I hope everyone enjoyed gathering together all of you fabrics and supplies! Let's get started with week two. For your convivence, at the bottom of the page you can download the PDF with all of the information print ready.
Fabric Prep
The age-old debate on wash or not to wash probably will never be agreed upon. Here is my opinion and reasoning: Wash. Fabrics tend to have a different amount of sizing. It is better to start with washed fabric and equally starch it. This alone can help prevent puckering while sewing and after washing the finished quilt. The second reason I prewash is because of the chemicals used while dying fabric. Here is the blog post with a video that further explains the process.
I often see the discussion on what kind of starch is preferred. I fell in love with “Best Press” but every time I used it, I noticed my eyes would get runny, I would sneeze and my hands would get really dry. I decided to search for homemade alternatives. To my surprise, I found a lot of recipes. I went with one that used corn starch. Besides the fact per batch, it only cost pennies, it worked as well as “Best Press.” Click here for the recipe.
Cutting
In addition to preparing the fabric, we will work on cutting. First, you want to make sure you know exactly what fabric you are using for what. I suggest using the Fabric Sampler, which is apart of the PDF download at the bottom of the page. (I have messed up a quilt because I didn’t use one!) My second tip is to only strip cut and wait on sub-cutting. By doing this, you don’t have all those squares floating around and possibly getting lost!
I highly recommend using the Adjustable Quilt Strip Ruler by Off the Wall Quilts! This ruler changed my accuracy beyond belief. Literally, I have no more issues with bowing in my strips. For a 40” width of fabric, it only needs to be folded in half. In addition, it has an adjustable lock guide and finger guard. But the positives don’t stop there, the ruler sticks the fabric ensuring it doesn’t move while cutting. My strips have never been more perfect!
I'd love to see your fabric choices! Share on Facebook or Instagram. The hashtags for this quilt: #hopefortomorrowquilt #thequiltediary #sarahmarcina