National Sewing Month 2013: 27 Free Clothing Projects for Every Season

September 30, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 124 Comments

It’s Day Thirty of National Sewing Month – the last day! Too see the daily blog posts, projects of the day, and more National Sewing Month details, click here.

During the past month, we’ve had a lot of discussions over how to sew a wardrobe on a budget. Whether through thrifting and refashioning or by making clothes with scraps, there are tons of ways to create on a dime. Another way to ensure budget-friendly sewing is by choosing the right types of projects to create. Sure, current fashion fads are fun to make, and you should splurge every now and then. However, it’s much more fiscally responsible to make a classic piece that transitions from one season to the next.

Because dresses and skirts are some of our top reader projects, we’ve rounded up this collection of versatile finds. “Your DIY Maxi Dress and Skirt: 27 Free Clothing Projects for Every Season” offers you projects that might pertain to your tastes season after season. Learn how to sew a maxi dress that can work when the sun is scorching or the temperature is in the single digits. It’s not hard to master these feminine pieces of clothing. Your wardrobe will roll from fall to spring with the help of these decadently designed projects.

Style with these DIY Skirts

Often labeled as a strictly spring or summer piece of clothing, skirts are actually an incredibly transitional article. When it’s hot outside, go bare-legged. Chilly? Throw a pair of tights on underneath your skirt. Frigid? Opt for wool tights or even leggings. You can still maintain that lady-like style when November through February reels in freezing temps. Find totally adorable skirts like the ones listed below and more in our 27 Free Clothing Projects for Every Season.

Sharp Pencil Skirt

Long Patterned Peasant Skirt

Ginger’s Ruffled Skirt

Ageless DIY Maxi Skirt

Marilyn Pencil Skirt

Dress for Success Every Month

Flaunt one of the most long-running articles of clothing in history against all temperatures with our collection of gorgeous DIY dresses to sew. 27 Free Clothing Projects for Every Season features dresses tutorials on how to sew a maxi dress that vary in style and skill level. Learn how to create a piece of clothing that sweeps the floor gracefully by checking out the excellent instructions in every one of these projects. Browse, uninterrupted, through our sampling below or scan through our whole roundup of dresses to find your perfect fit for every season.

Woman’s Knit Shirt Into Dress

The SoHo Maxi Dress Tutorial

Maternity Maxi Dress

Lady’s Shirred Maxi Dress

Effortless Caftan Dress

What are better: skirts or dresses?

Be a Crafter XD on Single-Fold Bias Binding: National Sewing Month 2013

September 19, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 34 Comments

It’s Day Nineteen of National Sewing Month! Too see the daily blog posts, projects of the day, and more National Sewing Month details, click here.

Today’s National Sewing Month blog post is brought to you by Maz from Be a Crafter XD. Maz is the genius behind some of your favorite projects on AllFreeSewing. See her full project list right here.

Single-Fold Bias Binding and Lace for Neckline

Bias binding is a very common technique in sewing. While double-fold bias tape is often used for edges of quilts, placemats, bags, etc., single-fold bias tape would be used for a soft strap in a neckline and armhole when you make clothes.

How to Cut Bias Tapes:

Fold the fabric so that the edges meet to form a triangle. Decide the length and width.

How to Join Bias Tapes:

Place your lace to the edge of the neckline.

Then place your bias on the lace. The right side of your bias will be placed against the right side of your fabric.

Sew along with a straight stitch. When you sew bias binding on curves, just stretch it out and sew as you go on a straight line.

You may need to “trim” the redundant part to get a perfect edge. Turn over and fold the bias like you see in this image.

Fold the folded bias against the wrong side of your fabric.

Iron if needed. Use a pin to secure it (I personally prefer hand sewed large stitches to pins for this part; just use a different color thread and remove it later).

Sew a straight line on the right side, very close to the seam line but try not to sew over it.

When you are done, this is the back of your neckline.

A little tip for a V-neckline,

Deal with the V corner at the back. Here’s the front when you finish.

It’s an easy way to create a vintage look!

Remember to check out Maz’s amazing blog, Be a Crafter XD for more inspiring projects!

What do you recommend using single-bias on?

