QUILTsocial | Issue 13 by A Needle Pulling Thread

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I S S U E 13

eat, sleep, quilt, repeat !

essential tips

* PLUS * Quilted Tic Tac Toe Game Board Bowl Cozies Cushion Cover for a Porch Bench Flying Geese Quilt

* how to make & apply covered cording * making a decorative binding * best kept secret to beautiful quilting designs * exploring utility stitches * quilting with decorative stitches * how to use Therm Fleece in quilted projects * 8 essential tips for embroidering free standing lace

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editor's letter Every time you sit at your sewing machine is it work or play?

See what Christine Baker has to say about her experience and cool tips on using utilitarian and decorative stitches on the Brother Dreamweaver XE to quilt. The possibilities for quilting options are indeed infinite! I've been working on my Spirals quilt, a quilt that was almost abandoned. But through some act of fate, it was ripped out and redesigned and used to practice quilting using decorative stitches. I learned that it's best to keep the decorative stitches from crossing the seam intersections and to use simpler, 'quiet' stitches for less overall movement. Mesmerized, I watched all the edges of the spirals stitch out, that's a lot of rows! A laser pointer would have made the task a lot easier to keep all my decorative stitches straighter, but now I'm nitpicking. More on this quilt in the next issue. In this issue, the fun continues. Sarah Vanderburgh has made a tic tac toe game board using Banyan Batiks Recess fabric collection, making it a great gift for toddlers (and a quiet one?)

Claire Haillot has a lot of fun adding oomph to a simple binding using the PFAFF creative icon stitch creator. If you're uber creative and can imagine all sorts of quilting designs, this may be for you! Jean Boyd shows you how to play with strips to make a bench cushion and we know, there too, the combinations are endless. You'll love how this project gives you the freedom to choose your ideal combination of strips. It's still that time of year when hot soups are such a comfort, see how easy it is to make a bowl cozy for that yummy bowl of soup. And actually, I'll be honest I'm not a winter person, but I enjoy how winter offers me more time at the sewing machine than let's sayâ&#x20AC;Ś outside in the garden. Enjoy the issue! Cheerfully,

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eat, sleep, quilt, repeat

PUBLISHER, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, ART DIRECTOR Carla A. Canonico carla@QUILTsocial.com PUBLISHER, ADVERTISING SALES John De Fusco john@QUILTsocial.com PHOTOGRAPHERS John De Fusco, Carla A. Canonico BLOGGERS/CONTRIBUTORS Christine Baker

fairfieldroaddesigns.com

Claire Haillot

quiltingwithclaire.com

Jean Boyd

patternsbyjeanboyd.com Sarah Vanderburgh

sewjoycreations.com GRAPHIC & WEB DESIGN Carla A. Canonico carla@QUILTsocial.com Sondra Armas WEB and IT Support Alejandro Araujo

* projects * techniques * product reviews

WEBSITE / BLOG : https://QUILTsocial.com Like us on Facebook : QUILTsocial Follow us on Pinterest : quiltsocial Follow us on Twitter : @QUILTsocial WHERE TO GET YOUR COPY QUILTsocial is a quarterly eMagazine published by A Needle Pulling Thread. It is available free for personal use online at https://QUILTsocial.com. A limited number of printed copies of QUILTsocial are available for purchase at select quilt shops and specialty stores. Ask for it at your local shop. QUILTsocial is not available by subscription. QUILT SHOPS If you are interested in carrying QUILTsocial in your store, please email john@QUILTsocial.com. EDITORIAL Designers and other contributors who would like to be considered for future issues please email carla@QUILTsocial.com with a brief description of your work and your proposed project for the magazine. ©2019 QUILTsocial. All rights reserved. Issue 13. ISSN 2368-5913. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher.

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Elaine’s Quilting Tech Tips! 4

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Advertiser Index 48 A Needle Pulling Thread Magazine 17 Banyan Batiks 47 Brother 46 Business Directory 39 Coats 27 Gütermann Creativ 02 Husqvarna Viking 44 Melissa Marginet 43 PFAFF 42 QUILTsocial.com

QUILTsocial

issue 13

c o n t e n t s 06

6 fun fat quarters turn into a quilted game

Piecing X blocks for quilted game

Piecing O blocks for quilted game using trendy Banyan Batiks, Recess

Making a quilted tic tac toe game board

Completing the quilted tic tac toe game set

Bowl cozies: a fun and useful project!

5 easy steps to finish your bowl cozy

Making a cushion cover for the porch

Arrange strips, sew and spray baste

How to make and apply covered cording like a pro!

20 The beauty of quilting with the PFAFF creative icon 21

PFAFF creative icon stitch creator lets you add oomph to a simple binding

Why Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m so excited about the PFAFF ImageStitch app

26 The best kept secret tobeautiful quilting designs 28

How the PFAFF creative icon helped me finish a UFO quilt

Exploring utility stitches on the Brother Dreamweaver XE

Infinite possibilities for quilting with decorative stitches

Machine quilting with a serpentine stitch

Decorative stitches plus laser pointer = beautiful machine quilting

8 essential tips for embroidering free standing lace

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6 fun fat quarters turn into a quilted game Sarah Vanderburgh

Quilted game made with Recess line from Banyan batiks

How fun is this?! The Recess line from Banyan batiks is now in quilt shops and the designs definitely shout fun. But not just any kind of fun – fun with friends, outdoor fun, but especially fun to be had when playing games! This line of fabric inspired me to create a game to play, well, anywhere! Not an original game, but a classic one, pieced and quilted to travel or simply take outside to the backyard. Maybe a teacher might even enjoy having it in a classroom? Shhh! Let’s go play in our sewing rooms and make this quilted game using Northcott’s latest, Banyan Batiks. materials The 6 fat quarters from the Recess line used in this sample are: • board game top fabric 80115-91 • board game backing fabric 80110-29 • symbol fabric X 80114-63 • symbol fabric X background fabric 80110-94 • symbol fabric O 80114-99 • symbol fabric O background fabric 80111-43 You’ll also need some batting to quilt the game board and pieces:

• cut one piece 18” x 21½” for the board • cut ten 5½” squares for the game pieces There’s enough fabric to make a travel bag to carry all the game pieces too! On to the cutting instructions.

Quilted game board tied up

Photos by Sarah Vanderburgh

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cutting instructions symbol fabric X 80114-63

symbol fabric O background fabric 80111-43

• 5 – 5½” squares • 5 – 1½” x 8½” strips • 5 – 1½” x 9½” strips

Cut pieces from fat quarter in this order to make best use of fabric:

symbol fabric X background fabric 80110-94 • 2 – 1½” x 21 strips • 5 – 5½” squares

Subcut 1 strip into 3 – 5½” squares; subcut remaining strip into 3 – 1½” squares.

Cut pieces from fat quarter in this order to make best use of fabric: Cut 1 – 3” x 21” strip. Subcut into 2 – 1½” x 21” strips. Cut 2 – 5½” x 21” strips. Subcut into a total of 5 – 5½” squares. Reserve 4” x 21” strip. symbol fabric O 80114-99 Cut 6 – 1½” x 21 strips. Subcut strips to make total pieces required, starting with longest strips and working down to squares. • 10 – 1½” x 5½” strips • 10 – 1½” x 3½” strips • 20 – 1½” squares

Cut 2 – 5½” x 18 strips.

Subcut second strip into 2 – 5½” squares and 4 more 1½” wide strips – cut each strip into 3 more 1½” squares. Cut 1 – 3½” x 18 strip.

Quilted X block game pieces.

Subcut into 5 – 3½” squares. From remaining fabric cut 3 – 1½” wide strips (should be around 3½” in length). Subcut into 1½” squares to get to total of 20 – 1½” squares. The game board fabric will be cut as it’s made. We’re off to a good start! Cutting into these fun fat quarters of Recess fabric makes me want to play in my sewing room all day. Quilted O block game pieces.

Piecing X blocks for quilted game The Recess fabric line has some bold colorways to choose from, but I chose to go with the gray-blue and the purple colorway and its 'masculine' looking prints. Let’s continue with the pieced X blocks! Make X blocks 1. Cut one fabric X background square through one diagonal. 2. Sew one cut edge to a long side of Fabric X 1½” x 8½” strip; press the seam to the background fabric. 3. Sew the remaining background half along its cut edge to the opposite side of the Fabric X strip, lining up the two background halves using the points as visual guides. Press the seam to the background fabric.

Background cut on diagonal with X strip ready to sew Second diagonal cut

4. Cut diagonally through the unit opposite the pieced in Fabric X fabric. 5. Sew one cut edge to a long side of Fabric X 1½” x 9½” strip; press the seam to the background fabric.

