December 19, 2010
Ripping seams… for one reason or another, we all have probably ended up with this task literally in our laps.
Whether it’s because we made a mistake, changed our minds, or are taking something apart to reuse the fabric, we want to be able to whip through the seam ripping process as quickly and efficiently as possible.
In today’s article, I’ll introduce you to a nifty tool that can help you do just that:
http://www.how-to-quilt.com/articles/6065-magnified-seam-ripper.php
Happy Quilting!
Penny
September 28, 2010
Occasionally, no matter how hard you try, you end up with a seam that must come out. And taking those stitches out the right way can mean that you don’t waste fabric.
If you find yourself in this predicament, don’t stress. Using a seam ripper is the best way to remove unwanted stitches and you’ll learn how and why to use one when you visit:
http://www.how-to-quilt.com/articles/6059-using-seam-ripper.php
Happy Quilting!
Penny
May 29, 2010
Pinwheel Quilt Quilt Block
Imagine that you have been working on a quilt for weeks. Most of the quilt top is finished, and you’re figuring out what kind of borders you want to add.
As you are standing there admiring your work, you realize that right in the middle of your quilt one patch in one block is sewn the wrong way. Or maybe there is a row of blocks that have been sewn upside down.
This has been a difficult quilt all along the way – whether it is your first project or a quilt with curves, a kaleidoscope, or a complicated star. You have spent hours, sewed very carefully and thought that everything was perfect – until that moment.
Discouraged, you are tempted to rip the quilt down from the wall, roll it up and stuff it in the back of a closet.
Hold on!
We’ve all been there. Well, of course I can’t speak for every quilter, but I would imagine that most quilters have experienced some frustration in making a quilt or two.
The thing is, there are many ways to fix mistakes in a quilt – and there is also something to be said for just keepin’ on going, ignoring the mistake.
Depending on what the mistake is and where you are in the construction of your quilt, some mistakes are worth the ripping and re-sewing and others aren’t.
None of my quilts are perfect. In some, the corners of the blocks don’t match perfectly. In other quilts, the triangle tips are cut off (well, sewn over so they are blunt).
And, yes, I have a couple of quilts where the blocks were sewn in the wrong way. Unfortunately in both of them, I didn’t realize my mistake until the quilt was finished and being used.
And in both cases, when I realized my mistake, I just kind of chuckled, realizing that for all that time before I saw the mistake, we had enjoyed them, so why cry now?
Every once in a while as I work on a quilt, I seem overwhelmed by mistakes, though. Seams don’t match, triangles cut off, blocks all different sizes, running out of fabric, quilt too small, quilt too big (although, that rarely happens).
Usually the best thing to do is to put the quilt down for a day or two – fresh eyes seem to quell much frustration. And once I determine that I will fix the problem, it’s just a matter of going to it.
Here are a few tips for correcting your mistakes:
* Quilts that are too large – remove blocks or borders
* Quilts that are too small – add blocks or borders (it’s amazing to me how wonderful additional borders can look, especially when they are pieced – you can even add a border of blocks)
* Wrong thread – rip it out, or continue to use the wrong color thread – really, will anyone notice?
* Patches or blocks sewn wrong – it really is easy to unstitch them and turn them around; it just takes a little time and patience
And before you get too worked up, ask yourself a couple of critical questions:
http://how-to-quilt.com/articles/2054-fix-quilting-mistakes.php
Happy Quilting!
Penny
April 8, 2010
As quilters we always are looking for techniques to make our quilts more beautiful. And, of course, time-saving techniques are welcome, too.
I’ve most always been a hand quilter. When I first started making quilts, nobody was using their home sewing machine for doing the actual quilting.
We had progressed from hand sewing the blocks together to using our machines for that. But nobody I knew had even thought of using a home sewing machine to quilt the layers together.
After I had been quilting for a few years, I heard that quilters were machine quilting on their home sewing machines, so I tried it… with limited success and much frustration.
My quilts usually had puckers and tucks, and I was happy when they showed up only on the back of the quilt. But, often I found myself ripping out quilting stitches because there were puckers on the front of the quilt. Yes, the puckers on the back stayed there!
As more quilters began quilting on their home sewing machines, people discovered techniques that made the finished quilts more beautiful as well as easier to sew.
Here are a few basics that can make a big difference in your finished quilt:
You’ll find more details about these topics when you visit:
http://how-to-quilt.com/articles/2314-puckerfree-machine-quilting.php
Happy Quilting!
Penny
November 24, 2009
If you are anything like I am, every so often you end up ripping out stitches. It’s inconvenient and disappointing, but it happens. And when it does, it’s nice to have a good tool to work with.
I have mostly given up on the normal-looking seam rippers, and for years just used my embroidery scissors for removing stitches. They are really pointed and sharp. I just cut every 4th or 5th stitch, pull the fabric pieces apart and, magically, the stitching comes out.
