What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

Did you know that January is National Organization Month? The new year is prime time to embrace a fresh start by organizing your craft stash. Today we’re sharing our favorite organization tools with you!

Let’s jump right in and take control of your craft corner! As quilters and stitchers, we know an organized sewing space can be a source of inspiration. Below we’ve gathered our favorite organizational tools into three categories, general, cross stitch, and quilting to make it easy for you to find what’s best for your space!

General Sewing Organization

The Oh…Sew! Organized ...

Every quilter knows that pressing and ironing is a big part of the quilt-making process! Pressing fabric and quilt blocks makes for a more accurate and polished result. Today on the blog we’re sharing some tips for pressing quilt seams and a BIG giveaway of ironMATIK ironing boards and mats!

Ironing vs. Pressing

How are ironing and pressing different? The main difference is in how you move the iron across the fabric. Ironing is the familiar motion of sliding your iron over the fabric to remove wrinkles and creasing. Whereas, pressing is appropriately named because it’s done by ...

Lori Holt of Bee in My Bonnet created the cutest and most convenient way to store needles! Drop those bandages, your finger-pricking days are gone. Now, you’ll be taking your needles for quilting, sewing, and cross stitch on-the-go safely in your handmade, DIY Needle Book. Lori has an easy video tutorial for you, and we have all the supplies!

Watch the video tutorial

Lori’s YouTube Channel has all the info you need to stitch up this DIY Needle Book. You’ll ...

As quilters, we tend to accumulate quilts. Lots of them! You might store them in a basket or cabinet, on a quilt ladder, or pile them on a bed. The quilts we create are so nice to look at that it’s a shame to hide them away. The fix is The Quilt Keeper quilt rack for storing quilts, comforters and blankets. It’s a simple solution for storing and displaying quilts. Read on for a fun giveaway!

This beautiful design is easy to install, and the removable metal bars are easy to use. You can easily slip the bar ...

How many times have you been told “it’s what’s inside that counts”?  When it comes to quilts, you just can’t have a quilt without batting. Our EXCLUSIVE line of batting is called Happy Cloud, and that’s exactly what it feels like! Treat your quilt sandwiches right, without breaking the bank, with Happy Cloud batting.

Happy Cloud Batting Types

The first thing you might notice is that each Happy Cloud package has a different color. This cute color code denotes our different types of batting material. We have four types ...

Are you a beginner quilter looking for the best quilting rulers to start your journey? Look no further! This blog post explores quilting rulers that are suited for new quilters. With the right rulers for quilting, you can easily make precise cuts to complete your quilts confidently. Read on to find the best quilting rulers for beginners (and beyond)!

Why Do We Need Quilting Rulers?

Fabric and quilting rulers are versatile tools used to measure and cut fabric, mark lines, and make precise cuts at different angles. They are particularly helpful for complex patterns and squaring up quilt blocks to ...

Are you in search of a rotary cutter to use for your next quilting project? If so, you’ve come to the right place! This blog post is your guide to rotary cutters and will help you find the best rotary cutter for quilting and sewing. We’ll look at several types of rotary cutters available and their features. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced quilter, this guide will help you find the best rotary cutter for your needs.

Olfa 45mm Rotary Cutters

If you’re looking for a quilting rotary cutter that offers comfort, precision, and safety ...

 And so another crazy day has passed. I accomplished a lot and finished late in the day again! I don't know why that is. I start early enough in the day but never seem to get the "real" work done until late. I must start looking at how I do things. I eeked out 12 KM and then, at the end of the day, realized that I had forgotten to drop stuff at Diane's house. Sigh..................

Oh -- I got a response from Watergirl Quilt Co about the hera marker. There is quite the business behind those hera markers ...

Yesterday our local quilt guild had a bus trip to the wonderful Road to California show — over and back all in one day. We all had a great time, with lots of laughter and chatter all the way. We had done a similar thing ten years ago, when I bought a rotating cutting mat; […]

Thread conditioner, also called thread wax and thread gloss, is a product designed to make thread or cross stitch floss easier to use. They do this by strengthening the thread and making it glide through fabrics more easily. The result is smoother sewing with less tangling, twisting, and splitting.

