Understanding Fabric and Patterns

Quilt Fabric

Quilts are often made with what’s called quilting cotton, or quilting-weight cotton, or just quilt fabric. Basically, it’s a woven cotton fabric. The weave is a simple over-under weave. Quilting cotton is around 4 ounces or more per square yard, due to high thread count and a tight weave. This makes it heavier than cotton lawn (at around 2 oz per square yard) and lighter than denim (which comes in around 8 to 12 oz per square yard for lightweight denim). These are just some example cotton fabrics to give you an idea of where quilting cotton falls. Realistically, there are so very many types and weights of woven cotton fabric that it would take more than one post to go over it all!

I could go on and on about quilting cottons and where to buy better fabrics but let me just say that I recommend that you check out your local quilt shop, and online quilt shops as well, compare the fabrics and prices to the big box stores, and buy the highest quality fabric that fits in your budget.

Lower quality fabric is rougher, has a less nice feel to it, and has a looser weave to it. This means that long-term, your quilt will likely shrink more, and more unevenly, in the laundry, and that the seams will start to come undone sooner due to the looser weave and the relatively narrow seams in quilting. So please, just do yourself the favor of buying the best you can afford. I promise I’m not being snobby about fabric here; I’m being practical and trying to save you from the frustration that comes with lower quality fabric!

Okay, but let’s talk about other fabrics! What other fabrics can you use for quilts? Honestly, just about anything! Upcycled denim is having a moment in quilting on social media right now. It makes very cool looking quilts, especially if you mix it with some pretty quilting cotton. T-shirt quilts are of course a thing and have been for a while. Flannel is popular for making rag quilts. Lawn was having a definite moment a couple of years ago as a quilting medium. I’ve seen a guy who makes absolutely stunning quilt tops out of, I think, organza? They’re sheer, and he doesn’t actually make a quilt with them – just the top, and they’re like this beautiful piece of stained-glass effect fabric art. Stunning. Crazy quilts use literally everything – velvet, silk, cotton, whatever scraps happen to be around, which are often combined with gorgeous embroidery, and can be absolutely beautiful! So, you really can figure out how to make quilts with any fabric! It’s a matter of figuring out how to use that particular fabric medium in the best way possible to make a quilt out of it.

For your first quilt certainly, and maybe your first few, I strongly recommend using quilting cotton. It’s made specifically for the craft and is the perfect medium to learn all of the various techniques and methods that go into quilting successfully. Once you’re a little more comfortable with everything, by all means, branch out and try other fabrics! That being said, of course you can use whatever you like as soon as you like! If you do, there is plenty of information to be found online – google quilting with your particular fabric type and see what advice and techniques are out there.

Quilt Patterns

Now let’s talk a bit about quilting patterns. There are, literally, thousands of quilt patterns out there. When I first got into quilting, I hopped on IG and started following the quilting hashtags. I started finding quilt patterns I liked and following the designers. If you haven’t started researching quilting on your social media of choice yet, you should. 🙂 I think the best way to find patterns you like is to see what’s out there! Google is, of course, also a wonderful way to find information on quilt patterns! What follows is a (very) brief overview of some of the more common construction methods of quilt patterns.

• Many quilt patterns are made of “blocks”. These are smaller units of the quilt top, often squares, and the idea is that you make several blocks, perhaps in different colors but all the same block pattern, and then you sew them together in rows and then sew the rows together into the quilt top. In other patterns, each block might be the same size and shape, but the design of each block is different. This is called a sampler quilt.
• Then there are block style patterns where some of the blocks are different sizes and even different shapes. Then they go together in sort of a puzzle. The result is very interesting and dynamic, with a lot of movement.
• Other patterns involve building only long rows or columns, then sewing them together, so you skip the block part of it. These are also often really fun with interesting movement.
• Medallion quilts start with a central focal piece of some sort, and then you build the quilt out from the center with different strips around the perimeter, known as borders.
• Star quilts involve sewing strips of fabric together, then cutting across those strip sets at a specific angle, and then sewing back together into diamond shapes. Star quilts are really fascinating and interesting to look at.
• Whole cloth quilts involve one single piece of fabric for the top, and the quilting usually takes center stage.
• In much of modern quilting, the quilter follows no rules, or very few. The quilt can be wholly or partially “improv” where there is no pattern or set idea of what it should look like. They may or may not use blocks or any other unit.
• Many art quilts paint a picture through the use of fabric colors/textures, and thread “painting”.