6. Sew the remaining half of unit along it’s cut edge to the opposite side of the Fabric X strip; this time you can also use the pieced strip in Fabric X to line up the halves visually. Press the seam to the background fabric.

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7. Trim the unit to 5½” square. I used a 6½” square ruler and lined up the guidelines to make my first two cuts along the top and right sides.

Line up inset strips and pin halves together.

Then I turned my unit and trimmed again. I did this two times and kept lining up my 5½” guide marks on the ruler as well as the diagonal line in the middle of the ruler through the middle of my Fabric X. 8. Repeat steps 1-7 to make 4 more X blocks.

Trim the pieced X block to size.

Piecing O blocks for quilted game using trendy Banyan Batiks, Recess

The pieced X blocks are ready. I really like the blue print from the Recess fabric line – it makes me think of outdoor fun! Next up, we piece some O blocks.

Five pieced X blocks

We’ll use two different fat quarters from the Recess fabric line to make pieced O blocks. Make O blocks To make one O block you’ll need: from O fabric

• 2 – 1½” x 5½” strips • 2 – 1½” x 3½” strips • 4 – 1½” squares

Corner squares trimmed and pressed

from O background fabric

• 1 – 3½” square • 4 – 1½” squares

Opposite corner squares sewn onto middle unit square

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Make middle unit 1. Place one symbol fabric O square right side down on corner. 2. Sew diagonally through middle of square parallel to corner – see photo on the left. 3. Repeat on opposite corner. 4. Cut corners leaving seam allowance. Press the seams to the added squares. 5. Repeat on remaining 2 corners. Unit should measure 3½” square.

Four corner triangles added

Five completed pieced O blocks Steps to make top and bottom rows of pieced O blocks

Layout of three rows to make pieced O block

Make top and bottom units 1. Place one background fabric square right side down on one end of a Fabric O 1½” x 5½” strip. 2. Sew diagonally parallel to the corner. See photo. 3. Repeat on opposite end of the strip with second background fabric square, with the diagonal again parallel to the corner. 4. Cut corners off leaving seam allowances. Press the seams to the added squares. 5. Repeat steps 1-4 on the remaining 1½” x 5½” strips.

Assemble middle row 1. Sew long edge of 1½” x 3½” strip to one side of the 3½” square unit; press the seam to the strip. 2. Sew remaining 1½” x 3½” strip to the opposite side of the 3½” square unit; press the seam to the strip.

Assemble O block 1. Sew one 1½” x 5½” strip unit to the top and one to the bottom of the unit made in step 2; press the seams to the added strips. The block should measure 5½” square. Repeat to make 4 more pieced O blocks. The Os are almost ready to play with the Xs – both still need to be quilted into game pieces. I really like how the flying paper planes get some special attention in the middle of the pieced O blocks. The Recess fabric line has been nothing but fun to design with and create this quilted game.

Layout for middle row assembly of pieced O block

Making a quilted tic tac toe game board Now all we need is a board to play on! My husband really likes the fabric I picked to use as the background for the quilted game board. Cut background fabric into 3 – 6½” x 18” strips. 1. Sew 1½” x 18” Fabric O background strip between two pieces of background fabric; press seams to the background fabric. 2. Sew second background strip to opposite site of Fabric O background strip.

3. Repeat with a second Fabric O background strip to the sewn unit followed by final background strip. Press seams to the background fabric.

Layout for adding columns to game board.

Quilted game board

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4. Cut the unit horizontally into 3 – 5¾” x 20½” background units. 5. Sew a 1½” x 20½” Fabric O strip between the three units to make the game board. Press the seams to the background units.

But wait, I almost forgot! Before sewing, make a thin tie out of Fabric O background fabric to sew into the game board seam: 1. Cut a 1½” x 20½” strip of Fabric O background fabric. 2. Lay Right Side Down on ironing surface and press ¼” over to the back. Repeat on other edges. 3. Press ¼” over at each end then fold and press the two pressed edges together. 4. Sew one seam down the middle of the tie.

Lining up blue strips and pinning final background row to board.

I put safety pins in at this point through all three layers of the top to keep the layers from shifting before quilting it. Change to a quilting needle and embroidery presser foot to topstitch around the board.

Turning gap pinned and safety pins in the game board.

Game board should measure 18” x 20½”.

Remember to watch for the tie and keep it on the other side of the needle when topstitching!

Tie edges pressed to the wrong side

Bend the tie in half and pin the folded end between the backing and game board in the middle of the short side opposite the side with the turning gap. See the photo below. Completed game board top

Trim backing fat quarter to size (18” x 20½”). Layer batting with backing Right Side Up on top, then the game board Right Side Down. Pin all the way around leaving a 2” – 3” turning gap along one short side.

Sew all the way around the game board to sew the layers together, backstitching at each end of the turning gap and over the folded tie end for extra strength. Check that all three layers are secured in the seam all the way around the board, then clip the excess seam allowance at each corner. Turn the layers through the turning gap and roll the seams flat with your fingers. Use a tool of your choice to push out the board corners.

Tie tucked between layers to be sewn into seam

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I stitched ¼” away from the strips on the board. You can add more quilting if you’d like. The game board is quilted. The Recess fabric really gets to show off on the board, doesn’t it? All that’s left is to quilt the game pieces with some more Recess fabric and make a traveling bag for them. A little more sewing before we can play!

Layers of game board ready for envelope method

Topstitching game board with a tie to the right of the stitching

Completing the quilted tic tac toe game set I’ve had some serious fun sewing Banyan Batiks Recess fabric into a quilted game. Let's finish it! Make blocks into quilted playing pieces 1. Sandwich playing piece (X or O) with the corresponding background fabric. 2. Lay batting square on pinning surface. 3. Place backing square Right Side UP. 4. Place pieced block Right Side DOWN. 5. Pin around leaving a 2” turning gap on one side. 6. Sew around, backstitching on both sides of the turning gap. 7. Clip corners then turn playing piece right side out. 8. Finger press gap seam and topstitch around edge. Repeat on remaining 9 game pieces. I quilted the corresponding shapes in the game pieces too – scroll back up to the first photo to see. The pieces do need some quilting to keep them flat and so that they will hold their shape if you need to wash them. Now that the quilting is done it’s time to make a bag to carry all the game pieces in. Lucky for us we have enough fabric leftover from the fat quarters to make one just the right size.

Pieced O blocks ready to be quilted

Make carrying bag Trim leftover O fabric to 8” x 21½”. 1. Fold over each short end to make hems – fold ¼” then ¼” again and sew. 2. Fold fabric in half Right Sides Together with hems lined up. 3. Before going further make a tie with leftover X fabric for the bag: Cut X fabric to 1½” x 15”.

Bag fabric hemmed and tie made

X block pieces

Repeat pressing and folding to make a tie in the same manner as tie made for the game board. (press ¼” each side towards the middle, press in half with each end folded ¼” in before pressing in half; sew once down the middle) 4. Fold tie in half and pin approximately 1” – 2” down between the folded bag fabric and pin to secure. 5. Sew down each side of the bag, stitching over the tie twice, backstitching at the hem edge. 6. On one bottom corner of the bag, line up the ruler with a 1½” square and cut off a square of fabric under the ruler. 7. Make boxed corners by opening the fabric corner then making a straight edge between the corner of the square and sew across. 8. Repeat on opposite bottom corner of bag. 9. Turn the bag right side out.

Cutting square to box bag corner

Boxed corner seam Carrying bag beside quilted game pieces

Optional: Zigzag or serge the seams of the bag (nice touch for gift giving and probably necessary if you need to wash it!) Now that the sewing fun is over, it’s time to play with the quilted game! The ‘playability’ is huge and making it portable, with large size pieces just increases the fun. From young children to older, take your quilted game board made from Recess fabric out for some fun!

Bowl cozies: a fun and useful project!

Jean Boyd

Bowl cozy made from 2 squares of fabric and Therm Fleece

In June 2018, I showed you how to use Therm Fleece to make some coasters and mug rugs, in my post called How to use fusible web that goes in your printer and its characteristics. This heat resistant material is used for hot and cold insulation to provide protection from hot surfaces up to 390˚. Therm Fleece is designed as a liner and should not make direct contact with a heat source. It’s the perfect product to use for potholders, oven mitts, tea cozies and here – a bowl cozy.

Therm Fleece and fabric ready to be sewn

NOTE: The bowl cozy made with Therm Fleece should not be used in the microwave.

Bowl cozies are easy to make from just 2 squares of fabric and are great for holding a hot soup bowl or cold bowl of ice cream while sitting in front of the television or out on the patio. They can be made in any size to suit your favorite bowl. materials makes 1 bowl cozy

• 2 – 10” squares of fabric. I used fabric from Northcott Banyan Batiks collection, Visual Sound.

