You might already be familiar with the term “Quilt-a-Long”. The “Design-A-Long” is very similar in that we will be making a quilt together, however your quilt will be designed by you! We will work through all the stages together and support each other along the way. For a more interactive experience, follow my Facebook page: Krista's Quilting Services and join the Beginner Quilt Design group on Facebook. Is this Design-A-Long (DAL) for you? If you have wondered how other people can look at a quilt and then design their own version of it, this DAL is for you. Some people have this wild ability to construct and move all kinds of shapes in their mind as well as “see” their creation from all different angles. It really is a neat super power if you have it, however, a lot of us don’t. One of the tools you will use to help simulate this are paper cut outs that you can physically move around to create different design ideas. Remember to take pictures as you go so you can review your favourite ones later. Often you can see a different perspective from the photo than with your eyes. The camera on your phone is a secret spy glass. If you have ideas for a quilt, but figuring out how to actually assemble it is a challenge, this DAL is for you. I will talk about ways to break down a block into it’s most basic parts and how to group pieces together to complete that block. There is often more than one option! You can pick the way that makes the most sense to you. If you struggle with quilt math, this DAL is for you. Once you have your design laid out, I will teach you how to do the quilt math so you can figure out your fabric needs and cutting instructions. There are a couple tricks to make this simpler. If you have never made a quilt before and want to try, this DAL is for you. I will go through all the quilting basics and you will get to make that first quilt without following someone else’s pattern. There are some pre-requisites before starting the Design-A-Long:
The Design-A-Long is a machine sewn project. You will need a sewing machine and you will need to know how to operate the machine you are using. Every brand is a little different and while you may be able to get some help with a few things in the group, you do need to have a basic understanding of how yours works. If you are turning on a machine for the first time or if it has been a long time, YouTube will be a great source of info in learning how to work your machine. You will need to know how to:
Materials: I have a materials list available in a PDF download. Take a look through it. Some items you will need right away and others will be purchased, repurposed, or borrowed as you go. There is also a YouTube video that goes with the materials list. I go into greater detail on the video.
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You have looked at hundreds of complex and beautiful quilts and wondered, “how did someone come up with that design?" I probably won’t be the first to remind you; that amazing quilt was not the designer’s first quilt pattern. That designer was once a beginner. There are many design tools available that range from essentially free to costing money. Like every tool, each one has it’s own pro’s and con’s. Most quilt designers use more than one method to see their quilt pattern take shape. Conceptual drawings are best on paper and then more technical work is done in other programs. Graph paper is the cheapest and pretty easy to use. Each square can represent whatever unit of measurement you need it to be. However, it can be cumbersome when you decide to make some changes and have to redraw from scratch. I have also used Numbers (Excel) to draw and colour a log cabin block that was printed and cut out. It was worth it at the time, but it was definitely time consuming! The Quilt Paper App is a free/paid app for designing a quilt and while it’s helpful in building a better quilt framework, you are limited to one block type per quilt design and some sashing/border elements. It has basic blocks for free, but if you want access to some of the more complex options you will need to pay for it. I have used it to quickly make a “graph” or quilt paper of sorts and prefer to print it out and colour it in (even though you can do this digitally in the app). Electric Quilt 8 (EQ8) is a computer program that is a bit of an investment. Depending on where you are at with your design journey, this might be something to look into. It is pretty easy to learn and there are a lot of YouTube tutorials to get you started. The design capacity of this program is immense! The biggest limitation that I have found with non computer program options is the inability to move blocks around to see the primary and secondary designs that can be achieved. At this stage, you are likely not ready to spend money on a program that will let you do that. Let’s be real, moving those blocks around to create those unique designs is the bulk of the fun! I have a growing source of solutions to this problem waiting for you. I have created some PDF files that have blocks and parts of blocks that can be coloured, cut out, and arranged however you would like to create a layout of your own quilt. You might even use them in connection with one of the quilt colouring pages/quilt paper to help you break down that design into specific blocks and colour ways. You can find these free downloads in the Products tab on the website. Pro tip: put sticky tack on the back of each block to keep it in place on your table or stick it up on a wall! This summer I am hosting a free beginner design class where I will help you walk through the process from design to finished. We will be using the cut outs to aid in the design, math, and piecing of the quilt.