While She Was Sleeping on Special Fabric: National Sewing Month 2013

September 14, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 38 Comments

It’s Day Fourteen of National Sewing Month! Too see the daily blog posts, projects of the day, and more National Sewing Month details, click here.

My name is Jenya. I am a sewaholic. As soon as my little girl goes to sleep my feet take me to the sewing room, my eyes glance over the fabric, and my hands start creating. I like to share about the cute little things I have made on my blog, While she was sleeping. Please feel free to pop over and have a look.

A few weeks ago there was an interesting discussion on AllFreeSewing’s Facebook page about sewing with special fabric. I thought it would be appropriate to share how I treat my special fabric.

My grandma was a very talented seamstress. I don’t remember her ever using a pattern, and yet she could whip up just about anything! I have tender memories of some of the outfits she made for me when I was little. When I caught the sewing bug my mum passed a lot of fabric on to me left from my grandma. We are not talking about just any fabric – gorgeous vintage fabric.

Now, tell me – and please be honest – would you get a cup of coffee plus a cake and just sit there looking at them before leaving without even trying them? Or how about getting a pair of heels you always wanted and never taking them out of the box? To me, having vintage fabric and not using it doesn’t make sense. I am armed with scissors, and I am not afraid to use them… even on precious vintage fabric!

Please let me show you a few of my favorite outfits I made for Little Monkey out of my vintage fabric while she was sleeping.

I made this dress when I was very new to sewing. I used my grandma’s fabric. This fabric is at least 30 years old. Little Monkey only wore this dress for a few months, but to see her wearing something her mummy made out of her great grandma’s fabric was very special to say the least.

How gorgeous is this Clydella fabric! A shop assistant thought it was printed in the late 60’s. It is 19% wool and 81% cotton. After sitting on a shelf for many years this soft and warm fabric became a little dress for my daughter. Little Monkey enjoyed wearing it last winter.

Some of my grandma’s gorgeous vintage corduroy became this cute and simple pinafore.

I am currently participating in a sewing challenge known as Secret Squirrel (sewpony.blogspot.com.au). Participants are required to create an outfit for a child using five ‘acorns’ of inspiration. One of the acorns for August was ‘Tangerine’. As soon as I read that I thought of some of my grandma’s gorgeous fabric and made a little tunic for Little Monkey (pattern by Sew Sweet Patterns). Don’t you just love this color?

I love making clothes for my daughter. I enjoy seeing her wear her mummy-made clothes everywhere – even at childcare or the playground. Yes, even clothes made out of precious vintage fabrics. Because you see, when I buy a cake I like to eat it 😉

Remember to visit Jenya over at While she was sleeping for truly inspiring sewing projects!

What have you made out of precious, vintage fabric?

Woodland Christmas from Ric Rac: National Sewing Month 2013

September 13, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 87 Comments

It’s Day Thirteen of National Sewing Month! Too see the daily blog posts, projects of the day, and more National Sewing Month details, click here.

Hi, my name is Jodie and I blog at vintagericrac.blogspot.com. I am excited to be part of National Sewing Month, although I might need a National Sewing Year to finish off all the WIPs in my sewing room. I am foremost a toymaker but I dabble in all kinds of sewing and have been known to turn out the odd quilt or garment or practical item on occasion.

I have created this cute little holiday DIY ornament that you can make up in traditional colors, or mix it up with some earthy colors to create a little woodsman. It’s such a cute Christmas craft idea and they make even more adorable DIY gifts! Have fun!

If you have a Google Account (you can make one for free), here is the link to a Google Doc to download the whole tutorial including the pattern pieces: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B3POraACAxjpUEtmRUpFb0hmNEE/edit

This little Santa and his tree have been designed to be hand sewn. All embroidery is done with two strands of stranded embroidery thread.

DIY Ornament

Cut for Santa:

1 Base
1 Body
1 Hat
1 Hat Brim
1 Face
1 Beard
1 Mustache
1 Belt to be cut on fold

Santa Construction:

Using the pattern placement guide, pin the beard in place .

Sew small seed or rice grain stitches at random over the beard .

Place the face on top of the beard and pin in place.

Thread your teeny buckle onto belt and slide to the middle. Pin belt in place on Santa.

