How To: Free Motion Quilting on a Vintage Tea Towel

I've been experimenting with my free motion quilting foot this week and I wanted to show you how fun it can be to have a little play and add an extra dimension to fabrics that can then be used in other projects. This same technique can be used on bigger projects like quilts.
I've quilted a pretty vintage linen tea towel and made a fun video so you can watch the whole process. If you've always wondered what a 'darning foot' or free motion foot was for, this is the tute for you!
Read more »

How to: Give an Old Quilt New Life - with a lesson in Hand Quilting

 

Have you ever come across old quilt tops on e-bay, or maybe a quilt that just wasn't finished properly at the thrift store? Did you buy it or were you intimidated by the work involved in getting it 'right'? 

This is the story of a quilt that needed a little love and attention to be the best it could be. 

Found at a flea market languishing amongst a heap of fabrics, the colours just caught my eye. It was barely a quilt at all, but a pieced top backed with a tablecloth. No quilting, no batting. 

But the top was beautiful, with tiny hand stitched (1-1.5") triangles. All of the fabrics are pre 60's, every piece a little gem. I was in love. 

Unfortunately it had been backed and bound much later and very unsympathetically. The choice of backing fabric distracted from the design, and because it wasn't prewashed it had shrunk making the top bulge. 

 So here is how I fixed it, with a little lesson in hand quilting thrown in:  

Read more »