Everything Quilt As You Go

Are you familiar with the Quilt As You Go method? Ever made table runners or placemats using the Quilt As You Go method? I first tried this method many, many years ago and found it to be the perfect way to create a handmade gift in relatively little time. If you’re unfamiliar with this method or think it's all straight-line piecing and log cabin blocks, I think you’ll want to watch the June 26, 2018 Tipsy Tuesday episode.

Quilt As You Go is a fast-and-fun method of creating and completing quilted projects. When the piecing is finished, so is the quilting! Before you get started here are my 

8 Tips & Tools for Quilt As You Go success!

1. A walking foot ~ you will be sewing through multiple layers of fabric and batting and won’t want your fabric to slip so use a walking foot for a more even feed. Many machines come with one but if yours doesn’t a generic walking foot will work too. Just make sure to research what type works with your machine.
2. Fusible batting ~ my favorite is Bosal Fusible batting. It’s got a soft fibers and a lightweight film on one side that gets ironed onto the wrongside of your backing fabric. It’s very quilter friendly and easy on my hands. I love it so much I stock it in my shop.
3. Chalk pencils or water erasable pens ~ You will need to mark lines and edges on your batting so if your fabrics are dark a ballpoint pen may work, but if you quilting lighter colored fabrics then pencils and erasable pens are best.
4. Printed backing fabric ~ select a printed fabric for your backing because every stitch will show. Which brings me to…
5. Bobbin thread to match your backing fabric ~ choose a thread color that will blend in to help hide all your stitches. This is best accomplished by selecting a thread that’s slightly darker and duller than your fabric.
6. Longer stick pins ~ because you’re working through multiple layers including batting, pinning your top pieces horizontally will help anchor the fabric in place and prevent sliding. In this case, “pins are your friend.”
7. Increase your stitch length ~ increase your stitch length just slightly because you are sewing through multiple layers. Also, anchor your sewing at the start and stop of each seam by stitching in place a couple of times.
8. Finger press your seams ~ you won’t be ironing after each seam when you Quilt AsYou Go but you’ll still want to make sure your pieces don’t crease at the seams. Finger press and keep the ironing to a minimum until you’re all done.

The following is actually a time lapse video showing you how I completed an Orphan Cake Table Runner from start to finish in under 40 minutes. And yes, that included the binding! 

Are you inspired? Ready to give it a try? You can find more of my individual Quilt As You Go patterns HERE, the Fast & Furious books HERE, and my Learn To Quilt As You Go book HERE for 5 ways to take your Quilt As You Go projects to the next level. The Orphan Cake Runner is only available as a video tutorial. 

Quilt Gallery 

From GE Designs: Curvacious Runner, Madison Square Runner, Fresh Blooms Placemats 

Best of Joy by Sharon Davidson, Friday Fiesta Placemats by Cheryl Gulvin, Rolling Barrels by Mary Pankonen. Best of Joy is exclusive to members of Gudrun’s Quilt Crew on Facebook. Join the group if you haven’t already! 

I've continued to add my favorite fabrics, tools and notions to the Store. Here are a few items to help you in your next Quilt As You Go project ~ Water Erasable pens, Bosal Fusible batting, and Metropolis Fat Quarter bundles and layer cakes. 

All in all, these tips and tools should help you on your Quilt As You Go adventures. I love to see how you make my patterns your own. Make sure you photograph your projects and tag me! I can be found at GE Designs on Facebook, @gedesignsgudrun on Instagram, and GE Quilt Designs on Pinterest. If you enjoyed the Orphan Cake Runner video and would like to view more, subscribe to GE Designs on YouTube. 

Keep strippin'

Gudrun