Backstitch face in place – I cheated and didn’t sew the very top as it will be hidden under the hat.

Pin mustache in place on top of face and seed stitch the moustache.

Add two single wrap French knot cheeks and two double wrap French knot eyes to your face.

Fold Santa along fold line right sides out and blanket stitch the center back seam, catching the belt ends as you sew.

Pin base in place and blanket stitch ¾ of the way around. Stuff Santa and blanket stitch the base closed, adding more stuffing as needed.

Hat Construction:

Pin hat brim to hat and sew small seed or rice grain stitches to secure it to hat.

Fold hat in half right sides out and blanket stitch center back seam.

Place hat on Santa’s head.

Pop your hat on.

Cut for Tree:

1 base
1 tree bottom
1 tree middle
1 tree top

Tree Construction:

Fold tree bottom in half along dotted line and blanket stitch the center back seam. Stuff and blanket stitch base in place.

Fold tree middle in half along dotted line and blanket stitch center back seam

Fold tree top in half along dotted line and blanket stitch center back seam.

Stack your tree pieces onto each other

Decorate with French knots, chain stitch – in fact, anything you fancy!

Requirements for Santa:

7 ½ inch square of red felt
4 ½ inch of white felt
2 ½ x 7 ½ inch strip of brown felt
2 inch square of skin coloured felt
1 teeny buckle
Black, red and white embroidery thread
Hobbyfill

Requirements for Tree:

6 ½ inch square of dark green felt
5 x 3 ½ inches light Green felt
Red embroidery threads
Hobbyfill

Finished size approx: 5 inches high

For more sewing inspiration, visit Jodie’s blog, Ric Rac!

Have you started your Christmas sewing yet?

2-in-1 Art Tote from Made By Marzipan: National Sewing Month 2013

September 8, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 48 Comments

It’s Day Eight of National Sewing Month! Too see the daily blog posts, projects of the day, and more National Sewing Month details, click here.

Hello! Maureen here from Made By Marzipan. Don’t you love it when you discover something new to sew with? When I spotted this chalkboard utility fabric at JoAnn, I couldn’t resist buying some… even though I had no idea what I’d do with it! Luckily I have a few little artists, who inspired me to stitch up a 2-in-1 Art Tote. One side is a chalkboard, and the other is a dry erase board. A pouch in the middle holds the chalk, marker, and an erasing cloth. Ribbon handles make it easy to carry.

2-in-1 Art Tote

Supplies:

Outer fabric (16.5 x 8.5 in)

Iron-on interfacing (16.5 x 8.5 in)

Inner fabric, white (9 x 8.5 in)

Chalkboard fabric (9 x 8.5 in)

Iron-on vinyl (1 yd)

Velcro

Large button & Hair Elastic (optional)

Chalk & dry erase markers

Flannel fabric scrap for erasing

Supply Tips:

I bought the chalkboard fabric at JoAnn, you can find it by the utility fabrics. I purchased the iron-on vinyl from WalMart, it’s kept by the bolts of interfacing.

How To:

1) Begin by cutting a piece of outer fabric and a piece of iron-on interfacing to 16.5 x 8.5 in. Iron the interfacing to the back of the fabric.

2) Cut a piece of inner fabric (white), a piece of chalkboard fabric, and a piece of iron-on vinyl to 9 x 8.5 in.

3) Prime the chalkboard fabric by coloring the entire surface with a piece of chalk. Wipe off the chalk and the fabric is ready to use.

4) Add the iron-on vinyl to the inner (white) fabric piece. Peel the backing off the vinyl and adhere to the front of the fabric. Lay the paper backing on top of the vinyl and iron. Be very careful not to touch the vinyl with the iron.

5) Repeat the steps with the two inner pocket pieces (white). This will make the interior of the pocket easy to clean if necessary. The pocket pieces should each measure 7×6 in.

Creating the Pocket

6) Next we’ll create the pocket. You should have two inner pocket pieces with vinyl. You will also need to cut two 7×6 inch pieces for the outside of the pocket, using the outer fabric.

7) Pin a piece of Velcro to the middle of each vinyl pocket piece, about 1 inch from the top short edge. Sew the Velcro in place.