• 2 – 9½” squares of Therm Fleece. Cut a little off the corners to reduce bulk.

Sewing Instructions

• Mark a center horizontal and vertical line on the white side of each Therm Fleece square.

• Mark a small line on each center line, 2¼” from the outside edge. • Pin 1 square of Therm Fleece to the wrong side of each fabric square. Have the shiny side facing the wrong side of the fabric.

• Using a walking foot, machine baste Therm Fleece to the wrong

Therm Fleece: perfect for hot mats, mug rugs, bowl cozies and more

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side of one fabric square, stitching close to the edge of the Therm Fleece. Have the shiny side next to the wrong side of the fabric. Do the same with the other fabric square. • Fold the square, with Therm Fleece attached, in half on one of the drawn lines. Stitch a dart from the small line to the outer edge, making the dart about ¾” wide. Do this on all 4 sides. Do the same on the other fabric square. • Cut away the extra fleece from the darts and the outside edges to eliminate some bulk.

Mark center lines and pin Therm Fleece to fabric.

Sew a small dart on each side.

Cut away extra fleece from darts.

5 easy steps to finish your bowl cozy With just a few easy steps, you’ll have your bowl cozy ready to use in no time. Let’s get started!

• Layer the 2 fabric squares, • •

• • • •

with Therm Fleece attached, right sides together. Attach a walking or even-feed foot to your machine. Using a ½” seam, stitch all around the outside edge, leaving a 3” opening for turning. Try not to leave the opening where the dart is. You can slightly round the corners for a nicer finish. Trim seam allowance as required. Turn the bowl right side out through the opening. Handstitch the opening closed. Top-stitch around the outside edge. You can also do some simple straight-line quilting in the center of the bowl to make sure the layers stay together smoothly.

Stitch Therm Fleece and fabric layers together.

Top-stitch around outside edge

This size bowl cozy will fit most regularsize soup bowls, but it’s easy to make smaller or larger bowl cozies, just by changing the size of the fabric squares. Smaller bowl cozies will need shorter darts and larger ones will need longer darts. You could also use just one square of Therm Fleece if you wish.

Simple straight line quilting in the center

You’re sure to enjoy using up some fabric scraps along with Therm Fleece to make some attractive and useful bowl cozies. Another bonus – they're reversible!

Photos by Jean Boyd

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Making a cushion cover for the porch This project is another one that will help use up some of your fabric stash and create a bench cushion that will be perfect for both inside and outside use. The bench pillow form I used is 16” x 38” and is available in fabric and craft stores. I used fabrics from Northcott Banyan Batiks collection for my bench cushion cover. materials

• ½ yd [.4m] focus fabric; I used a large floral print

• ½ yd [.4m] accent fabric (bright

green); this is used for the cushion front and the corded edge • ¾ yd [.7m] background fabric • 1 yd [.9m] cushion back; I used the focus fabric with the large floral print • 120” of cording. I used a soft, ½” diameter Creativ Dekor cotton cording.

Bench cushion

cutting instructions

• accent fabric 2 – 1½” x WOF (width of fabric, approximately 40”)

• background fabric 3 – 8½” x WOF • focus fabric 2 – 6½” x WOF • for ease of handling, cut the WOF strips in half so they measure approximately 20”.

Let’s start sewing!

• Make a strip set using 2 background

strips, 1 accent strip and 1 focus fabric strip. • Press seams in one direction. Press carefully so you don’t distort the strip set. • Cut the strip set into 2½” segments. You’ll get 8 segments from the strip set. • Make 2 more strip sets like this and cut them into 2½” segments. You need 19 – 2½” segments for the cushion top, so you’ll only need to cut 3 segments from the last strip set. Keep the rest of the strip set for another project – maybe a smaller cushion?

Bench cushion form

Keep reading to learn how to re-arrange the strips to create your own original cushion top!

Banyan Batiks fabrics

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Strip set cut into 2½” segments

Arrange strips, sew and spray baste Create your own original design! Once you have your 19 – 2½” strips cut, it’s time to start arranging them to create the cushion top. You can use a design wall or lay the strips on the pillow form until you find a pleasing design.

When you’re satisfied with your design, sew the strips together using a ¼” seam. Handle carefully so you don’t stretch or distort the strips. Design Method 1: Arrange the 2½” strips on a design wall.

Design Method 2: Arrange the 2½” strips on the pillow form.

Sew the strips together.

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Trim the top and bottom of the pieced rectangle so the edges are even. It should be 38½” wide. If it isn’t, you can add one more 2½” segment.

Quilting the cushion top I did some “stitch in the ditch” quilting on all the seam lines and then added more vertical lines in a random design using monofilament “invisible” thread. There are several different invisible threads available in craft and quilt shops. They come in both light and dark colors, and also in different weights. You can also use a light-weight thread such as Gütermann 100% polyester in the color of your choice.

Trim the top and bottom to make the edges even.

Cut 1 piece of lightweight batting (there are several to choose from) and 1 piece of backing fabric so they are the same size as the cushion top. The backing fabric won’t show when the cushion is finished, so this is a good chance to use up some “ugly” fabric from your stash! Layer cushion top, batting and backing. Pin or baste the layers together. 505 Spray can be used for this. Make sure to read the instructions on the can before using this product. You can also pin-baste the layers together with safety pins.

Stitch with light-weight or monofilament (invisible) thread.

Make sure to use your walking or even-feed foot when machine quilting. If you have a foot with an open toe, it makes it even easier to see where to stitch.

Layer top, batting and backing and baste with 505 Spray or safety pins. Use a walking foot for machine quilting.

When the quilting is finished, trim the rectangle to 17” x 39”, centering the design as desired. I find that the finished cushion top is a better shape if you round the corners or cut them on a slight angle. To do this, I made a cardboard template to use as a guide for cutting. I started the angle at 3½” from the corner and removed about ½” of fabric at the widest point at each corner.

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Broken Glass is a new Essentials collection that mimics the look of broken glass. This bold line achieves its radiant color through a process applied to the fabric by hand. Our master artisan submerses his hands in a gel-like substance and hand paints each piece. Broken Glass comes in 22 colors and will give a striking effect to any project! Visit BanyanBatiks.com to view the entire collection, and use the Product Finder tool to search for a local quilt shop that carries Broken Glass.

Tilting at Windmills 48’’ x 72’’ by B.B Studio Free Pattern Download at BanyanBatiks.com

FREE Pattern & Video Tutorial Watch the step-by-step tutorial by Laura Coia of Sew Very Easy as she creates the Tilting at Windmills quilt at youtube.com/SewVeryEasy!

How to make and apply covered cording like a pro! Bench cushion finished with covered cording

• When you come to the corner, stop

Make the cording

• I used a Creativ Dekor cotton cording

stitching about ½” from the corner and back stitch. Make a diagonal cut in the seam allowance of the cording. This will help to ease the cording around the corner.

that was ½” in diameter, but a smaller cord would work equally well. • From green accent fabric, cut 3 strips 25⁄8” x WOF (width of fabric). Cut the ends of each strip on a 45° or 60° angle. • Sew the strips together to make 1 strip long enough to go all around the cushion top with about 8” extra.

Use a zipper foot to stitch close to the cording.

• Place one end of the covered cord

Cotton cording for the edge finish

• Fold the green strip around the

in the center of one side of the cushion top. • Starting about 12” from the corner, sew the covered cording to the cushion front. Make sure to stitch as close to the cording as possible and keep all outside raw edges even. Using a small plastic ruler pushed against the cording will help you stay close to the cording.

cording, right side out.

• Using a zipper foot, stitch as close to

the cording as possible. Be sure to keep the outside edges of the green fabric even. • If necessary, trim the seam allowance so it is ½” after the stitching is finished.

Stitch covered cording to the cushion top.

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Make a diagonal cut in the seam allowance.

• Continue sewing the cording around all sides of the cushion top.

• When you come to the last side,

stitch about 8” past the corner and back stitch. Remove the cushion top from the machine. • Adjust the cording so it lies flat. Stitch the 2 ends of the cording fabric together using a 45° or 60° seam. Finger-press seam open. Trim excess fabric.

Sew ends of cording fabric together.

Overlap edges of backing fabric and baste in place.

• Trim the cording so the two ends

• Trim the cushion back so it is the

butt up against each other. • It’s a good idea to tape these ends to prevent fraying. • Finish sewing the covered cording on the cushion top.

same size as the cushion front, keeping the opening in the center. • Trim the corners of the cushion back on an angle so they match the front.

