Friday 7 June 2013

Part Two....

Now I will show you how I finished my quilt!

I chose to back it with fleece so lay it out on the table WRONG side up. Lay the denim RIGHT side up on top of it, making sure it is all square and straight. I found that the stretch denim could pull it out of shape a bit at this point so don't pull it about too much.

Now you really do need to tack. If you have quilt pins then use those but I tack; down the middle, at 90 degrees to that and then in stripes along the short side. It is tedious and hard on the fingers but is well worth it as it does slip about otherwise.

As my quilt had "raggy" seams I decided to finger press the seams apart and stitch right in the middle. This would allow the seams to continue to fray. It also meant that I wasn't accidentally catching down the pockets that I wanted open! If your quilt is flat then it is up to you where and how to quilt but I also think it looks nice if you stitch 1/4 inch to the left and right of each seam. 

To finish it off you need to decide how to edge it. You may choose to bind it like a conventional quilt and there are many instructions on books and the 'net on how to do this. I chose to continue my "raggy" theme and leave it unbound. To form my edge I stitched a 1/4 inch in from the edge before trimming the fleece close. Hopefully the edge will go ragged to match the middle seams too.

I love the way the pockets can still be used..... To start the "ragging" process wash your quilt and tumble dry. The tumble drying will fluff up the fraying edges BUT keep an eye on the lint collecting bit as I think they can cause the dryer to overheat if they get too full. I check mine about every 1/2 hour or so. Don't worry if you don't have a tumble dryer, use will give you the same effect over time! 

Finished quilt! A drapey shot because Katy has taken it away to her lair and I haven't seen it since!
Oh, and someone did tell me that stretch jeans don't go as ragged as normal ones. No idea if this is true so I guess I'll just have to see!
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