Who is this Design-A-Long for? It’s for you! It does not matter what skill set you (or don’t have). You will be able to follow along and successfully complete the quilt you design. My desire is to see you tap into your creativity and get started on your personal quilt design journey. Here's how to participate:
We all would love to have large dedicated sewing rooms. Sometimes I find myself dreaming about what that would look like! The reality is that I need to make my current space work for me today, next week, and probably the next few years! I am going to show you how I am using my spaces somewhat unconventionally and give you a list of my tips and tricks. A sewing space doesn’t have to be fancy, in fact, mine is a shared space in an unfinished basement! It’s okay to be moving things around as you need to. If you are moving things around, you will develop a system that lets you reconfigure spaces quickly and efficiently. Watch the YouTube version here My home may be larger or smaller than yours, each level in my townhouse is about 450 square feet. I have an unfinished basement, main floor, and upstairs with bedrooms. I also share my home with my husband, piano studio, and quilting studio. Most of the year, my quilting stuff is set up in the basement. Living Room: The living room is mostly my piano studio space. I have a corner desk set up that I work from. If I’m doing computer work with the quilting side of things, I’ll sit at my desk. My desk is a glass top style, I have lots of room underneath for a printer and a multi drawer storage cart. If the weather is good, I head out to my little patio and enjoy some sunlight on my skin. I use a laptop and love having the option to be anywhere I want. When I’m not as busy with teaching in the summer, I will move my sewing table and machine into the living room/piano studio so I can work in the sun light and Air Conditioning. Basement: The unfinished basement has truly been to my advantage. However, cement walls and floor aren’t the nicest things to see and it’s cold during our Saskatchewan winters! I bought an indoor/outdoor carpet to cover up the primary open section. That carpet makes a big difference in the overall visual feel and helps a bit in warmth. Having the “living room” down there also helps it feel homier. The basement also serves as storage, laundry, home gym, “living room”, quilting/sewing space, and a waiting area for piano students during lesson hours. My top priority in setting up the space was to make sure students weren’t going to be walking past any of my sewing stuff. The cutting table (a dining room table that I inherited from my grandma) separates the two spaces. I have my sewing table and sit down machine facing the sitting area and my long arm close to the back wall. Leaning against the back wall is my design wall - it’s really a bunch of plywood pieces secured together and leaning up against the wall. Against another wall is an old, second hand, entertainment stand that holds my thread, books, fabric, notions, etc. I also have a treadmill that is rolled from one area to the next a few times a week depending on what is happening in the basement. I also have a fold up ironing board, small folding table, and a couple more multi drawer rolling carts that can easily be moved to a spot that is convenient as I need them. I also have a lot of totes stored under the long arm for things like client quilts, fabric, batting, works in progress, etc. Tips and Tricks to set up in a small space:
As the year passes through the familiar rhythms of spring, summer, fall, and winter, we also experience various seasons of our lives. Each phase brings its own challenges, beauty, and growth. Just as spring signifies new beginnings, summer embodies growth and maturity, fall brings reflection, and winter offers rest. Our lives often mirror these cycles. We find ourselves trying new things, reaching new heights, taking stock of our achievements, and retreating to recharge. And just like the Earth's never-ending cycle, these seasons of life repeat, each bringing fresh experiences and lessons.
Spring seasons in our lives do not necessarily coincide with the calendar. Sometimes you come across a photo or idea that sparks something deep inside that needs to be let out and grow. My current personal spring is somewhat in time with the calendar, but also emerging through a very big dream I’ve had for closer to a year. I know that if I want to see that dream become a reality, I need to take some actionable steps to start moving towards it. I also know from personal experience that my big ideas don’t always go like I originally think. As I take steps towards that dream, I often find the road curves towards a direction to new things that are better. However, that journey could never have started if I didn’t go after the dream to begin with. This “spring” is about using digital software to turn my quilt ideas into projects that others can do. I don't know about you, but having the right tools to help that design come to life are sometimes tricky to come by. I have been developing some basic design tools for others to use - colour and cut out quilt blocks. The idea is to use them to build a larger block or explore quilt colours and layout options to your hearts content before cutting into fabric. Gone are the days redrawing and colouring a new graph paper sketch every time you want to try a new layout. If you are looking for something that I don't have in my products menu, let me know in the suggestions form and I will add it! The best part, these tools are free to you. On the other techy side, I have been learning how to expand my website and social media. The website now has a products page and blog. As for my various media outlets - YouTube will have a video series coming in this summer and developing my Pinterest. Sign up for the newsletter so you don't miss the latest releases in YouTube content, weekly blog posts, and other "spring-like" announcements. Are you in a spring season or want to reminisce about a past spring? I would love to hear about your quilting journey in the comments. You can also interact with me on my Facebook page, Krista’s Quilting Services, to share in the latest projects and engage in a community with other quilters. Embrace the seasons of your quilting journey, whether you’re in the spring of learning something new or the summer of perfecting your skills. Every quilt has a story and every quilter is an artist. Let’s stitch our stories together, one quilt at a time. |
Krista RussellLong arm quilter, budding quilt designer, and teacher. ArchivesCategories |