8) Now layer the pocket pieces together. First put an inner vinyl piece face down. Then comes an outer fabric face up. Next is the remaining outer fabric face down. Finally, add the other inner vinyl piece face up.

9) Pin together and sew with a 1/4 inch seam, leaving the top edge open. Begin sewing about a 1/2 inch from the top edge so it’s easy to turn under later.

10) Trim the corners, then turn right side out. Poke out the corners with a blunt tool.

11) Turn the raw top edges inward and pin. Sew around the top edge with a 1/8 inch seam. You don’t want to sew the pocket shut, so you’ll need to rotate the fabric as you sew.

12) Sandwich the pocket piece between the chalkboard fabric and the vinyl-covered fabric. Sew together along the left side with a 1/2 in. seam. (It’s a good idea to trim this inner seam to about a 1/4 inch so the tote will lay flatter.)

Adding Ribbon Handles

13) Next we’ll add the ribbon handles. You’ll need about 22 inches of ribbon. Fold under the raw edge of the ribbon and begin pinning in the center of the outer fabric piece. It should be two or three inches away from the side, depending on the width of your ribbon.

14) Make a loop that extends past the edge of the tote to create the handle. Add a pin about an inch from the edge of the fabric to remind yourself to stop sewing here… otherwise your handles will get caught within your seams later.

15) Sew the ribbon in place, first down the outer edge of the ribbon, then along the inner edge. Remember to stop sewing an inch away from the edge of the fabric.

Button Closure (Optional)

16) Now it’s time for the button closure. (This is optional, since the pocket has Velcro.) To add the button closure, pin a hair elastic to the center of one short end of the outer piece. The elastic should be pointing inward. If the elastic has a metal clasp, extend it past the edge of the fabric and you can trim it later.

17) Sew in place with a zig-zag stitch and a 1/4 inch seam. Backstitch for durability. Trim off the excess elastic.

18) Sew a button on the opposite short end of the tote. Make sure you place it far enough down that it won’t interfere with your seams. A button without a shank provides a smoother drawing surface.

Assembling the Tote

19) It’s finally time to assemble our tote! Pin the handles down, towards the center of the tote, so they won’t get caught in the seams. Layer the two pieces right sides together and pin.

20) Sew around the edges with a 1/2 inch seam, remembering to leave a 4-inch hole along the top edge of the vinyl page for turning. Trim the corners and turn right side out.

21) Turn the edges of the hole inward and pin. Topstitch all the way around the tote with a 1/8 inch seam.

22) Top-stitching between the pages will help the book to lay flatter.

Add dry erase markers, chalk, and a piece of flannel for an eraser to the center pocket. Now your little artist can create anywhere!

Be sure to check out Maureen’s blog, where she makes all kinds of crafty creations at Made By Marzipan!

Have you ever used chalkboard fabric?

DIY Jewelry Organizer With Meream: National Sewing Month 2013

September 5, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 89 Comments

It’s Day Five of National Sewing Month! Too see the daily blog posts, projects of the day, and more National Sewing Month details, click here.

Meream blogs at Bored and Crafty. Find her full project list on AllFreeSewing and social media links right here.

This is an easy DIY project inspired by a nifty Modcloth jewelry holder. I am referring to the one shaped like a dress. There are similar jewelry organizers sold in my city but upon closer inspection, I realized that the item looked DIY-able. So here we are.

To make a hanging jewelry organizer, you will need a wooden dowel or a small hanger. The length of this dowel will determine the width of your jewelry organizer. Mine was 8”. You will also need 6 to 7 strips of printed fabric (1 x 8 inches), 6 to 7 strips of acetate or clear plastic (1.5 x 9 inches), one long piece of printed fabric (8 x 17 inches), and another long piece of plain fabric (8 x 17 inches) with thick interfacing ironed to the wrong side. You will also need 4 to 5 buttons for jeans.

The strips of fabric and 8×17-inch pieces of fabrics should come with 1/2-inch allowance all around.

Like a bias tape, sew the strips of printed fabric to the long sides of the clear plastic strips.

With the other long side folded under, position the clear strips onto the interfaced plain piece of fabric. Make sure that the allowance between each clear plastic strip pocket is equal. Mine were a quarter of an inch apart.