The problem with that is that the fabric stretches, and when I am working on bias edges of my patches, sometimes it takes a heroic effort to get the fabric back in shape.
Havel's Seam Ripper
On a trip to my local quilt shop, I ran across a seam ripper that was a little different. This one looked like some kind of surgical knife. It has a thin, flat blade and all kinds of warnings about how sharp it is. Although it was a little pricey, I decided to try it out.
It is one of the more amazing tools I have run across recently. This seam ripper is so sharp it glides through seams, cutting every stitch instantly.
You do need to be a little careful so you don’t cut the fabric. But this is the best seam ripper I have seen, and much better than my scissors.
Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, and I’ve done a short video showing how it works:
http://www.how-to-quilt.com/articles/6025-seam-ripper.php
Happy Quilting!
Penny
September 4, 2009
Are you the only quilter on the face of the planet who doesn’t make a mistake as you are sewing your quilt together?
I knew there was one among us.
And if that is you, feel free to delete this email and get back to sewing your perfect quilts.
Oh, and can you send us your tips for sewing everything right the first time, because I’ll admit that even though I’ve been sewing quilts for more than 28 years now, I still make mistakes.
Many, many mistakes as I sew each quilt.
Admittedly, some are more critical than others. And some are more obvious than others.
Take, for example, the Ocean Waves quilt that I sewed one patch unit upside down.
Probably other quilters noticed it way before I did, but it took me a year or two to realize my mistake.
I contemplated fixing it. My excuse for not fixing it was that I ran out of fabric. Hmmm……
No matter how hard I try, each quilt has some cutting flubs – and wasted fabric to show for it. It’s no wonder that my stash of cut fabric is growing each day!
And how about those seams that are wavy or crooked?
Some of them get fixed – especially the ones that make my blocks the wrong size or the patches look wavy in the finished block.
As you can imagine, some mistakes are easier to fix than others. And some are more important to fix than others.
An Amish tradition is to sew a mistake into each quilt, since only God can create something that is perfect. Me – I don’t have to make a mistake on purpose, they just happen along the way!
We’ve got pictures of some of my mistakes and ideas for fixing them and other common mistakes quilters make:
http://how-to-quilt.com/articles/2210-fix-quilting-mistakes.php
Happy Quilting!
Penny
July 10, 2007
Determine how you want to take your quilt apart. In my case, I wanted to have 9 blocks in each section.
The first thing to do is look at how the blocks were sewn together into the quilt top. Look for the seams of rows or columns.
In this case, the quilt was sewn together in rows. Since I wanted squares, I knew that I would need to work around some of the seams.
The sections were to be 3 rows by 3 columns. So the first thing to do was to remove a section 3 rows wide, which is fairly simple.
Step 1
Press your seam allowance so that the right sides of the quilt top are facing together and the seam allowance is clear of the quilt top.
Next, take a seam ripper or a pair of sharp scissors and cut every third stitch. This doesn’t need to be an exact science. The idea is to cut enough stitches so that the seam will come apart easily. I have found that cutting every third to fifth stitch accomplishes that.
Step 2
Once the stitches have been cut, turn the quilt top over so that the continuous thread is facing you.
Loosen one end of the thread and gently pull it. Because the threads on the other side of the quilt top are cut, it should be relatively easy to pull this thread out.
Gently pulling the thread, will unstitch the seam.
Step 3
Now, you have a row 3 blocks high, and it needs to be split into sections 3 blocks wide. Because this quilt was sewn completely in rows, taking the “column” seams apart is a little trickier.
In the picture below, the seam running from top to bottom is the seam joining the two rows.
You need to cut the stitches on both sides of that seam just enough to be able to cut apart the seam that runs from left to right.
Once that is done, the entire section can be removed.
The picture above shows the stitches that were cut that held the row together.
Now the seams running left to right can be cut, and the entire section will come apart. Remove the stitches and extra threads as you did in the previous steps.
Step 4
Since the stitches were cut that held the rows together, the very ends of those seams will be unsewn, and will need to be stitched back together. To do this, I place the sewn part of the quilt top in my sewing machine, making a solid starting point.
Simply stitch to the end of the section. There is no need to backstitch either at the beginning or at the end. These seams will be stitched over when the quilt top is put back together.
Step 5
Now just press the seam allowances you just sewed, just as you would on your quilt top. And you are done!
Continue to take apart the sections of your quilt using the same techniques.
Happy Quilting!
Penny is the author of 8 books for beginner quilters and a self-taught quilter of more than 25 years who seeks to interest new quilters and provide them with the resources necessary to create a beautiful quilt.
www.How-to-Quilt.com
Specializing in Information for Beginning Quilters
www.TheQuiltingCoach.com
Where Quilters Connect
This quilt project is inspired by Ricky Tims’ Convergence Quilts book. If you would like to order a copy, visit:
http://www.how-to-quilt.com/ricky.shtml
