Welcome to another exciting edition of Quiltdom Press!

As summer flies by and temperatures rise, we hope you're enjoying every moment.

This week, we'll guide you through common beginner mistakes and share a curated list of our favorite quilting tools so you can make the most of Amazon Prime Day.

Additionally, we have a vibrant fabric feature that is sure to ignite your creativity and inspire your next quilting masterpiece!

Here’s what you’ll get today!

• Tips to Make Your Quilting Life Easier: Top 5 Mistakes Beginner Quilters Make

• Tools We Love: Top 10 Favorite Quilting Tools (Prime Day Edition!)

• Fabric Feature: The Margo Collection from Figo Fabrics

• Make Your Life Quilty: Inspiration from Around the Web

• Subscriber Quilt Submissions: Beautiful Projects Made by Some of You!

"Creativity is piercing the mundane to find the marvelous." - Bill Moyers

TIPS TO MAKE YOUR QUILT LIFE EASIER: TOP 5 MISTAKES BEGINNER QUILTERS MAKE

Quilting may seem very straightforward, but it is also somewhat nuanced. If you have a tendency to rush through things and not pay attention to detail, your finished project can turn wonky pretty fast.

Luckily, with some minor adjustments, you can make your quilting journey much more successful!

These are the top five mistakes that beginner quilters make (and how to fix them!):

1 . Not paying close attention to seam allowance.

Using an accurate seam allowance plays a huge role in the outcome of your quilt. Most quilts use a ¼” seam allowance, and straying from that will ensure your blocks are the incorrect size when finished! Precision in quilting makes for a beautiful finished product, so we recommend using a ¼” presser foot (like this one) when piecing to help keep the correct seam allowance! You can read more about other ways to help with this here.

2. Not trimming/squaring up blocks.

Another vital part of the piecing process - trimming your blocks! In theory, if you cut accurately and sew at a perfect ¼” seam allowance, you shouldn’t have to do this part, but the likelihood that happens is unfortunately slim to none. Minor errors are inevitable when cutting and piecing your fabric, which is why it’s important to stop and trim/square up each block before moving forward with sewing them together. Natalie from Missouri Star Quilt Co. walks you through squaring up your blocks in this video!

3. Forgetting to press seams.

Quilters notoriously have a love/hate relationship with pressing seams. Some find it therapeutic, others find it tedious. Regardless of the way you feel about it, pressing seams is necessary. Making sure you press before trimming your blocks is going to ensure a more precise measurement and allow everything to be sewn together accurately.

Pressing direction is a matter of personal preference. Whether you press the seam open or to the side doesn’t necessarily matter—just make sure you press!

Dive into all things pressing here. 

4. Not basting properly.

Basting your layers together is crucial to help prevent shifting, bunching, puckering, etc., and we find it plays a huge part in being successful with the quilting itself! If you don’t properly iron your quilt top and backing or make sure they’re laying flat and taut, this will ultimately cause problems when you begin quilting. If you aren’t sure how to baste a quilt properly, take a look at this Suzy Quilts tutorial!

5. Rushing the process.

Probably the biggest mistake beginners make – rushing the process. Learning to quilt is exciting, and we totally understand the feeling of wanting to race through and see the finished product, but it’s not worth it! Taking your time, ensuring accuracy, researching parts you’re getting stuck on – it’s all so important. Enjoying every part of the process will make your finished product that much better!

GAME-CHANGING TOOLS: TOP 10 QUILTING TOOLS (PRIME DAY EDITION!)

Amazon Prime Day is just around the corner, happening July 16th and 17th!

To help you make the most of the deals, we’ve compiled a list of our top 10 favorite quilting tools that you can find on Amazon. 

Since they don’t officially release anything beforehand, we recommend setting up deal alerts so you can get notified when things go on sale! You can learn how to do that here.

Now, onto the list!

• Mini or XL Stripology Quilting Rulers—These make cutting a breeze! They are the best rulers for strips and squares and even help trim your blocks.