Sew the folded bottoms to the plain fabric. You should use long stitch lengths so as not to rip the plastic strips.

Sew lines to make your pockets. The size of your clear pockets is completely up to you. Small pockets are perfect for storing pairs of earrings. I like bigger ones for watches and chunkier pieces of jewelry.

Place the printed fabric on top of the plain fabric with clear pockets. The printed fabric’s right side should be facing down. Sew but leave the top short side un-sewn. Clip off the corners.

Turn inside out. At this point, you can choose to top-stitch the long sides and bottom of your jewelry organizer.

Trim the un-sewn short side with pinking shears.

Fold this side over to the front, with the dowel inserted. Attach two jeans buttons right beneath the dowel.

Attach two more jeans buttons along the middle and towards the bottom of your jewelry organizer. Make sure to attach them in between the clear pockets. Tie ribbon or rope to both ends of your dowel for hanging.

And you’re done! Another option is to attach the jeans buttons to the other side of your jewelry organizer. This way, your necklaces will not cover your earrings and other jewelry that are inside the clear pockets.

Remember to check out all of Meream’s amazing projects at Bored and Crafty!

Are you neat and tidy, or do you need a jewelry organizer?

Bias Tape with Melissa from Melly Sews: National Sewing Month 2013

September 4, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 42 Comments

It’s Day Four of National Sewing Month! Too see the daily blog posts, projects of the day, and more National Sewing Month details, click here.

Hi – I’m Melissa, and I blog at Melly Sews, as well as design sewing patterns at www.BlankSlatePatterns.com. I’m so happy to be here for National Sewing Month! Today I want to talk to you about bias tape.

So, what is bias tape? Bias tape is fabric that is cut on the diagonal, then has the raw edges folded to the wrong side. Single-fold bias tape has the edges folded once, double-fold has the edges folded twice. It can be used to finish seams or add a decorative touch to a garment, or both.

For years I had a hate/hate relationship with bias tape. I hated it because the polyester pre-made stuff was rough and often only in ugly colors. And I hated it because I always tried to save time by sandwiching it where I needed it to be and sewed it only once. Then it wouldn’t stay in place or would end up all wonky and I’d blame the bias tape instead of myself for sewing it incorrectly.

But now? I love bias tape. So, today I’m going to share how to properly attach bias tape, and how to make your own out of cute fabric so you don’t have to rely on the ugly and/or rough pre-made stuff from the store.

Here’s the RIGHT way (not the Melissa in a hurry way that will not save time!) to attach bias tape:

I’m going to show you how to use double-fold bias tape, as this is the more commonly used kind to finish edges – think place mats or necklines.

Start by unfolding the tape and pinning it to the wrong side of the fabric with the raw edges even.

Sew right in the fold of the bias tape.

Wrap the tape to the right side of the fabric and pin, just covering the stitching line with the folded edge.

Stitch very closely to the edge of the tape.

And on the back side it looks like this:

Because bias tape is cut on the diagonal, or bias, you can stretch it around curves. At corners, you’ll want to miter the corner – this is a good tutorial to show you how to do that.

How to Make Your Own Bias

Now let’s have some fun making your own bias tape and using it to add a professional looking finish and a pop of color and pattern to your sewing.

Here’s how to make your own bias tape – and you only have to sew 2 seams!
This is much easier than it appears. I usually use a fat quarter of fabric, and from that I can get 4 yards of 1/2″ double-fold tape or 8 yards of 1/2″ single-fold.

Start by folding your fabric on the bias – this is the same method I was taught to make a square out of a rectangular piece of paper. I always iron my fabric on the fold to mark it. Then, cut off the excess fabric to make this a square, and then cut along the bias fold.

Match two straight grain edges right sides together like this and sew. I use a 1/4″ seam when I do this.

Press the seam open. Your piece will look like this now, with the seam in the middle and the arrow marking the bias grain.

Using a ruler, mark lines on the bias grain of the fabric on the wrong side. If you are doing double-fold tape, your lines should be 4x the final width apart (i.e. if you want 1/2″ tape at the end, your lines need to be 1/2″ x 4 = 2″ apart). If you want single-fold tape, your lines should be double the width of the final tape width apart (i.e. if you want 1/2″ single-fold tape you do 1/2″ x 2 = 1″ apart).