Trim corners of backing fabric to match cushion front. Trim ends of cording.

You’re almost finished! Let’s make the cushion back. • From backing fabric, cut 2 pieces 17½” x 25”. • Fold 1 short edge on each piece to make a double fold hem and stitch in place. • Overlap the 2 pieces by about 4” and baste the 2 sections together.

Jean Boyd

patternsbyjeanboyd.com

• Place the cushion back and front right sides together.

• Pin the corners together first. Then

pin as needed to keep all outside raw edges even. • Sew the front and back together, using a ½” seam. Stitch as closely as possible to the cording. • Insert the bench pillow form and adjust it as necessary for a good fit. Sometimes, the corners of the pillow form don’t fill the corners fully, so I just place a little bit of extra stuffing in those areas. Enjoy your custom-designed bench cushion to enjoy!

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The beauty of quilting with the PFAF F creative icon Claire Haillot

With the winter and holidays already upon us, I've been keeping myself busy indoors with my fantastic PFAFF creative icon and I must admit that it has changed my perspective on quilting.

PFAFF creative icon comes with a carrying case for the embroidery unit and accessories. Making it that much easier to bring it to the cottage!

I’ve had fun making quick and easy quilt projects while testing out the creative icon. However I have fallen short on the quilting part in the last two projects. I continuously ran out of time. It’s one thing quilting for the fun of it, but there’s added pressure when you have deadlines. So for the holiday season, I decided not to start any new project but to simply learn how to use the embroidery side of the creative icon. Cause let’s face it… so far I have really LOVED working with it, but haven’t used it to its full potential. If you’ve been reading all my blogs on QUILTsocial so far and have been thinking about purchasing a PFAFF machine, all of the features I have presented are available on the PFAFF performance icon as well. What makes the creative icon so special is that it also comes loaded with the embroidery tray and hoops as well as many designs and apps to help you create more.

My April posts featuring a baby quilt finally quilted!

To start off, let’s go back to my April posts featuring a baby quilt featuring the lovely Sleepy Sloth fabrics from Northcott. All that was left was to quilt some hearts in the main blocks. I had my design in mind but I fell in love with the heart border design that was already programmed into the creative icon. So I decided that could be an easy introduction to the embroidery. I finally mustered up the courage to open the lovely PFAFF Embroidery Carrying Case that protects the embroidery unit with all the hoops. It’s all very well secured and It made me realize that I could easily travel with the case should I need to bring it up to the cottage. Due to the thickness of the quilt, I had to work my quilt onto the hoop. I was able to unscrew the clip of the hoop to ensure that it fits into it no problem.

Embroidering the heart border design on my quilt using the PFAFF creative icon was nice and easy once I had secured the quilt in the hoop.

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So the trick is to position the first hoop with the hook underneath your quilt, ensuring that the hook is located on the bottom right. Photos by Claire Haillot

Position the quilt and add the second hoop. Ensure that you see the writing so that you know it’s in the correct position. Then clip to close. I used the biggest size hoop which allowed me to embroider up to 13.11” x 13.78”. I duplicated the design 4 times and aligned it perfectly to my block. It really does help to have the biggest screen possible on the machine. I was able to play with the precision positioning on the screen to ensure that the embroidery would fall exactly where I wanted on the quilt. I found it easy to embroider using the single hole plate and the 6D embroidery foot. When the straight stitch plate is attached, the machine automatically sets to straight stitch mode, preventing damage to the needle and plate. The large workspace really helped out as I was positioning the hoop in the middle of the quilt and had at least 10” of the quilt hanging out on the right hand side. I also picked up some Sulky rayon 40wt thread in the midnight blue color to ensure that the thread wouldn’t break while embroidering. I love the look it gives to my quilt. It blends well with all the rest of my quilting made with

my Blue Heaven blendable 12wt 100% cotton Sulky thread. Another thing I learned while making this project was that the bobbins on the creative icon are 30% larger! I kept on wondering when I would run out of thread but I was able to embroider my three blocks without having to make a new bobbin! The first main block took no more than 20 minutes to figure out and embroider. The other 2 blocks, on the left side, gave me a bit of a workout as I decided to reduce the size of the hearts and make several more duplicates to cover the complete area. And the good news is that I was able to save both block quilting designs: I simply had to touch the heart on the bottom left of my screen for the creative icon to save the embroidery design. I gave each a distinctive name so that I can simply go into mysewnet and touch the cloud to retrieve the design should I want to use it again on another block. As this is my first quilt made using an embroidery system, I have to say that I’m really thrilled.

Embroidery stitch out on PFAFF creative icon

Finished baby quilt while vacationing at the cottage.

PFAF F creative icon stitch creator

lets you add oomph to a simple binding I’ll show you how the Stitch Creator helped me create a nice and quick binding. I only had two days to spend quilting before the holidays and four quilts to finish. So I decided to have at least one of the projects completely bound by machine. I’ll now show you my little tricks that make this binding look good! Let’s start by stitching the binding onto the quilt. Usually, we stitch the binding on the top of the quilt so that we can hand finish onto the back of the quilt. But since I’m machine stitching all, I start by stitching the binding onto the back of the quilt and proceed to stitch it the exact same way as I would on the top. But just in case you’re unsure of what the “same way” is, here’s the description: Using the PFAFF creative icon to finish this quilt was such a treat!

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1. When stitching the binding onto the back of the quilt, I ensure that I stitch at a full ¼” as opposed to a scant. If you’re too close to the edge, your binding will not feel full when you touch it. It’s really important that it fits snuggly to the edge of your quilt to prevent a premature wear of the fabric. I also cut my strips to 2¼” and fold in half to ensure that it fits nicely.

5. I then fold the unsewn tail of the binding, aligning it with the 45 degree seam and edge of the next side I’ll be stitching. You can finger press on the fold to ensure that it lays nice and flat. Fold the unsewn tail of the binding back onto the edge of the quilt and start stitching from the edge. Repeat for all four corners. Stitch out to the corner of your quilt.

4. I rotate the quilt so that I can sew out of the quilt, stitching right until the end of the corner. Having the enhanced ergonomic design electronic knee-lift allows me to raise the presser foot while keeping my hands on the project, enabling me to rotate the quilt. Binding stitch is at a full ¼” seam allowance.

2. I leave a 6” tail hanging, it will be useful to join the ends together. Using the PFAFF creative icon to bind my quilts makes this process fast and easy as I can install my binding using my regular ¼” foot and the integrated Dual-Feed technology. I get precision stitching. And since the creative icon has increased needle piercing force, it really goes through all the layers and I get a nice seam!

As soon as the edge of the quilt aligns with the red line on the front of the foot, I know it’s time to stop.

Fold on the seam.

Fold the tail of the binding to be sewn back onto the edge of the quilt.

3. For great corners: I stop sewing and place my needle down when I reach ¼” from the edge of the quilt. Since I’m using the ¼” foot on the creative icon, I can easily spot that moment as we have red lines on our foot that shows the ¼” before and after the needle. So as soon as the edge of the quilt aligns with the red line on the front of the foot, I know it’s time to stop. Start stitching on edge.

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Lay the binding ends on the edge of the quilt and fold the excess of the tail to be sewn back.

I use the excess binding that I just trimmed off and align it open perpendicularly over the folded portion.

6. Stop sewing about 12” from where you began to stitch the binding. Bring the tail of the binding yet to be sewn over the start of the binding and cut off excess (to be safe, I cut passed the sewn portion). Lay the binding ends on the edge of the quilt and fold the excess of the unsewn tail back. At this point, I use the excess binding that I just trimmed off and align it open perpendicularly over the folded portion, at the edge of the other binding (see photo). And I cut off the excess.

So that’s how I usually sew a binding onto a quilt.

I sew diagonally

Usually, I finish by hand on the other side of the quilt. But for this project, I wanted to make something different which is why I stitched the binding onto the back of the quilt. I actually folded the binding onto the top of the quilt and used a decorative stitch on top to finish the binding. And I decided to create my own decorative stitch cause the creative icon lets me do it! Yes, I could have gone much fancier as it has more than 800 stitches but I didn’t have much time. So I picked a design and incorporated it with the straight stitch and saved it on mysewnet cloud.

Then the machine prompted me to change the needle plate and foot! I love it when the machine reminds me before I go and break another needle! So I changed the needle plate and foot and removed the Integrated Dual Feed and began sewing the binding onto the quilt top. I simply had to fold my corners and switch my stitch to straight to be able to move in and out of the corners easily. Because I had saved my stitch on mysewnet cloud it was easy to go back to my own stitch design once I had made a corner. It really didn’t take long for the binding to be finished.

Cut off the excess and press the seams open.