I’m not even coming close to doing any of these methods justice. If any or all of these sound remotely interesting, please do yourself a favor and look them up on google or social media. There are some true artists and innovators in the quilting space online, and they deserve to be found and followed. I will talk more about my personal favorite designers some other time. Below is a small gallery of some of the block style quilt tops I’ve made, to give you an idea of how block size, layout and color choice can make all the difference!

Before we finish, let’s talk about what to do when you find a pattern you want to make your first quilt with. First off, as I mentioned in a previous post, please do yourself a favor and choose a simple pattern for your first quilt. Choosing a complicated one will only bring frustration. You will have PLENTY of time to ease into more complicated patterns, so let yourself learn on something easy. Okay, I’ll stop momming you now. 😉

So you’ve chosen a pattern, but it still looks like a whole lot that you don’t really understand. Even if you’re an experienced sewist, quilting uses a different terminology than regular sewing patterns. So take some time to understand what you’re reading. Most quilt patterns have some sort of glossary or terminology section that defines the jargon used in the pattern. Common jargon includes:

• WOF – width of fabric
• selvedge
• Fat quarter
• Layer cake, jelly roll, charm pack – different types of precut bundles
• bias
• seam allowance

While you may already understand some of them, if any are unfamiliar, take the time to read the definitions and do some more research if you need to.

Make sure you read all the way through the pattern before you start. You want to know what you’re getting yourself into. Sometimes a pattern may seem easy but turn out to be very complicated. So review the whole pattern and make sure you understand what you’ll be doing throughout the process. If anything is unclear, it is okay to check the designer’s website. Sometimes there are typos or mistakes on patterns, and often times the designer will have a list of corrections. It’s also okay to email the designer for clarification or help if you need it. Most, if not all, quilt pattern designers are super nice and absolutely want you to be successful in making a quilt with their pattern!

Check what the fabric yardage requirements are. Just like with a garment or other sewing pattern, you will need to get the right amount of fabric for the pattern, and many designers have some suggestions of colors and/or values to purchase to get the right effect.

As you’re making the quilt, double check cutting directions and diagrams, and then also piecing diagrams. Many patterns have plenty of images to help you understand each step. Read the words, but also make sure you can clearly understand the diagrams.

Lastly, if a pattern ends up feeling too complicated after all, it’s okay to put it aside for a later effort and choose another, easier pattern! Some patterns are deceptively difficult, and different designers describe steps differently, some more clearly than others. It is absolutely okay to realize a pattern is too complicated or difficult for you right now. You will get there if you stick to the craft, and you’re more likely to do that if your first one or two or 5 quilts are clear and easy to construct! So please don’t be afraid to look for something simpler if you need to.

I want to make you one little promise here. You absolutely CAN learn to quilt. If you know how to use a sewing machine already, you’re a lot of the way there, but if you don’t know how to sew at all, you can learn that too! Hundreds of thousands of people have learned to sew and to quilt, and you absolutely can as well! Please, please, when it starts to feel frustrating (and it will! I’ve been there and so has every other quilter ever!) ask for help. You can ask me here in comments, or on social media if you follow me. You can ask other quilters on social media. You can ask pattern designers. You can go to your local quilt shop and ask for help. I promise there are SO MANY quilters out there like me who want to see this wonderful craft grow and flourish, and we WANT to help! So please never be shy about asking!