• FriXion Pens - These are the perfect fabric marking pens. They come off easily with an iron and don’t leave behind any marks or residue.

• Seam Roller - Great for pressing seams quickly after sewing without having to go back and forth to the ironing board. Then they are much easier to handle when you’re ready to give them a permanent press!

• Grip Strips - Put them on your rulers to slide easily over your fabric when lining up or making little adjustments, but prevent any unwanted slipping or pivoting while cutting.

• Oliso Auto-Lift Iron - A crowd favorite in the quilting community. Save time, plus ease up on your wrists and shoulders with the auto-lift feature!

• Wool Pressing Mat - Speed up and improve your pressing with a wool mat. Since wool retains heat so well, you are essentially pressing your fabric from both sides.

• Self-Healing Cutting Mat - Essential for protecting your table! The self-healing nature of it will prevent you from constantly replacing a normal cutting mat.

• Rotary Cutter - If you still use scissors to cut fabric, consider this your sign. Rotary cutters are life-changing for quilters. We consider them a necessity!

• Rulers - Can you have too many quilting rulers? Take this opportunity to stock up on any sizes you might be missing.

• Sewing Clips - Say goodbye to your pins! You’ll no longer have to worry about poking yourself, losing pins in your carpet, and potentially harming children or pets. These strong clips open wide to hold layers of fabric and have a flat bottom for easy feeding to the presser foot.

FABRIC FEATURE: THE MARGO COLLECTION FROM FIGO FABRICS

Bright, colorful, and filled with florals! This week’s fabric feature is the Margo Collection from Figo Fabrics by Adriana Picker. The perfectly imperfect aesthetic of nature is celebrated with this collection with large-scale florals, fruit, and colors that will inspire many creative projects!

We are obsessed with this beautiful quilt using Margo. Patti walks you through exactly how she made it and provides helpful tips along the way. 

Another great quilt to showcase the collection! The Squared Up pattern is great for beginners and highlights each unique fabric.

The Margo kit includes everything you need to make your own quilt using the Margo collection's Desert Charm Quilt Pattern. The pattern perfectly complements the fun and vibrant fabrics!

MAKE YOUR LIFE QUILTY

This week we’ve selected some modern inspo to get your quilting gears turning. Projects big and small – your creativity is guaranteed to be flowing after seeing these gorgeous pieces. 

The newly released Cascade Bloom pattern by Toad and Sew is a stunning mix of modern and retro. Geared towards the intermediate quilter but worth the challenge! 

Next up, a perfectly quick and satisfying project. Laura Cunningham walks you through how to make your very own quilted zipper pouch. 

Last but not least, the Flitter Critter pattern by Kindred Quilt Co. This pattern is fun, whimsical, and fat quarter friendly. What’s not to love?!

SUBSCRIBER QUILT PROJECTS

We asked; you delivered! This week, we’re featuring two stunning submissions featuring readers of the Quiltdom Press. 

The first is a gorgeous Quilt of Valor (still in progress) by Janis Roelofson Williams. In case you don’t know what a Quilt of Valor is, it’s a machine or handmade quilt awarded to a service member or veteran who has been touched by war. You can learn more about Quilts of Valor here. 

The next stunning quilt was created by reader Laura Noveck. It is an award-winning quilt made from a pattern named “Bullseye” by Becky Goldsmith. We can see why it’s award-winning, as the colors and intricate details truly make it a work of art! 

Thank you, Janis and Laura, for sending us your projects. They will be in our Quiltdom readers' Hall of Fame!

SHOW US YOUR QUILT PROJECTS!

Want to join Janis and Laura in the Hall of Fame? Send us a pic of your latest and greatest quilt project (with your name and a description of the project) to [email protected]. We hope to feature as many subscriber projects as possible in future issues of the Quiltdom Press.

Also, if you have any suggestions for what you’d like us to cover in the Quiltdom Press, send them to the same email address.

Peace, love, and quilting!

The Quiltdom Press Team