7. I then twist the tail of the binding to be sewn towards the quilt while ensuring that the right side of the fabric faces up. I align the edge of the beginning binding perpendicularly (right sides together) and I sew diagonally (the same way I sew my strips of binding together). I double check that the length of the binding matches the length of the quilt and I cut off the excess, pressing the seams open. Once done, I stitch the binding onto the edge of the quilt.

Stitch creator on the PFAFF creative icon

I simply had to fold my corners and switch my stitch to straight to be able to move in and out of the corners easily. Then the machine prompted me to change the needle plate and foot

My quilt was quilted and bound in a day. That’s how quick and easy it is to bind a quilt using the stitch creator. This left me with another day of testing out the wonderful embroideries of the creative icon.

Binding of quilt with PFAFF creative icon

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Why I’m so excited about the PFAF F ImageStitch app How the ImageStitch app works Once in the app with photo downloaded, you get to choose the type of embroidery you want. It can be scattered large or small or a simple line bold or thin. You can also use the eraser icon to remove the lines you do not wish to have. Once you’re happy with the look, you can save it onto your sewnet cloud. It will automatically download to your creative icon. I wanted to have the quilted ‘look’ as opposed an embroidered one, so I opted for LineArt bold and saved the design.

The PFAFF creative icon is your bestie when it’s time to quilt a project!

I turned on the creative icon to find my downloaded embroidery design in mySewnet file! I simply touched the name and it opened the design on the creative icon screen. I was able to resize my design and position in the hoop where I wanted it. I then realized I needed the embroidery facing the other way as I had placed the quilt up-side down. Instead of having to re-hoop the quilt, I simply clicked the ‘mirror’ image and I was ready to start the embroidery.

In my June 2018 post, I showed you how to perfect the flying geese block using the PFAFF creative icon while making a modern throw using the wonderful Canvas collection from Northcott. In the last post of that week, I started quilting and showed you how to use the Shape Creator. But I have to say that I found an easier way to quilt this project! And I have the ImageStitch app to thank for this: it’s the best app ever for quilters! ImageStitch is a free app available for your smartphone or tablet that lets you take a picture and transfer it into stitches for you to embroider. You can save the design on your mySewnet cloud and it will be synchronized to your mySewnet on your creative icon. So I designed my flying geese outline on my personal computer and printed it out. I then took a photo of it and went onto the ImageStitch app and incorporated it in the app. Introducing the best app ever: ImageStitch

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ImageStitch on your Smartphone

Quilting Status on Sewnet app on your Smartphone

My very own quilting design for flying geese

Once again, I preferred using Sulky rayon solid 40wt thread in light silver to ensure that the thread wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t break while embroidering. I love how it looks on my quilt! I used a light silver so that it would pop up in the red sections of the quilt. It blended well with all the rest of my quilting made with 100% cotton 40wt Sulky thread. What was also great about this is that I could start the embroidery onto my quilt and follow the progress on my cell phone thanks to the SewNotice app. I was able to go and start packing for the cottage and my cell phone would prompt me to go back when the embroidery was finished. I just had to go back to set the next position on the quilt and press start before getting back to packing. I truly enjoyed having the freedom to create my own quilt design and being able to have the creative icon stitch it in place. This has just opened up so many other new possibilities! I have so many UFOs that are in the quilting stage waiting for the perfect quilt design! Now I can sketch it and embroider it on the PFAFF creative icon thanks to the ImageStitch app. It really is the best app ever for quilters! Keep reading I'll show you another way to quilt triangles on your projects using the PFAFF creative icon. I truly enjoyed having the freedom to create my own quilt design

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The best kept secret to beautiful quilting designs Here’s another idea to help you change your perspective on quilting! I'm using the embroidery arm of the PFAFF creative icon. Here's my best kept secret to beautiful quilting designs without using the hoop. The PFAFF creative icon is my favorite quilting partner!

Use Freezer Paper to create your design shapes

Positioning your quilting designs on your quilt

Quilting around the edge of your design

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Remember my Flying Geese quilt I made using the Canvas collection from Northcott? I showed you how I got to quilt a row of flying geese on the project. But I also want to quilt a single flying geese using the Sulky Cotton Blendables12wt in Poppy color. I decided to go old school for this part of the project and thought it would be a great way to show you what I consider to be my best kept secret. I pulled out my freezer paper and copied the shape of my flying geese several times and cut them out. I then positioned them onto my quilt and ensured that I liked the overall layout. Once I was sure of their location, I used an iron to set them onto my quilt. Once they were in place I was able to go onto the creative icon and

quilt around the freezer paper to achieve the quilting design I wanted. For this part I went back to the single needle plate, ¼” foot and Integrated dual-feed system. I love the finished look and feel with the sulky 12wt variegated threads. And the freezer paper is easy to remove once done: it simply peels off. If you have more complex designs you’d like to quilt onto your project, simply use Glad Press & Seal instead of Freezer paper. You can tear it off once done and for any little piece stuck underneath your stitch, simply use your iron. It won’t melt onto your project, it will just dry up and you can dust it off. It’s that simple. However, the PFAFF ImageStitch is my go-to app now instead. I hope you like my best kept secret to beautiful quilting designs. I was able to finish my second quilt in half a day using the great features of the PFAFF creative icon.

The creative icon is really user-friendly

How the PFAF F creative icon helped me finish a UFO quilt

Have you tried the PFAFF creative icon? You need to do a test run at your nearest dealer! It's amazing. I had set two days aside before the holidays to be able to quilt them. What I didn’t expect was the fact that the creative icon is really user-friendly and I finished the quilts in less than two days… which meant that I had time on my hand to finish a UFO! I have to say that I never thought this day would come! I had made a rainbow panel almost two years ago and had no idea how to finish the project so I set it aside in my UFOs. But I noticed the cute butterfly embroidery outline that’s included in the creative icon and thought it will be perfect for that panel.

Auditioning Sulky Rayon threads on the project

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I pulled out all the beautiful Sulky Rayon 40 wt I had and auditioned them on the project. I decided on the Variable red to pink for this one. Usually, I go for a neutral thread colors so that the quilting doesn’t show too much, but I knew the embroidery would come out perfect so I didn’t hesitate to go bold.

It was easy to choose the design and to position onto the project. Thanks to the large screen on the creative icon I was able to resize the pattern, rotate and duplicate to create the layout of my choice. I placed the project onto the hoop and began the embroidery. It was just wonderful to see the butterflies come to life on my project! Once the first overall layout was finished, I noticed that I had big areas without any quilting. It didn’t feel right to my artistic eye. So I decided to cheat with the creative icon. I would reposition the design layout and stitch only one butterfly in the location I wanted. You’re able to tell the creative icon at what stitch you want it to start. You can either press a location on the screen, or input Embroidery stitch out screen enable me to input the stitch number, the creative icon will go to that location and begin embroidering.

the stitch number, the creative icon will go to that location and begin embroidering. Which is what I did! And I would press stop when the butterfly embroidery section was completed to my satisfaction. And that’s how the PFAFF creative icon helped me finish another UFO during my two-day quiltcation. I still can’t believe I got so much done in just two days. I went to the cottage with all the quilts to bind and truly enjoyed finishing them by hand. I felt an immense sense of accomplishment and came back home recharged a ready to go back to work during the day, and to my studio every time I have a few minutes I can call my own.

I felt an immense sense of accomplishment when the binding was finished.

Thanks to the large screen, it was easy to choose the design and to position onto the project.

Claire Haillot

quiltingwithclaire.com/wp

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Brother Exploring utility stitches on the Dreamweaver XE Christine Baker

The first set of stitches to show up on the screen are the utility stitches. I can use the slider on the left side of the screen to scroll through all of the ones that are available.

The Dreamweaver XE

This summer, on QUILTsocial, I showed you how to turn a charm square pack into nine patch blocks and snowball blocks. I’m using the Dreamweaver XE from Brother to finish these blocks into a modern baby quilt.

Now we need to quilt it! I’m exploring some of the different stitches that are available on the Dreamweaver XE to decide how the baby quilt will be quilted. The first step is to select “Sewing” from the home screen. Scrolling through the stitches

Stitch 1-35 looks interesting! I’ll select it first.

The quilt top

I was able to make a total of 42 blocks from my charm pack – 21 nine-patch and 21 snowball. I arranged them on my design wall, alternating the two blocks and sewed them together. The home screen

Stitch 1-35

Photos by Christine Baker

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The screen on the Dreamweaver XE now shows what the stitch will look like and indicates at the top of the screen that we need to attach the “J” presser foot before stitching out our sample.

This stitch was 60 seconds. Not too bad! Now I’ll press the utility stitches – section 2 key to access the second grouping of utility stitches.