Fold your fabric, imagining that the spaces are numbered like this on one side. On the other side, imagine the numbers start with 1 instead of 0. You’ll match the edges, so you’re pinning the #1 space on one edge to the #1 space on the other side. The arrow shows where the #4’s would line up. Stitch this seam with a 1/4″ seam allowance, and press open.

Your sewn tube will look like this – one on each side is offset a little.

Now start cutting on your lines. I use scissors and go slowly. You could try a rotary cutter, just be careful not to cut through the bottom layer.

Continue cutting until you have a pile of unfolded bias tape.

Now, you could use a cardboard bias tape rig (tutorial on MellySews.com), but I prefer to use these Clover Bias Tape Maker tips. You feed the bias tape through and then iron as you pull the tip away from the iron.

When you’re done ironing (which goes by pretty fast) you get tape that looks like this (outside on top, wrong side on bottom).

If you then want to turn this into double-fold bias tape, you’ll fold it in half by hand and iron again.

I save the little pieces of cardboard from my store bought bias tape (I do still use it on occasion) and wrap the handmade tape on them.

Happy National Sewing Month, and I hope you come by to visit me at Melly Sews!

To find more projects from Melissa, check out her designer profile and get all of her social media links.

What do you use bias tape on?

Invisible Zippers With Deby Coles: National Sewing Month 2013

September 3, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 44 Comments

It’s Day Three of National Sewing Month! Too see the daily blog posts, projects of the day, and more National Sewing Month details, click here.

Hello, I’m Deby from So Sew Easy. I’m fairly new to sewing and learning new techniques all the time, so I was delighted to be asked to share with you as part of the National Sewing Month series.

On my blog, I mostly sew clothes for myself and one of the sewing techniques that took me a while to master was sewing an invisible zipper. However hard I tried to work it out, more often than not I would end up putting either one or even both sides in the wrong way. But now that I have this mastered, the invisible zipper has become one of my favorite techniques because it is so easy to do, yet provides such a high level of finish.

Follow through as I show you how I sew an invisible zipper in this video tutorial.

Did you wonder what the sound was in the background? Well, I’m lucky enough to live in the glorious Cayman Islands, and that was the sound of the Caribbean Sea lapping at the beach outside my sewing room window!

If you prefer a photo tutorial, you can find a written step by step with photos over on the site as part of the beginners Sew A Skirt series at so-sew-easy.com. Now you have the zipper sorted, you might want to follow along the tutorial series and sew a custom-fit lined skirt.

Thanks for watching, I hope you found this useful and picked up some tips, and won’t keep sewing in your zippers the wrong way round like I did!

And thank you to the FaveCrafts Blog for having me over today to say hello.

Authored by: Deby at So Sew Easy

What is the hardest sewing technique you’ve ever had to learn?

National Sewing Month 2013: Daily Posts and Projects

September 1, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 398 Comments

National Sewing Month 2013 Blog Posts & Projects of the Day

Day One – September 1st
Blog Post of the Day: Happy National Sewing Month 2013
Project of the Day: Easiest Lace Skirt Ever

Day Two – September 2nd
Blog Post of the Day: How to Make Stuffed Animals
Project of the Day: Raw Edged Dresden Plate Pillow

Day Three – September 3rd
Blog Post of the Day: Invisible Zippers With Deby Coles
Project of the Day: Sinfully Simple Ruffled Clutch Bag

Day Four – September 4th
Blog Post of the Day: Bias Tape with Melissa from Melly Sews
Project of the Day: Kid Size Football Jersey

Day Five – September 5th
Blog Post of the Day: DIY Jewelry Organizer With Meream
Project of the Day: Portable Hard Drive Case

Day Six – September 6th
Blog Post of the Day: Sewing Social: Easy and Sweet Sewing Patterns
Project of the Day: Kids Top Chef Hat

Day Seven – September 7th
Blog Post of the Day: Sewing Dresses & Apparel Tips from Suzannah
Project of the Day: Sweater Into Infinity Scarf Tutorial

Day Eight – September 8th
Blog Post of the Day: 2-in-1 Art Tote from Made By Marzipan
Project of the Day: U-Shaped Pillow for Baby

