick right on there. And you can choose your layout, you can move them around and decide where each piece is gonna go before you get to actually sewing the rows together and then assembling the rest of your quilt.

And then some patterns will have very specific ways that you need to assemble the pattern to create the look of the design. So there’s a huge range in assembly of quilts, but it is really fun when you’re working with one that’s more randomised because you get to choose where everything goes.

Caroline: Hmm. Okay, that makes sense. So now the quilt top is done, and it’s time to choose a backing, right?

Helen: Yes. And if your project is wider than 42 inches, which is typical for quilting cotton, you’ll need to assemble your backing or purchase fabric that’s, it’s extra wide for your backing. And sometimes backing will have seams because you’ve assembled multiple strips of fabric. And don’t worry about that. They won’t even be noticeable once you, like, do all your quilting and everything. And could you use scraps or, like, leftovers for the backing?

Yes. And this is a great way to use up all the material that you have leftover from the top and save money. Like I was saying earlier, a bed-size quilt can require, you know, eight or nine yards of 42 inch wide fabric. That’s a lot of fabric. That’s a pretty big expense. So if you’re able to piece together the leftovers from the top that you were working on, or even from past projects, you can really save money. There’s really no reason why your top and your back can’t be patchwork.

Caroline: Mm.

Helen: It’s often that the backing is solid, but it can be patchwork, too. It’ll be a little bulkier, maybe, would be the only downside, but it’s a beautiful way to use up those leftovers.

Caroline: I’ve seen some really creative quilt backs where someone will use, like, maybe full yardage for, like, part of it, and then the other part is filled in with quilted scraps or something like that.

Helen: Exactly.

Caroline: I think you can get really creative.

Helen: Like, just a strip, and that can just be, yeah, the leftovers from the top, which I think is so cool.

Caroline: Okay. What’s next?

Helen: Okay, next up, you’re gonna be doing the sandwiching and prepping for quilting. Caroline, this is the step that you always get lost at. We always lose you here. Remember when I said that your assembled quilt top is gonna be a beast? Well, it’s about to get even beast-ier because next up you’re gonna need to sandwich the top, the batting, and the backing altogether and baste it, as in tack it together so you’re ready for quilting.

You can use quilt basting pins that we mentioned earlier, those little safety pins, to hold the layers together. Or you can use something called spray baste, which is essentially spray glue for your project. I’m a big fan of spray baste, by the way. It’s so fun. And then you don’t have any pins getting in the way of your quilting.

Caroline: How, okay, wait, but how do you make sure that the glue doesn’t, like, get on everything?

Helen: I lay out some newspaper around the area where I’m spray basting so that…

Caroline: Okay.

Helen: And then I wear an apron.

Caroline: Ah.

Helen: But good point ‘cause it can, I mean, it’s spray glue so it goes in the air and it can, kind of, like, you know, get on stuff, so you do wanna be careful.

Caroline: Okay. And with this sandwiching and prepping and, kind of, basting step. I often see people doing this on the floor. Actually, I’ve done it on the floor, and it, kind of, hurts my back. So like what’s up with that?

Helen: Yeah. This part is honestly awkward. You need to get everything as smooth as possible, so you, kind of, need a pretty big surface. I use my work table, which I’m very lucky to have. Some people do it on the wall, actually hanging it up on the wall and doing it on there.

But the floor is a really common place because it’s often the largest flattest surface that you are gonna have available to you. So you’ll see people crawling around on the floor and doing this and yeah, it sucks. It’s not fun.

Caroline: And, like, do you think that this step would be really difficult to do in a small space, or even, shall I say, a tiny space? And have you seen any, like, hacks out there for being able to put together a quilt in a small space.

Helen: You can do it on a smaller surface, like a smaller table. You just need to, kind of, do your basting in sections. So get it as, like, aligned and straight and flat as you can. Like, imagine you’re doing it on an ironing board. The way you would iron yardage, you, kind of, iron, you know, this 12 inch section, and then, you slide it back and you iron the next 12 inch section.

Caroline: Right.

Helen: You slide it back. It would be like that, but with basting, so you’d be basting each section. It can be, kind of, difficult to get everything flat when you’re doing one section at a time. It’s easier to, kind of, lay it all flat flat first, but it’s definitely possible, and I know that people do that.

Caroline: Right. Okay. And, like, how do you motivate yourself to do this step? I’m asking for a friend.

Helen: I think you get excited. And you get through this step by just being really pumped about it finally being ready for quilting.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: Like, this is the step after you finish your top, right? So you finish your top, that’s a huge accomplishment. You’re super excited. It’s done. It’s finally ready to become its final thing to fulfill its quilting destiny. You know, you want to just, like, see that through. So I think you have to ride that excitement high. Resist folding it up and putting it in your closet because… Yeah, that’s hard. That’s hard. It’s hard to get back into the project if you put it away.

