Foundation Piece a Quilt Block

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Many people have done "Quilting", but are put off by the labor-intensive cutting and fitting process that makes a quilt block. "Paper Piecing", or "Foundation" quilting, takes all the hassle out of cutting and sewing your quilt block. You can even use oddly shaped pieces of fabric Sew a Cat Doll without extra cutting.

It's easy to sew those acute angles with absolute precision every time; it's so easy that it's practically "quilt by number"!

Steps

  1. Select your pattern and photocopy or print enough of them to make your quilt. You will need one copy per block. Use the thinnest/lightest weight paper that will work with your printer/copier for ease in removal.
  2. Select your fabrics.
  3. Launder all of your fabrics. Washing them first means that the worst shrinkage, running, fading, etc. takes place before they're stitched.
  4. Iron the fabrics smooth if necessary.
  5. Cut rectangles or squares in sizes which will cover the shapes in your pattern blocks. These can actually be ripped/torn in strips and then cut for speed and ease. Note that with lighter-weight fabric, tearing/ripping will damage as much as 1.5" of fabric, and can be very wasteful.
  6. Notice that the pattern pieces are numbered in the order in which you should sew the pieces.
  7. Place the cloth for piece #1 on the BACK side of the paper with the back/wrong side of the cloth towards the paper.
  8. Hold the paper up to a light to verify that the fabric is oriented so that it covers all of the area of piece one with at least a quarter inch of overlap in all directions.
  9. Place the cloth for piece #2 (white) with its right/front side facing the right/front side of piece #1 (red) and its seam edge aligned with the seam line and overlapping by a minimum of a quarter inch.
  10. Pin the two fabrics in place on the paper.
  11. Flip the paper to the front/printed side.
  12. Machine stitch the seam line from the printed side.
  13. Trim the seam allowances to {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}.
  14. Unpin the fabrics and flip piece #2 over the seam and pin it in place over its allotted area on the block.
  15. Hold up the paper block pattern to the light to check that piece #2 will cover its allotted area.
  16. Place the cloth for piece #3 with its right/front side facing the right/front side of piece #2... and its seam edge aligned with the seam line and overlapping by a minimum of a quarter inch (6 mm).
  17. Pin the two fabrics in place on the paper.
  18. Flip the paper to the front/printed side and use back light to check the placement.
  19. Machine stitch the seam line from the printed side.
  20. Trim the seam allowances to 1/4 inch (6 mm).
  21. Unpin the fabrics and flip piece #3 over the seam and pin it in place over its allotted area on the block.
  22. Repeat the process of placing, pinning, checking then sewing and trimming for each successively numbered piece.
  23. Machine baste around the perimeter of your block when complete.
  24. Trim all edges to a quarter inch (6 mm) seam "allowance".
  25. Tear away the paper "backing".
  26. Voilà! You've got a perfectly sewn quilt block, with perfectly measured "seam allowances" and perfect corners - even in those hard-to-manage acute angles!

Video

Tips

  • Use the thinnest/lightest weight paper that will work with your printer/copier for ease in removal. Regular copy paper (20#) will work, but a lighter weight is much easier to remove.
  • Start stitching approximately 1/4"/6mm before the line and end approximately 1/4"/6mm past the end. This eliminates the need for possibly bulky backstitching to secure your seams.
  • Shorter stitch length makes tearing the paper easier later. 1-1.5 mm works well.
  • Use a light colored thread, so it won't show through your lightest scraps.
  • Any shape or size of scrap can be used, so long as it has one straight edge to be sewn. Because of this, you can utilize even the smallest scraps with little waste.
  • Use long, thin pins to avoid distorting the paper foundation.
  • You can merely cut the fabric into long strips of sufficient width to cover the pattern pieces of that color, and sew and cut them "as you go" to conserve cloth. Avoid ripping/tearing to create your strips, with looser-woven fabrics this can damage up to 1.5" along the tear, causing much waste.
  • Find Free Stuff Online block patterns can be found in many places on the internet. Just search for "Free Foundation Quilting Blocks". The variety and selection are astounding.

Warnings

  • Be sure to line up material in correct direction, lining it up with arrow in pattern (parallel with selvage of material).
  • Scissors, pins and needles are sharp. Handle with appropriate care.

Things You'll Need

  • A Paper pattern (and enough copies of it to complete your project)
  • Fabric - generally cotton scraps will do for your first attempt
  • Sewing/Fabric scissors.
  • Sewing machine with matching thread

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Sources and Citations

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