My mom got me a sewing machine a few weeks ago and this *adorable* zig-zag quilt was my first real project! Also, this could not have been done without my friend -Caroline- who inspired me to take on this project & had the patience to walk me through all the steps :)
Here's what you need:
- PATIENCE & time (This was my first time working with the sewing machine so I had to learn about all it's parts, how they work, how to troubleshoot, etc.)
- 9 quarter yards of print/pattern fabric (I chose 9 different prints)
- 1 3/4 yard of solid fabric (I chose a beige-y color)
- 1/2 yard for binding (I used the same beige-y color, but this color totally depends on what theme you're working with!)
- 2 1/2 yards for backing (Mine is the same solid beige)
- Batting (The quilting expert at Hancock's told me cotton > polyester or whatever) I think I got a package of about 75x90; it was the bigger size. There was some left over, but better to have too much than not enough.
- Thread (I made the HUGE mistake of getting quilting thread designed for hand-quilting and it was WAY too thick and had a very coarse texture and kept making my sewing machine freak out and get stuck. It even broke 2 needles! One tip flew out and hit me in the shoulder. Can you imagine if that would have hit me in the EYE? Scary spice!!! I sewed wearing huge chemistry-lab-looking plastic glasses from that point on. Anyway, about the thread, it was SUPER annoying to the point that I took the machine to the fabric store to see what was up. It was the wrong thread. Got a thinner kind in the same beige color and had no more issues!
- Sewing pins
- Scissors (I have special scissors that I only use on fabric. It really makes a difference.)
- A rotary cutter/mat set would also be really helpful! I used my friend Caroline's for some measuring/cutting.
- A large open space
The 9 prints I used:
Instructions:
1. The first thing to do is cut your fabric into these long strips. Start with the print fabric and cut 2 long strips of each pattern. They need to be 3 inches wide. Then for every print strip, cut a corresponding solid fabric strip. If you have the rotary cutter/mat you might get a more precise cut as opposed to using scissors freehand. I did some of both methods, and my squares turned out really well, but it took time.
2. Line up a print strip + solid strip next to each other like the pic above, fold the print over the solid so that the print is facing down onto the solid strip and sew them together on the side.
3. Flip open your strips and iron them print side up like the pic below. Cut them up so that the length is 5.5 inches like the pic below. You need 14 of these blocks for each pattern/print.
YAY! It's time to put it all together! Don't forget to make sure your blocks are ironed well!
4. Begin by laying out all your blocks in a large open area. The quilt will be put together in diagonal strips. To assemble the blocks together, Caroline taught me to focus on the "7" shape that the print fabric makes. For some reason, mine was weird and it is making a backwards "7" shape!
5. As shown below, take the "top" of the "7" shape formed by the print fabric (in this case, the backwards "7"), flip it on top of the bottom block, and sew along the side. Look at picture above... now sew all the "7" blocks together in diagonals (bottom right corner of quilt). Then sew all the diagonal strips together (top left corner of quilt).
Woohoo!! The quilt should now look like this!!!
6. This part is easy :) -- Cut off all the corners.
Now it will look like this!! YAY!
7. Lay down the batting and place quilt face on top and cut batting to appropriate size.
8. Take fabric for backing, lay over quilt face and cut to fit proportions. I had to sew together 2 pieces to make it large enough. (This is my first project -- still learning!!)
9. Use sewing pins to pin 3 layers together (backing on bottom, then batting, then quilt face). It is important to sew the 3 layers together in diagonals, starting with going right across the middle in order to guarantee that the batting will stay in place where it needs to be. Start in the middle going diagonally from corner to corner, then work your way out. This was the hardest part for me!! It requires a lot of time & patience to make sure you get all the diagonals. I had a tricky time keeping them straight!
10. The last part is the binding. Cut strips of fabric to go around the edges. Seam the edges so that you have a cleaner look once it is sewed on the quilt. Fold the strips over the front and back of the quilt and sew around the 4 sides of the quilt.
Ta-Da!! YaY for a super cute homemade quilt!!
I had sew much fun making this zig-zag quilt, I want to make another asap! Especially since this one was made as a birthday gift for my friend Molly so I didn't get to keep it haha! :)
xoxo,
MK
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