Caroline: I feel like we need some dramatic music, and you being like,
“Your quilt is ready to fulfill its destiny!”

Helen: Yay! Oh, totally. Also, having your quilt long armed takes this step out of it because basically you send them, or bring them, your quilt top and the backing that’s all prepped. They will often supply the batting, or you can bring your own, and then, they do this step for you. They load it up onto the long arm machine, which involves actually, like, making it flat and everything, getting it ready, so you don’t have to do that step. So there you go. There’s your solution.

Caroline: Okay, check. Perfect. But speaking of long arming, can we talk about the quilting part? Not the hobby quilting, but the actual quilting on the final piece, which is, like, the top stitching?

Helen: Yes. That’s an important distinction and a confusing one, for sure, because when we say quilting, that can encompass the whole act of quilting. Or quilting within quilting is the stitching of the final project. So you can do home machine quilting and keep it simple by sewing straight lines. Wavy lines are also fun, or stitching in the ditch of your patchwork seams is a fun way to do it.

You can also do free motion quilting on your home machine using a free motion foot. And to do this, you disengage your feed dogs, and then, you can slide your project around in any direction and essentially just doodle with your stitching. People do all sorts of amazing patterns. It takes practice to get good at this, of course, but making a repeating pattern is a good way to try it. Or you can just free form it and literally just, kind of, draw and doodle.

Caroline: That sounds really cool.

Helen: Yeah, it’s super fun. I haven’t gotten a free motion foot yet, but again, it’s on my list. I have so many things on my list.

Caroline: Okay. Tell me more about long arming. Yeah, so there are large, long arm quilting machines, and they’re called long arm quilting machines because they have a long arm that can reach out and over the bulk of your quilting project and actually sew a lot easier than you can on your domestic machine, which has a really short arm.

So they’re like a flat bed machine, like a CNC router or something like that. Like, they’re pretty heavy duty big machines. They do come in various sizes, but they are large. They take up a lot of space. The quilt gets loaded onto the machine and then stitched.

And long armers will take your project, quilt it for you. They’re professional, so you have a lot of expertise there, which is really nice. And they can use computerised designs called “pantographs” or they can do custom free motion quilting work. And I think long arms are so cool because you, kind of, drive them almost like a car. Like…

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: …they have these handles. They’re not quite like regular sewing machines where you’re pushing the fabric around. You’re holding onto the machine, and you’re, like, guiding it around and you’re driving it like a car and you’re stitching at the same time. And it takes an incredible amount of skill to be able to do beautiful free motion quilting work. So props to the long armers out there. It’s something that I would love to try one day. Get my hands on a long arm, have a, a professional long armer, show me the ropes. That would be so cool.

Caroline: They should do, like, well this probably exists, I just am not familiar here, but like, you should be able to, like, rent a long arm, like, rent time on a long arm.

Helen: You can, yeah. There’s…

Caroline: Really?

Helen: I think at the Pfaff store in Vancouver you can rent a long arm and, and, like, rent it for an afternoon and quilt your top.

Caroline: Cool.

Helen: Yeah it, it is really cool. I definitely need to do that ‘cause I wanna give it a try. Of course, I’ve thought about buying a long arm machine, but I don’t wanna get one until I try it ‘cause that would be foolish.

Caroline: And they must be, like, pretty huge investments, right? Like, not something that just your average sewist can just get.

Helen: No, we are not talking about domestic sewing machine prices here.

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: We’re talking thousands, tens of thousands.

Caroline: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Big, big investment.

Helen: They can be really expensive. There’s a range of course, like I said. But yeah, it is an investment, and people make whole careers out of it. Like, there are professional long armers. That’s what they do. They long arm quilts for people and I think, I think that’s really a neat, neat career. Very cool.

Caroline: It really is. Yeah. Okay. And we can’t forget about hand quilting. This is a really beautiful option. It takes longer, but it’s totally worth it. This actually really appeals to me. I’d love to do something like a little blanket that’s hand quilted and yeah, just see if I like it.

Helen: Oh, it’s really fun. Or you can do elements. Like, just the binding, you can hand bind, which is really meditative.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: It’s nice ‘cause you’re cozying. Probably on a couch or something, and you’ve already got your finished blanket on top of you. You’re enjoying it.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: It’s fulfilling its…

Caroline: Reality tv in the background.

Helen: … quilt destiny. Exactly. And you’re stitching away. People often use thicker thread for hand quilting, so it really stands out, and it has that beautiful handmade quality to the finished product. It’s just stunning.

Caroline: So cool. Okay. You just mentioned binding, so tell me more about that.

Helen: Okay. This is the final step and it’s to trim your quilt to size and bind it. Garment sewists will have no trouble with the step, honestly. We’re used to binding.

Caroline: Mm-hmm.