Adjusting stitch length and width

It took 35 seconds to stitch a 10“ sample of stitch 2-16, and only 26 seconds to stitch a sample of 2-12. I wonder how fast the Dreamweaver XE can sew the serpentine stitch 2-17. Utility stitches – section 2 Attach foot “J”

I showed you on QUILTsocial how to easily change the presser foot on the Dreamweaver XE. Now that we’ve changed the foot we can try out this stitch on one of the small quilt sandwiches that I made using batting and 2 layers of fabric. Here’s what Stitch 1-35 “Quilting Stippling” looks like in fabric and thread.

I’m selecting stitch 2-16 and trying stitching it out on my quilt sandwich.

Stitch 1-35 “Quilting Stippling”

Stitch 2-16

Since I’ll be using one (or two) of these stitches to quilt my baby quilt, I’m not only testing out how they look when stitched but also how long it takes to stitch them! I don’t want to be spending hours and hours quilting this small quilt, so I set my iPad up beside the sewing machine and using the timer to see how long it takes to stitch out a 10“ sample.

Depending on the stitch selected, you may or may not be able to change the width and/or length of the stitch. If numbers show up on the screen as shown, then you can use the “+” or :-” buttons to adjust. If no numbers show in this area, then the stitch can’t be adjusted.

The serpentine stitch “2-17”

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Here are the stitch-outs, and time taken to stitch, for the four different utility stitches. As you can see we’re getting faster and faster and I quite like the way the serpentine stitch looks! I think that maybe one that I’ll use for quilting! Now that I’ve picked a fairly simple utility stitch to use on the baby quilt, I’ll check out some of the more complex stitches available on the Dreamweaver XE and pick a second one to use as well.

Stitch-outs

Infinite possibilities for quilting with decorative stitches

Dreamweaver XE

I picked one of these stitches to use for quilting my baby quilt, but I’d like to use a more complex design as well. I’m checking out the character decorative stitches available on the machine.

There are 7 different sections of Character Decorative Stitches. I’m selecting the Section 6 key to access the first group of decorative stitches.

After selecting “Sewing” on the main screen, I press the Character Decorative Stitch key on the LCD screen of the Dreamweaver XE to access the many decorative stitches available.

Section “6”

As on the utility stitches screen, you can scroll through the decorative stitches using the slider on the right side of the screen. The Character Decorative Stitch key

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Decorative stitch 6-065 looks amazing! I’ll try stitching out that one.

Now I’ll try out Decorative stitch 6-113.

Scrolling through the stitches

As I was scrolling through the options, I selected a few different stitches and realized that instead of just replacing the previous selection, the machine was adding one repeat of each design to the one before it. The possibilities for combining stitch patterns on the Dreamweaver XE are endless! I’ll explore THAT another time!

Stitch 6-113 Stitch 6-065

Here it is on my sample. It’s AWESOME but it also took 60 seconds to stitch out only two repeats which are just over 2” long. That would take way too much time for this quilt, but I’m definitely keeping it in mind for a future project!

That one’s amazing as well but took 80 seconds to stitch about 3”. Stitch 6-086, shown below, took 50 seconds to stitch the same length.

Stitch-outs

Make sure to pay attention to the display on the Dreamweaver XE when selecting stitches. It shows you what size the final stitching will be by indicating the % of the actual size that is displayed. The last group of stitches in section 6 are much bigger than the other stitches that I used and the machine is only displaying them at 50% of actual size. Combining stitches

To delete stitches I don’t want to use, I just press the delete button at the bottom of the screen.

Deleting stitches

Stitch out of 6-065

Display size

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Here are some of the stitch-outs I did using stitches 6-166 through 6-178. As you can see they are much bigger than the previous samples. They would be great for quilting an inner border on a quilt as most of them are about 1” wide. But, they do take a lot of time to sew. The fastest one – stitch 6-171 – took 75 seconds to stitch a 6” long sample. So, I found a second stitch that I’ll use on the quilt – I’ll keep it a secret and show you. Now I need to layer my quilt!

Layering the quilt

Here it is layered with batting and backing. I used 505 Spray to keep the layers together and a few safety pins around the outside edge for added stability.

Stitch-outs for many decorative stitches

Machine quilting with a serpentine stitch When I’m machine quilting a small project on my home machine I always try to use my walking foot when possible. The Dreamweaver XE has an amazing dual feed foot that is even better than a regular old walking foot for machine quilting! The dual feed foot is plugged into the back of the machine after securing it to the presser foot holder.

Once the dual feed foot is plugged in, you’ll notice that some of the utility and decorative stitches are grayed out on the display screen. This feature shows which stitches can and can’t be used with the dual feed foot.

You can see in the middle picture below that since the serpentine stitch isn't grayed out, it’s available to use with the dual feed foot! That’s awesome, because I’d like to use that foot as much as I can for the machine quilting. Using a walking foot or dual feed foot prevents the three layers of the quilt from shifting while you're quilting! Before using the serpentine stitch, I’ll quilt in-the-ditch between the blocks using the dual feed foot.

The dual feed foot

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Quilting in the ditch

I've stitched all the vertical and horizontal seams between the blocks. Here’s a close up of the in-the-ditch quilting using the Dreamweaver XE from Brother. I don’t usually do a lot of in-the-ditch quilting because I find it hard to keep the stitching right along the seam, but this machine makes it easy!! Now that my three layers are secured together with the in-the-ditch quilting, I’ll use the dual feed foot to quilt diagonally through all of the nine-patch blocks. Here’s a little video showing the steps I followed.

Close up of in-the-ditch quilting

Decorative stitches plus laser pointer = beautiful machine quilting

Greyed out stitches

Foot “N”

Changing the foot

I still have the dual feed foot attached to the machine and the grayed out stitches on the screen show that all of the stitches in this section can’t be used with this presser foot. Since I want to use the cute little kite stitch – 6-078 – I will have to attach a different presser foot.

Once I unplug the dual feed foot, the display screen on the Dreamweaver XE shows that the correct presser foot for the selected stitch is foot “N”.

So, I remove the dual feed foot and attach foot “N” to the machine.

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Since I’ve already done a lot of machine quilting on the quilt using the dual feed foot, I don’t need to worry too much about the layers shifting as I quilt using the “N” foot. I select the kite stitch, activate the laser pointer and get ready to stitch. Here’s a video that I made showing the steps to follow.

Close-up of the kite stitch

Here’s a close-up of the kite stitch used to machine quilt across the diagonal of each of the snowball blocks. I think it looks SO cute!! The machine quilting is finished.

Here it is – the machine quilting is finished. The Dreamweaver XE made this so easy to quilt!

10 simple steps for binding with perfect corners I ordered embroidered ribbon labels from It’s Mine Labels and I pin one of them to the back of the quilt in one of the corners. I make sure that the raw ends of the ribbon almost reach the raw edge of the quilt. Once the Add ribbon label binding is sewn on, the label is secured and there’s no hand stitching required!

I’m trimming the quilt and I’ll show you 10 simple steps for binding with perfect corners. The first thing I do is trim the edges of the baby quilt using a rotary cutter and ruler. It’s always a good idea to label quilts, but I have to admit, it’s my least favorite part of quilting!! This is the solution I’ve come up with.

Now that I have this Dreamweaver XE embroidery machine, one of these days I’ll try embroidering my own ribbon labels!

Trimming

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I’ve made my binding using a grey Colorworks Solid from Northcott following the same technique I’ve shown in previous QUILTsocial posts.

Now I’ll select the “quilting stitches” key on the LCD screen.

Step 2 Flip the binding to the right of the corner, so that the raw edge of the binding makes a continuous line with the raw edge of the second side of the quilt.

Step 5 Once the binding is sewn to all four sides of the quilt, go to one corner and fold one side of the binding over to the front of the quilt.

Select “quilting stitches”

The screen shows that I need to attach the “J” presser foot.

Flip to the right

Step 3 Fold the binding over so that the fold is lined up with the first side of the quilt and the raw edge of the binding is laying along the raw edge of the second side of the quilt.

Fold one side over

Step 6 Fold the second side of the binding to the front and pin both sides in place, making sure that the edges meet in the corner.

Install the “J” foot

Step 1 Start by sewing the binding to the raw edge of the first side of the quilt and stop ¼” from the end. Back-stitch to sew reinforcement stitches before cutting the thread.

Fold to the left

Step 4 Starting right at the folded end of the binding, back-stitch at the edge of the quilt and then sew along the raw edge of the binding using a ¼” seam until you get to the second corner of the quilt. Repeat Steps 1-4.