Thread conditioners are most commonly used in cross stitching and hand sewing, where they help to tame cotton threads by smoothing and coating the fibers. Read on to learn about natural beeswax thread conditioner!

Made from 100% beeswax, Mind Your Own Beeswax Thread Conditioner cuts down on tangling, fraying, and thread ...

 I recently came across a new-to-me ruler: Cat's Cradle Tool from Creative Grids.

 I've been carrying these needle threaders for a while now and still love them. My husband uses one all the time when servicing machines and I keep mine with my Featherweight as it is the only machine I own that doesn't have a needle threader. I made a short video showing how it works, because this is the kind of thing that is easier to explain with video rather than words. It's less than 2 minutes long if you want to see how these things work.

Hello, and happy Friday! Today I’m sharing more on sewing room organization with practical thread storage ideas. I also have a video to share near the end of this post where I walk you through my storage methods and ideas. I hope you’ll enjoy this post and find some inspiration and helps for keeping your […]

The post Sewing Room Organization: 7 Practical Thread Storage Ideas appeared first on A Quilting Life.

I need to get some backing fabric and batting for the quilt top I finished last night, but in the meantime I saw an article on the Bernina site on making a small scissor case with the embroidery module. Hmmm. I’m planning to go to a quilt retreat later this summer, and I thought this […]

Today we’re telling you everything you need to know about the different types of needles! Between sewing machine needles, cross stitch needles, and hand sewing needles, we know things can get a little confusing and tricky, but Fat Quarter Shop is here to help.

We thought we’d start with the history of the needle and then get into the different types of needles, including some of what we use!

The ...

Last week we shared a tutorial for turning the adorable Lewe the Ewe panel from Susybee into a chenille pillow. That was just a small peek at what you can create with the fun and playful fabric panels from Susybee! Of course, you can chenille any of their fabric panels to create pillows, quilts, and playmats. But what about machine quilting the panels? Take a look at how we made the Lal the Lamb Dresden quilt!

How to Make the Lal the Lamb Dresden Quilt

My own love for the Susybee fabric panels really began because of the machine quilting ...

If you’ve followed me for a while now, you’ve probably heard of my love for fabric panels. So many people still call them cheater panels, but I wholeheartedly disagree! Fabric panels are the perfect place to play, try new techniques, and practice your machine quilting skills. I especially love the fabric panels from Susybee Textiles for both practicing free motion quilting and chenille. Take a look at how we turned adorable Susybee panels into a chenille pillow!

How to Make a Chenille Pillow with Susybee Panels

Have you tried chenille yet? It creates a fun, fuzzy texture on ...

You’ve gathered your supplies, you’ve studied your basic skills, and you’ve even put together your first quilt block, but what comes next? Using templates and notions to create one-of-a-kind quilting designs is even more simple than you may have imagined. In fact, if you’re using a ruler to line up your cuts, then you’re already experience in the process! The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a template as “something that establishes or serves as a pattern”, so that handy ruler you’ve been using is the first step ...

Hello, friends and happy Friday! Today I’m sharing the first of a new series for beginning quilters on the YouTube Channel and have begun it with a Quilting Basics: Tool for Beginner Quilters video. I’ll share a little bit about that today and also let you know about a couple of Black Friday Sales (including […]

The post Quilting Basics: Tools + Black Friday Sales appeared first on A Quilting Life.

Hello, friends! Today I’m sharing my annual Quilter’s Gift Guide 2020 with notions, tools, rulers, and other quilting products that I can’t live without. My list is pretty long, lol, but I’ve divided it into categories to make it easier to search…and I have a quick video sharing all of the featured gift guide items. […]

The post Quilter’s Gift Guide 2020 appeared first on A Quilting Life.