Helen: Um, quilt binding is usually done on the cross grain, not the bias, so I find it’s even easier. We’re talking, like, really stable strips of fabric that are being sewn onto straight lines. I mean, it’s a lot easier than binding a neckline or an armscye.

Caroline: Mm. So you’re saying when you handle it, it’s not gonna stretch out and get all weird and wonky?

Helen: Exactly. And quilters even use glue to hold their binding in place, like washable school glue. It’s so genius.

Caroline: Oh, okay. That is so cool.

Helen: Yeah, it’s a long strip of binding when you’re doing a bed-size quilt. So it can feel like…

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: …it takes a while, but honestly, yeah, I think for garment sewists, this will be the easy part.

Caroline: Cool. Okay. That is quite the process. It sounds like it takes a really long time to get from start to finish on a quilt. Is that true?

Helen: Yes, that is true. On a whole, quilting, I think, is slower than garment sewing. If we’re talking about the finished product in hand, it’s definitely slower. But one thing that I’ve noticed about quilting is that you get more points throughout the process where you get, like, a little, like, completion high.

You feel a real sense of accomplishment when you finish making all the units you need for your blocks. And then again, when you assemble each of your blocks. And then again, when you assemble the quilt top. And then again, when the stitching is done. And again, with the binding. I mean, you get the idea.

Obviously, this happens with garment sewing, too. I’ve experienced this many times with garment sewing, but there’s something maybe a little bit more exciting about a completed quilt block versus, like, a half finished pair of pants.

And I think it’s because it feels complete on its own. Like, a, a finished quilt block feels done even if it isn’t in the quilt yet. Does that make sense?

Caroline: Oh, yeah. And I also love that with quilting you can, kind of, display your in progress work, sort of, like what we talked about with the design wall earlier. But you don’t have to be finished all your blocks to start putting things on the wall. I personally love seeing your studio because often we’re seeing each other through a screen, and I have your studio in the background, and you always have different blocks displayed on the wall, and they’re like art. I mean, it’s, can always be changing and progressing, and it’s a great way to be reminded of where you are at in the process and stay inspired to keep up with your project.

Helen: Oh, a hundred percent. I love displaying the blocks as they come together, and I’ll tell you an embarrassing secret.

Caroline: Please do.

Helen: I love when I complete a block and I take a picture of it on my phone. And then, I have an album on my phone where I keep all the pictures of the block so that when I’m lying in bed I can look at them.

Caroline: Oh! I mean, that’s not embarrassing. I feel like that’s relatable.

Helen: Oh, I’m really, like, just so proud of myself, and I just wanna look at them all the time. And I bring Sam into the studio. I’m like, every time I finish a block, I’m like, come see, come see, come see. You have to see this block I just made. Not quite the same when I’m like, come this sleeve I just inserted.

Caroline: Yeah. Oh, my gosh. Okay, so how long does it take to make a quilt, Helen? Like, tell it to me straight.

Helen: Caroline, it’s impossible to answer this question. No, I’m sorry. There are so many variables. I’m, the main ones, of course, being the size of the quilt and the complexity of the design. When I started quilting, I thought to myself like, how do people do this so quickly? It seemed like a lot of the folks that I was following on Instagram were making quilts so fast, like an alarming rate. And it was taking me, like, a full year to make this bed size quilt.

But now I can understand the speed a little bit more because I’ve gotten faster at it, with practice. I’ve tried easier and smaller projects that are less complex in design, but I mean, of course also social media makes everything seem quick and easy and, like, no big deal, so that doesn’t help.

Caroline: Yeah. Okay. Speaking of smaller and easier projects, can we just quickly talk about good beginner projects? Like, what should people look for when they’re just starting out?

Helen: Well, it won’t surprise nobody that I’m gonna say start small. Use squares or rectangles. Those are the easiest shapes to work with when you’re just starting. You can use precut to speed things up if you’re not really into the idea of cutting. And you can use scraps to take the pressure off ‘cause you’re just using leftovers, and you’re just playing around and having fun. And just know that your first quilt is gonna be a little wonky.

It’s just like your first garment, right? You have to give yourself grace. It’s probably not gonna be perfectly square, but if you have sewing skills already, I think you can definitely be successful with your first quilting project. It’s not gonna be that hard if you’re a garment sewist. II totally believe in you.

I would recommend, of course, our first pattern, the freebie for our newsletter subscribers, the Playful Placemats. I really designed this with beginners in mind, and I think it’s the perfect first project. It’s not boring. It’s really fun, and you get something useful at the end. And I know I said use squares or rectangles, and this project is all half square triangles, but that’s because I know you can do it.

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: I know you can do it. You got this.

Caroline: Yeah. And it’s skill building, and also, it’s, like, really fun and interesting to look at.

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: And see all the different combinations.

Helen: Yeah.

