Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Quilting Pillow tutorial

When I quilt on Hazel, my sweet Sweet Sixteen, I try to eliminate all drag on the quilt.  I roll, fold, or bunch the quilt to make sure it does not hang down over the sides of the table.  The one place I still find drag, though, is between the table and my lap.

I have heard many home remedies for this, but my remedy is to use a quilting pillow.  It is made from laminate fabric on the top (so the quilt slides on it) and quilting cotton on the back (to be cooler on my lap).  I showed this pillow on my DVDs, and have received many emails asking me for a tutorial on making a quilting pillow.  Here it is:

Supplies:
2/3 yard quilting cotton
2/3 yard laminate fabric
20-inch square pillow insert

Cutting:
Cut the quilting cotton into two pieces measuring 24 x 20 1/2 inches.
Cut the laminate into a 20 1/2-inch square.

Piecing:
Fold each of the two pieces of quilting cotton in half, right sides out, to measure 12 x 20 1/2 inches.  Press well.


Stitch 1/8-inch away from the cut edges of the fabric.  This will keep the layers together when you stitch the pillow back to the pillow front.


Lay the laminate on your table, shiny side up.


Place one of the quilting cotton sections on top, aligning the cut edge to the edge of the laminate.  Make sure the folded edge of the fabric is in the middle of the laminate.


Repeat with other piece of quilting cotton, aligning it to the other edge of the laminate.  Both folded edges will be in the middle making an opening to insert your pillow.


Pin within a quarter-inch of the edges, so that the pins won't make holes in the laminate pillow front.


Using a quarter-inch seam, stitch along all four eges of the pillow, being sure to remove the pins before you sew over them.

After the layers are secure, zig-zag stitch within the quarter-inch seam allowance to keep the cotton fabric from fraying.


Turn the quilting pillow cover right-side out and fill with the 20-inch pillow.


Place on your lap between you and the ege of your Sweet Sixteen table when quilting.  This will eliminate any drag caused by the front edge of the table.

Happy drag-free quilting!

7 comments:

Leeanne said...

Cute idea!

Kim said...

You have the best ideas! Very clever!

Happy Sewing

BetsyE said...

What a great idea! Thanks for sharing!

merrilyn said...

I had used a cushion there, but the laminated surface is a great tip.

Unknown said...

Innovative! Why didn't that occur to me? thanks for sharing

Anonymous said...

This is why we all need each other!!!!

Ms. Jan said...

This is a great idea! Thanks!