Fold the second side

¼” from the end Stitch from the outer corner

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Step 7 Select a decorative stitch on the Dreamweaver XE. If necessary, adjust the width and length of the stitch. I’m using Utility stitch 3-16 which looks a lot like a hand stitched cross-stitch.

Step 10 Use the needle down feature on the Dreamweaver XE to drop the needle where the two corners of the binding meet and then pivot to stitch the next side.

Press

Step 9 Keep sewing along the binding, allowing the decorative stitch to stitch the edge of the binding down. When you get to the corner, use an awl to hold down the corner of the folded binding to make sure that it doesn’t move before it gets stitched.

Pivot at the corner

Here's my binding, sewn down with stitch 3-16 on the Dreamweaver XE. And here’s my finished baby quilt, pieced and machine quilted with the Dreamweaver XE from Brother.

Adjust width

Step 8 Working from the front of the quilt, line up the edge of the binding under the presser foot, then press the “Reinforcement Stitch” button to start sewing.

Use an awl

The finished binding

I really love how my baby quilt turned out and I’m really happy that I was finally able to use one of the charm packs that my friend Nellie brought me when she returned from Quiltweek in Lancaster last year! The Brother Dreamweaver XE made piecing and quilting this quilt a delight! I can’t wait to discover more of its great features while working on my next project!

Christine Baker

FairfieldRoadDesigns.com

| issue 13

Your Favorite Thread Brand With over 350 colors, Coats Dual Duty XPÂŽ has exceptional performance and durability for hand and machine sewing on all fabrics.

makeitcoats.com Coats & Clark, Greer, SC 29650

8 essential tips

THE Dream Machine 2

for embroidering free standing lace

I’m using the embroidery features on THE Dream Machine 2 from Brother to share these awesome tips on how to make bookmarks using free standing lace (FSL).

I have to be honest with you, up until last month I’d never even heard of FSL, but one day I stumbled upon a FSL design while researching embroidery designs online and I was intrigued. I downloaded these super cute FSL bookmark designs and tried to embroider one, but it went HORRIBLY wrong!! My stabilizer ripped, my threads broke, and I figured that I might need some professional help!

THE Dream Machine 2

TIP 1 Choose a design that says it is either for “free standing lace” or “FSL”. When you’re looking online, the design will say that it’s appropriate for FSL. Regular embroidery designs are made so that the fabric keeps the design together. No fabric and the threads will just unravel. FSL designs are stitched in a way that the thread keeps the design together.

Rayon threads

Sulky Ultra Solvy stabilizer

QUILTsocial

So I emailed Brother educator Lynn Swanson and asked if she had any tips for doing free standing lace embroidery. She obviously knows what she’s talking about because my next attempt was very successful, so I asked if I could share her great tips with you here!

| issue 13

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TIP 2 use the correct thread Make sure to use the thread type the design calls for – if it calls for cotton thread make sure to use cotton and not rayon. Lynn says that she has used 30 weight and also up to 50 weight depending on what the pattern calls for – but don’t substitute rayon if the pattern suggests cotton. She’s also used rayon thread and some metallic thread if the pattern calls for it.

75/11 sharp needles

Hoop very tightly

The base stitching

TIP 3 stabilizer Lynn says that she’d had the best results usings heavy duty watersoluble stabilizer. She likes Sulky Ultra Solvy but has also used Brother water soluble stabilizer. TIP 4 needles Lynn likes to use a 75/11 sharp or ultra sharp needle. You want to have a narrow (thin) needle because when the needle perforates the stabilizer so you want as small a hole as possible. TIP 5 hooping Make sure you hoop the stabilizer tightly, tighter than if you were stabilizing fabric. The base stitching for the free standing lace embroidery is what keeps it all together when the stabilizer is removed. As you can see THE Dream Machine 2, first stitches the whole background (green) in a criss-cross pattern and then the design is stitched on top. With the addition of more thread colors, the design is coming to life!

TIP 6 trimming Trim away the excess stabilizer around the bookmarks as close a possible without clipping any of the threads. TIP 7 soak in warm water Fill a bowl with warm water and lay the design in it. It sure doesn’t take long for the stabilizer to dissolve away!

Adding more layers of stitching

TIP 8 drying Once the stabilizer is dissolved remove the design and lay it on a thick towel to dry. Now that my bookmarks are dry, they can be used to keep my spot in my next great read! And wouldn’t these be cute presents? There are FSL designs available for ornaments and houses, doilies and more! Just type in “FSL” on your favorite embroidery design website to see what’s available.

The free standing lace bookmarks

Christine Baker

FairfieldRoadDesigns.com

Below is the original bookmark, and a second one that was increased in size before stitching.

Trim away excess stabilizer

Soaking in the hot water

Drying on a towel

The finished bookmark

don't miss these projects & tutorials online!

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How to make an embroidered mug rug using mySewnet news-feed

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READ NOW

Making a reversible table runner using Banyan Batiks Rock City

Mini quilt with buttons becomes very adorable

and there's so much more! 42

905-715-7725 www.thatsewingplace.ca

SPECIALIZING IN SEWING MACHINE SALES/SERVICE/CLASSES AUTHORIZED DEALER FOR

Kelly’s Creative Sewing Machines and More...

902-435-7380

www.kellyscreativesewing.ca 804 Main Street Dartmouth, Nova Scotia B2W 3V1 kellyscreativesewing@gmail.com

Specialize in Sewing, Embroidery machines, Sergers and Long arm Quilting Systems

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| issue 13

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www.sewwithvision.net

902-479-2227 480 Parkland Dr, Halifax, NS B3S 1P9, Canada Your Authorized Dealer for: Perfection starts here.™

Ottawa Valley Authorized Dealer Sewing, Knitting & Having a Good Time Arnprior Shopping Centre 375 Daniel St S, Arnprior, ON K7S 3K6 613-623-0500 www.sewinspired.ca info@sewinspired.ca

Q U I LTs o c i a l b l o g g e r s in this issue

Christine Baker

FairfieldRoadDesigns.com

Claire Haillot

quiltingwithwclaire.com

Married with three young boys, Claire Haillot shares her passion for quilting among her neighbors in the United States and Canada as well as her cousins in France. Claire has been active in the quilting industry since 2004. In 2006, she started her own line of patterns and later began publishing patterns and articles in Canadian, European and American magazines. She collaborated with PlumEasy patterns to launch the Dancing Diamonds. Claire has also won a few awards for her work. Most recently her quilt Remembering Sotchi won Best of Show in special exhibit A Celebration of Color at the International Quilt Festival in Chicago April 2018.

Christine has been designing and publishing quilt patterns for the last 10 years under the business n ame Fair f ield Road Desi g ns . Her patterns range from fusible applique and piecing to felted wool applique and punchneedle. You can see all her patterns on her website.

Jean Boyd

patternsbyjeanboyd.com

Sarah Vanderburgh sewjoycreations.com

Sarah loves to play with color and quilts are her playground! A selftaught quilter, She's been designing her own quilts for almost 20 years. She's inspired by happy fabrics, selvages, traditional blocks and nature. She's also a wife, mother, and elementary school teacher, and enjoy drinking coffee on my front porch in northern Ontario.

Je a n h a s b e e n d e s i g n i n g a n d publishing patterns since 1997. Her work has been published in several magazines across North America. Jean holds a Fiber Arts Certificate in quilting and has taught extensively throughout Canada, including six national Quilt Canada conferences. She was named "Canadian Teacher of the Year" in 2003 by the Canadian Quilters Association and has won numerous awards for her quilts.

BUSINESS DIRECTORY

To list your business in this space please call 1.866.969.2678.

Brenda Franklin Designs 7570 Mapleton SR 18 RR 1, Alma, ON N0B 1A0  519.638.9958  bfdesigns.on.ca  help@bfdesigns.on.ca More than 500 charts available for counted needlework, latch hook rugs, beadwork, beaded knits and knitting patterns. Mail/fax order or ask for our products at your local shop. Contact us for custom designs or needle felted sculpture.

Impressions Embroidery & Engraving #8-449 Mayor Magrath Dr S, Lethbridge, AB T1J 3L8  403.942.3934  impressionslethbridge.ca  impressions22@shaw.ca Our shop does embroidery and laser engraving. Laser engraving is a beautiful process for fabric, as nothing cuts cleaner and more precisely than a laser. We now carry a nice array of fabric as well to compliment the abilities of the laser.

That Sewing Place 16610 Bayview Ave #10, Newmarket, ON L3X 1X3  905.715.7725  thatsewingplace.ca  jaret&liana@thatsewingplace.ca Introducing That Sewing Place as your sewing source and Authorized Dealers for Bernina and Brother machines. Jaret & Liana focus on placing your sewing needs first, providing outstanding support, service, and training.

