Linda's Tips and Tricks

(1) Loosen the paper backing of fusible web to remove it from appliques by scoring the paper with a straight pin. 

(2) Get fusible gunk off your iron ~ ordinary table salt to the rescue.  Place about 1 T. on a stack of several pieces of paper toweling, iron over it until the goo is gone.  Make sure steam is off. (if you have a teflon or non-stick sole plate on your iron do not use this method)

(3) Having trouble threading your needle (either hand or machine), try placing a small piece of white paper behind the needle as you thread it.  Makes it much easier to see the eye.

(4)To make finding the notch on the spool of thread easier (which keeps your thread drawer or box much neater) mark the notch with a black permanent marker.

(6)Use Magic Sizing all through the piecing process.  This product is a must have for every sewing/quilting room! (I don't use spray starch as it leaves a white powder) Press, press, press for perfection!

(7) A great design wall can be made inexpensively using the pink foam insulation from the home improvement store.  Cover with cotton batting like Warm & Natural and then with flannel.  The insulation comes in 4'x8' sheets and several thicknesses (I used the 1" thick stuff) and can be hung on the wall using a few nails but if you are cramped for space, the back of a door is a great place to hang it as well - just be sure to trim to fit before covering it.  Also can be hung using velcro since it is so lightweight.

(9) For piecing I love using serger thread.  The thread is thinner and comes on larger cones. The thin thread helps with accuracy since the thread takes up less "space" when you "turn the cloth".  There are also some great thin piecing threads on the market for this very reason.  I have pieced with serger thread for over 10 years.  If you don't have a cone holder, a nice big coffee mug will do the trick - just place the cone inside and bring the thread up from behind your machine.

(10) Store fusible web in a plastic bag - this helps to keep it from drying out and separating from the paper backing.

(11) Store fabric out of direct sunlight. Ditto for thread. This ensures that the fabrics and thread won't fade before you use them.

(12) Always cut your borders AND then sew them on.  Doing so will help prevent wavy borders.  The best way to make sure the measurement is accurate is to take three; measure each edge length and then the center length, add together and divide by three and cut your strips to that measurement.  Pin on and sew.  Do not just take a strip that is longer than the edge you are attaching it to sew it on and cut it off to fit after - if you do you can bank on having borders that will not lay flat.

(13) The minute you are done piecing a quilt top, cut the binding from your chosen fabric.  Even if you don't get around to quilting it for months or even (gasp) years, you can be sure that you have the fabric you need to match your quilt.  Before I started doing this I cannot tell you how many times I went to put the binding on a quilt only to discover the fabric I had intended for the binding was used on another project.  In my sewing room I have a box labeled "Quilt Binding" and for every quilt top I complete, I cut and make the binding before I put the fabric away.

(15) Make a date with your friends to quilt.  Amazing how much gets done when you get together with other quilters!  My friends and I call these "girl fun days"! Chocolate is usually involved!