Tips & Tricks

Quilt Blocks Tips for Finishing: Backing

Traditionally, quilt backing is a print used in the quilt top, a simple muslin, or a 108" extra-wide fabric.  Today, fun novelties or pieced backs are common.  Here are some ways to narrow down your choices. Hand quilting is usually quilted with cream, natural color…

Tips: Using A Ham

If you're sewing more and are boldly charging ahead with your own designs, you probably have finished a project and thought, way too late, about how a good pressing is in order.  But - you've sewed up the tote or pillow and there isn't a…

Quilt Tips: Perfect Pressing

Hello Quilters!  Our Quilt Blocks designers write instructions with every single sewn seam specifically pressed in the best direction.  We think it makes the intersections match and blocks finish square and flat!  Here are some of their tips for: Press all seams with a dry…

Quilt Tips: Sewing Strips to a Block

Hello Quilters! Many times a patchwork block needs a frame or two in a quilt design. A narrow strip can introduce a bold accent color.  A wide strip in a tonal or solid will separate your prints from other prints. Use two borders to pull…

Quilt Tips: Triangle Troubleshooting

Hello Quilters! Accurate Piecing of Half-Square Triangle and Flying Geese units will show off your perfect points but chopped off points will leave you frustrated.   Accuracy can be affected by many things, even the thickness of thread and seams can cause triangles to fall just shy…

Quilting Tips: Perfect Pinning

Recently I saw a quilt WIP (btw, that means a Work In Progress) from the 1970’s or 80’s. Well, maybe it wasn’t actually in progress, but I don’t know what the acronym for an Abandoned Project would be. It was a box of patchwork pieces,…

Quilt Tips: Flying Geese

Hello Quilters!   Flying Geese are a common type of pieced unit used in many quilt blocks.   They can be pieced from three triangles, a rectangle and two squares, or a number of other clever cut and sew methods. Most of the Quilt Blocks designers…

Quilt Tips: Half-Square Triangles

Hello Quilters! Triangles are a challenge for beginner quilters, but at some point you'll run out of squares-only designs.  So let's take a look at the most common triangle used in quilting, the 45o triangle. It is one half of a square and called a…