Brampton Sew & Serge 289 Rutherford Rd S, Unit 7, Brampton, ON L6W 3R9  905.874.1564  sewnserge.com  monique@bramptonsewnserge.com Welcome to Your One Stop Sewing Centre! We are authorized dealers of Baby Lock, Husqvarna Viking, and Singer sewing machines and sergers. We also offer a full schedule of sewing classes for everyone.

Kelly's Creative Sewing 804 Main St, Dartmouth, NS B2W 3V1  902.435.7380  kellyscreativesewing.ca  kellyscreativesewing@gmail.com We offer sales and on-site service of high-end domestic embroidery, sewing machines and sergers, as well as a variety of educational programs.

The Quilt Store / Evelyn's Sewing Centre 17817 Leslie St, Unit 40, Newmarket, ON L3Y 8C6  905.853.7001 or toll-free 1.888.853.7001 The Quilt Store West 695 Plains Rd E, Unit 6, Burlington, ON L7T 2E8  905.631.0894 or toll-free 1.877.367.7070  thequiltstore.ca Now with 2 locations to serve you, we are your Quilt Store Destination! The staff here at The Quilt Store is always on hand to provide Quilt Wisdom, Quilt Inspiration and most of all we pride ourselves as the place to make... All Your Quilt Dreams Come True!

Needles & Knits 15040 Yonge St, Aurora, ON L4G 1M4  905.713.2066  needlesandknits.com Fabulous selection of yarns. Extremely knowledgable and expert help. Cozy and friendly atmosphere. Classes. Guild night every first Tuesday The Stitcher's Muse of the month. Tea with Tove, the owner, every 99 Commercial Street, Nanaimo, BC V9R 5G3 Thursday from 6-8pm.  250.591.6873  thestitchersmuse.com  info@thestitchersmuse.com Needleworker's Delight / Silkweaver Fabrics A divine little shop with supplies for all your hand Canadian National Fabric - Brampton, ON Plaza K 181 Route 1 South, Metuchen, NJ 08840 stitching needs! Friendly, knowledgeable, helpful  https://canadiannationalfabric.com/  732-388-4545  needleworkersdelight.com staff. Cross stitch, canvaswork, needlepoint,  info@needleworkersdelight.com  info@canadiannationalfabric.com embroidery, counted thread, lace making and Standard & specialty Zweigart Fabrics & canvas, We are an online fabric shoppe offering a wide more. Books, patterns, fabric, threads, tools. variety of fabrics, patterns, books and notions for all hand-dyed fabrics, floss, fibers, towels, tableware, The Yarn Guy your sewing needs. Flat rate Canada wide shipping leaflets/designs, painted canvases, notions, tools, baby items, home decor, and so much more! 15 Gower St, Toronto, ON M4B 1E3 of $5. Shop in person available by appointment!  416.752.1828 or toll-free 1.800.836.6536 Pine Ridge Knit & Sew Country Concessions  theyarnguy.com  info@sewknit.ca 17477 Hwy 2 PO Box 68, Trenton, ON K8V 5R1 1 Dufferin St, Cookstown, ON L0L 1L0 See us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter!  705.458.4546 or toll-free 1.888.834.4407  613.392.1422  pineridgeknitsew.com Knitting machines, sewing machines, repairs, parts  countryconcessions.com  yvette@pineridgeknitsew.com for Passap, Studio, Singer, Silver Reed, Superba,  info@countryconcessions.com We have knitting machines by Artisan and Silver White. Sewing notions and supplies, books, ball Visit our lovely and unique quilt shop in the quaint Reed, embroidery machines by Husqvarna/Viking yarns, coned yarns, TAMM yarns, Paton's yarns, village of Cookstown. We have over 7000 bolts of & White. Sewing notions and supplies, books and Bernat yarns, Phentex yarns, Bernat kits & crafts. cotton fabrics plus a wide selection of patterns, books software. Hands-on lessons and classes. Wide variety & notions. You will be so glad you came for a visit. of yarns, threads, dress and pant zippers. Ultimate Sewing Centre 191 Bloor St East, Oshawa, ON L1H 3M3 Gitta's Serenity Knits  905.436.9193  ultimatesewing.com 271 Lakeshore Rd E, Mississauga, ON L5G 1G8 525 Brooker Ridge #102, Newmarket, ON L3X 2M2  ultimatesewing@bellnet.ca  905.274.7198  gittas.com  905.710.3283  serenityknits.ca For all your sewing needs be sure to call Durham’s  questions@gittas.com  info@serenityknits.ca largest one stop shop: Janome and Elna Sewing Gitta's, named after owner Gitta Al-Basi, nestled in We offer a wide selection of high quality yarns as well Machines, Sergers, & Embroidery machines, the east village of Port Credit, is the place where as needles, hooks, patterns and notions. We also offer over 3000 bolts of first quality cottons, Floriani stitchers meet with their stitching friends, shop for a large variety of classes from beginner to the more Embroidery supplies, the latest notions, books, & stitching supplies and see the new stitching designs advanced. patterns, year round classes, and so much more! from Europe and the United States. Sew Fancy Inc. Upper Canada Quiltworks Hardanger House, designs by Betty Stokoe Guelph, ON PO Box 64, Brockville, ON K6V 5T7 PO Box 1223, Stettler, AB T0C 2L0  519.824.4127  sewfancy.com  613.345.3956 Fax: 613.342.3327  sales@sewfancy.com  403.742.2749  bettystokoe@gmail.com  uppercanadaquiltworks.com  tnplisting.com/hardanger-house.html Your Premier Canadian Source for Specialty Sewing Visit us online for a wide selection quilt patterns Hardanger embroidery charts and kits. Designs Supplies including Smocking, Heirloom Sewing, and books. Techniques include felted wool, fusible feature contemporary adaptations of this traditional Goldwork, Silk Ribbon Embroidery, Needle Tatting, appliqué, punchneedle, rag quilting and printing cutwork embroidery from Norway. Shop online Swarovski Crystals, Sashiko, Quilting and more. Visit photos on fabric. at etsy.com/shop/HardangerHouse. Some digital the website for the latest in sewing supplies. downloads available. Sew Inspired Haus of Stitches 375 Daniel St S, Arnprior, ON K7S 3K6 626 Main Street, Humboldt, SK S0K 2A0  613.623.0500  sewinspired.ca  info@sewinspired.ca  306.682.0772 or toll-free 1.800.344.6024  hausofstitches.ca Your Ottawa Valley PFAFF® Authorized Dealer. We Our one of a kind store offers everything you need have a large supply of quilting & sewing supplies, for sewing, quilting, knitting, rug hooking and knitting supplies, as well as in stock PFAFF® sewing needlework. Authorized dealers for Janome and Elna. machines. We also have a listing of sewing and quilting classes. Heartfelt Fibre Arts 42 Industrial St, Toronto, ON M4G 1Y9 Sew With Vision 480 Parkland Dr, Halifax, NS B3S 1P9  647.920.3616  heartfeltfibrearts.com  info@hearftfeltfibrearts.com  902.479.2227  sewwithvision.net Authorized PFAFF, HUSQVARNA VIKING, and SINGER Canadian Fibre Arts supply store specializing in dealer and service provider offering an extensive line high-quality, unique fibre and tools for all of your knitting, felting, rug hooking and stitching needs. of sewing, embroidery and serger machines, as well as long-arm quilting systems. Bytowne Threads - Ottawa, ON  1.888.831.4095  bytownethreads.com  mlj@bytownethreads.com Featuring Aurifil thread from Italy. Long staple Egyptian cotton threads - 270 colours in 12, 28, 40 and 50 wt; 88 colours in 80 wt. Polyester Aurilux 240 high sheen colours. Wool threads - 192 colours. Many kits available. Check our website!

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| issue 13

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The new star of the quilting world Featuring brilliant StitchVision technology that lets you take your quilts to the next level. 192 Disney embroidery designs built right in

Projects guidelines and grids for sewing precise lines, angles, corners and more

Extra large 10 5/8” x 16” hoop with comfortable spring lever release

65 square inch workspace and a 13.1” needle-to-arm distance

Visit your Brother authorized dealer, or go to brother.ca to discover more.

INSPIRING CREATIVITY FOR GENERATIONS Photos are for illustration purposes only. Brother and its logo are trademarks of Brother Industries, Ltd., Japan. All specifications are subject to change without notice. All registered trademarks referenced herein are the property of their respective companies. ©2018 Brother International Corporation (Canada) Ltd. 1, rue Hôtel de Ville, Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Québec, H9B 3H6. 12/2018 - 2018_398

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