Quick How-To - Homemade Quilting Frames

Because of their smaller size, baby quilts are much easier to make than a normal sized quilt, and can be put together more quickly. Consider using fabric scraps from another project, and simply cut them into blocks, or strips that you can easily match and piece together to produce a beautiful quilt for baby. By using flannel for your batting, the blanket that you quilt will be warm and cozy.

Turn and press this rectangle over the seam allowance, again pressing away from the center piece. Trim the seam allowance close to the stitching line.

Usually these programs encourage you to bring in your own supplies and patterns. This is perfect for someone considering baby quilt patterns. It's great because you can actually work in the quilt that you want to make at the same time you are learning how to make it. The instructor is there to guide you every step of the way.

Blanket Quilt I decided on using 35 pictures for Peggy's memory quilt. I chose pictures that showed her children at different stages of their lives. As well as pictures showing her and her husbands age regression. Her favorite color is blue, so I chose a dark blue with a light blue design, and a light blue with a dark blue design for the blocks. One thing to keep in mind when doing one for a person with Alzheimer's' is to try and keep the material fairly plain or quiet. When using a material that is very busy or loud, it just adds to their overall confusion. Something you definitely do not want.

I then sewed all the squares together, in an alternating pattern. I now had the quilt top. I used soft fleece for the backing and put a piece of quilt batting in between the two. I found that if you spray an adhesive on the quilt batting it helped to keep the pieces from shifting too much. After pinning the quilt, I sewed a dark blue blanket binding around the outside edge. All that was left was to tie it. I used 6 strand embroidery floss, and hand knotted every corner except the corners at the blanket binding.

Now you need to cut your squares. If you bough precut squares, you are in luck because you can skip this step. Make sure you measure your squares very carefully. If they are off, even by a little, your quilt will not come together correctly. You might not even realize it until you get halfway done with your quilt. Once you are finished cutting, double check your work and look over it again. You can't afford any mistakes!

After the foundation piece has been completely filled with fabric strips, trim the block to the desired size. Press the block on both the front and back. Don't leave any loose pieces.