Quick How-To - Homemade Quilting Frames

Baby quilt patterns can be purchased as part of a quilting kit, or found in magazines, books, and quilting stores. It is also quite easy to piece together a quilt of your own design using leftover fabric. You might want to consider using a regular sized pattern, and scaling it down to a smaller size, such as 36 x 45 inches. The size of course is up to you.

Never store your handmade quilt in a plastic bag. The fabric needs to breathe. Storing it in a plastic bag for a long period of time may result in yellowing and discoloration of the beautiful fabrics.

There are conflicting opinions about the need to prewash fabric. The choice is yours, but if you have any doubts about colorfastness (whether or not the color will bleed or wash out), test the fabric before adding it to your quilt.

You can either hand quilt or machine quilt your baby shower gift. Following the perimeter of the shape or you can choose to use a quilter's pencil and template and draw a design and quilt the design. Either way, you will be stitching through all three layers, which not only fasten the layers together, but create a design, as you quilt.

The rectangle that will cover side five will be long, as it must extend beyond the fabrics on both angles 1 and 4. To add interest and create a more collaged look, consider the following options: Pieced rectangles, pieced and curved shapes, and pieced fans.

Blanket Quilt The preferred needle type for woven cotton fabrics is called a "sharp." Sizes 75/11 and 80/12 are good choices for piecing, quiltmaking, and binding most simple quilt patterns. Use a smaller needle (70/10) if you're piecing tightly woven batiks and a larger needle (90/14) for flannels. Dull needles can cause skipping or uneven stitches, so it's a good idea to insert a fresh needle at the start of every project.

The construction of the blanket is the most time-consuming part. Many quilters actually pin the materials of the quilt together before they begin to sew so they can see what it will look like. This allows them to move and adjust the placement of stitching as needed. The construction process will differ greatly depending on the type of quilt you are making. Regardless of which style, it is important to take your time and pay attention to detail.