If it is your first time trying to make a quilt, you may feel like the task is too tough for you. However, the truth is that with the right tools and guidance, it is one of the easiest and most satisfying tasks. When it is your first time, you want to start with a smaller project. For instance, instead of making the quilt for a bed, you can start with a smaller piece of furniture such as a futon. Here are some important guidelines which will help make the process easy for you.
Gather the appropriate materials
The success of your quilting job will depend on how well-prepared you are for it. You will need the following tools and materials for a successful quilting job:
· Fabric: Take time and choose a number of appropriate fabrics to mix and match and come up with the pattern you desire.
· Batting: This is the layer of insulation which you will insert between the fabrics so that the quilt can be warm. Select the batting fabric which will be warm and durable for your projects.
· Thread: when choosing an appropriate thread for your quilting work, it is important to remember that the higher the weight number, the thinner the thread. Choose the thickness whose stitches will last.
· Cutting tools: You will need a variety of tools for the cutting job. The most basic is the rotary cutter and scissors. If you want to keep your fabric scissors sharp, avoid cutting anything else with them.
· Quilting ruler: this is the item which will help you determine the shapes and sizes of the small patterns that will make the quilt. A small square ruler will be great for a beginner in quilting.
· Cutting mat: you will need one whenever you are using your rotary cutter. This will protect surfaces such as tables from getting cutting scratches.
· Sewing tools: some of the sewing tools that you will need for your quilting work include pins and clips and other materials that hold the fabrics together for cutting and sewing.
· Sewing machine or needles: these are going to be used for the joinery.
There are a variety of other smaller tools that will make your work easier, but if you have these basics with you, you can easily start the sewing.
Picking a pattern
Part of picking the pattern should be done before getting the fabric because the pattern you have in mind will determine what you buy. When starting out, you can go with simple patterns. For instance, simple cutout triangles will be ideal for a simple quilt pattern. Another shape that is common is half rectangles. In short, pick shapes that will not give you a hard time when it comes to the joinery.
Sewing the seams
After choosing a pattern, you will cut your fabric into the pieces which will make up the final pattern. When all the pieces are ready, the next natural step will be sewing together the seams. This is the most crucial part of the quilt making process because it determines whether your final designs will have puckers, wavy and unmatched bits or other weaknesses. Teach yourself how to make a straight stitch seam ahead of this process to make your work easier.
Basting the quilt
After you have sewn together the small patterns which will make the quilt, the next step in the process is basting the quilt. This step will stop the final product from bunching up or getting distorted. Th baste the quilt, you will need:
· The quilt fabric that you have already joined
· The batting
· A large flat area for the basting
The simplest way is to use fabric spray to hold all the pieces together as you sew.
Quilting
This is the final part of the process and fortunately, the simplest. With the fabric basted and joined together, you can go under the sewing machine and make whichever quilting pattern you want ranging from the simple straight pattern, zigzags to everything else that you can think of. Note that the thread which you will use for this part of the process should be a good contrast with the fabric so that the design can pop.
In those few steps, you will have an awesome new quilt for your futon. Contemporary futons provide exceptional comfort, but they are pieces of furniture that are excellent candidates for infusing your own style. A well-made quilt will not only keep the user warm when relaxing on their futon but also make a fashion and interior décor statement. Start with simple quilting patterns, and as time goes by, you can choose more complex patterns.