Caroline: I am so excited to try the Playful Placemats pattern. I like that it’s not too simple, and there are triangles, or as you call them, half square triangles, too.

Helen: Yes.

Caroline: As you call them, as the quilting world calls.

Helen: Whatever you call those.

Caroline: Yeah, whatever you call those things. It’s so fun to see the different combinations, and you have a whole bunch of different ideas of combinations that you provide, right?

Helen: Oh, yes!

Caroline: So that’s not something you have to just come up with yourself.

Helen: Twenty-four. 24 options.

Caroline: Oh, my gosh. And it’s a free pattern, y’all. Come on.

Helen: Come on.

Caroline: Oh, my gosh. And we wanna encourage you to incorporate patchwork and quilting into your garment sewing too. To remind you, patchwork is piecing together the fabric and quilting is the stitching. The Wildwood Jacket and Vest pattern is a great quilted pattern that you can try as well, and that is from Helen’s Closet.

Helen: Thank you. Yeah, that is a great pattern for learning a bit more about quilting, if you’re primarily interested in garment sewing. And you can make patchwork a part of pretty much any project. I’ve seen a lot of people incorporating patchwork into their sewing projects lately because quilted garments are, kind of, having a moment in the fashion world.

Caroline: Yeah.

Helen: So that’s been really fun. Think of it like building the fabric you need to make the garment. And this is, again, just an excellent way to use up your scraps.

Caroline: Yes, it is. And we have an episode all about sewing quilted garments. That is episode 217, if you wanna check it out. So, okay, Helen, I wanna know what’s next for you on your quilting journey and for Cedar Quilt Co. Fill me in.

Helen: Oh, I’m so excited. We’ve got patterns coming out. I’m hoping to put one out every month or two. Don’t hold me to it, but that’s my hope. So over the next few summer months, it’s gonna be a really fun time. We’re gonna have a few designs popping up.

And personally, I mentioned so many things in this episode that I wanna try, but I think at the tippy top of the list is foundation paper piecing. It’s so freaking cool. And I really wanna make, there’s a company called Pride and Joy Quilting, they have this really cute foundation paper piecing pattern that is a sewing machine. And it just makes a beautiful, like, wall hanging for your sewing room. So I think I’m gonna start with that pattern, and I’ll share that on my socials as I go.

But I wanna know, Caroline, have I convinced you? I think I know the answer.

Caroline: Absolutely. Okay. I will admit, I was already convinced because I’ve watched your journey over the past few years, and it’s been so inspiring. So after I finish my wedding dress, I’m gonna have some fun with quilting. And I know I should probably start small as per your advice, but I am already dreaming about, like, a big bed-size quilt.

Helen: Ooh.

Caroline: So we’ll see what happens.

Helne: I can totally picture, like, you making a beautiful linen, like, combination of, like, earthy-toned linens or hand woven fabrics for your bedroom. That would be so beautiful.

Caroline: Yes! Okay. That brings us to the end of this quilty exploration. We hope that you found this episode educational and inspirational. And if you love quilting as much as Helen does, go follow along with @CedarQuiltCo. I don’t know. Helen, should we rename this podcast Love to Quilt? What do you think?

Helen: I don’t think that’s necessary yet. Uh, second podcast.

Caroline: Spinoff.

Helen: Spinoff. Yeah. I would also just love to see your quilting projects. Doesn’t have to be something you’re currently working on. Just something that you’ve made that involves quilting. We would love to see that. Share it with us on social media this week. Tag us so we could admire your work and share it with the broader Love to Sew community. That would be so fun.

Caroline: Yes!

Helen: That’s it for today’s episode of Love to Sew. You can find me Helen at HelensClosetPatterns.com and CedarQuiltCo.com. You can find Caroline BlackbirdFabrics.com. And we’re recording in beautiful British Columbia, Canada.

Caroline: Go to LoveToSewPodcast.com to find our show notes. They’re filled with links and pictures from this episode. And if you’d like to get in touch with us, leave us a voicemail message at 1-844-SEW-WHAT. That’s 1-844-739-9428. Give us a shout. Tell Helen how much you love her new patterns. And send us an email at hello@LoveToSewPodcast.com.

Helen: And if you love Love To Sew and want more, you can sign up for our Patreon. For $5 a month, you get a full length bonus episode and weekly behind the scenes pics. For $10 a month you get all that plus a mini episode focused on sewing techniques and 15% off codes for Helen’s Closet and Blackbird Fabrics. Patreon is the best way to support us so that we can keep making quality sewing content for you. Go to patreon.com/LoveToSew for more info.

Caroline: Thanks to our amazing podcast team. Lisa Ruiz is our creative assistant. Jordan Moore of the Pod Cabin is our editor. And Margaret Wakelee is our transcriber. And thank you all for listening. We will talk to you next week.

Helen: Buh-bye.

Caroline: Bye.

 

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