Day Nine – September 9th
Blog Post of the Day: Quilted Table Runner from Samelia’s Mum
Project of the Day: Charm Pack Placemats

Day Ten – September 10th
Blog Post of the Day: Sew a Tote With Anna from Charmed Liebling
Project of the Day: Your Go-To Travel Pouch

Day Eleven – September 11th
Blog Post of the Day: How to Sew Hoodies & DIY Sweatshirts for Every Young Man
Project of the Day: Ruffled Fall Table Runner

Day Twelve – September 12th
Blog Post of the Day: Handmade Fall Decorations from Love to Sew Studio
Project of the Day: Fabric Pumpkin Doll

Day Thirteen – September 13th
Blog Post of the Day: Woodland Christmas from Ric Rac
Project of the Day: One Hour Softie

Day Fourteen – September 14th
Blog Post of the Day: While She Was Sleeping on Special Fabric
Project of the Day: The Lady’s Nappy Wallet

Day Fifteen – September 15th
Blog Post of the Day: Hollywood-Inspired Vintage Patterns to Sew
Project of the Day: Fit for Pemberley Dress

Day Sixteen – September 16th
Blog Post of the Day: Pleated Knees from Sew a Straight Line
Project of the Day: Choose Your Own Adventure Jacket

Day Seventeen – September 17th
Blog Post of the Day: Princess Gloves from Blooms and Bugs
Project of the Day: Little Ladybug Costume

Day Eighteen – September 18th
Blog Post of the Day: The Little Belt Bag from Domestic Diva
Project of the Day: Camisole Turned Dress Tutorial

Day Nineteen – September 19th
Blog Post of the Day: Be a Crafter XD on Single-Fold Bias Binding
Project of the Day: Romping Good Time Romper

Day Twenty – September 20th
Blog Post of the Day: Sewing a New Wardrobe on a Budget
Project of the Day: Upcycled Rubber Organizer

Day Twenty-One – September 21st
Blog Post of the Day: Scrappy Fabric Baskets from Threading My Way
Project of the Day: Alice in Wonderland Apron

Day Twenty-Two – September 22nd
Blog Post of the Day: Easy Sewing Projects to Make for Kids
Project of the Day: Comic Book Cushion

Day Twenty-Three – September 23rd
Blog Post of the Day: 4 Ways to Refashion Your Wardrobe from Fleece Fun
Project of the Day: Red Riding Hood Cape

Day Twenty-Four – September 24th
Blog Post of the Day: How to Organize Your Sewing Room
Project of the Day: Wrapping Paper Organizer

Day Twenty-Five – September 25th
Blog Post of the Day: Applique with Becky from Patchwork Posse
Project of the Day: Pattern Full of Posies Skirt

Day Twenty-Six – September 26th
Blog Post of the Day: Flirty Fall Skirt with Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom
Project of the Day: Lady’s Shirred Maxi Dress

Day Twenty-Seven – September 27th
Blog Post of the Day: Watermelon Pencil Case Tutorial from Creating my way to Success
Project of the Day: Giant Pencil Case

Day Twenty-Eight – September 28th
Blog Post of the Day: Sew an Eiffel Tower Heat Bag from A Spoonful of Sugar
Project of the Day: Yo Yo Pattern Weights

Day Twenty-Nine – September 29th
Blog Post of the Day: Install Pillow Piping from The Sewing Loft
Project of the Day: 6 Step Skirt

Day Thirty – September 30th
Blog Post of the Day: 27 Free Clothing Projects for Every Season
Project of the Day: Your DIY Maxi Dress and Skirt: 27 Free Clothing Projects for Every Season

National Sewing Month 2012: Personalizing a Quilt Pattern

September 20, 2012 by FaveQuilts 36 Comments

We’re celebrating the last few days of our National Sewing Month Blog Series, and today we’ve got a special post on quilting for all of our quilters out there! Our friend Deanna from WeddingDressBlue is here to tell you how to easily adjust a quilt pattern to fit your needs. With her simple tips and formulas, you can make any block quilt any size you need. Whether you want to scale down a bed quilt or supersize a baby quilt, you’ll be able to figure out how! She also shares secrets about how to adjust a quilt block for smaller pieces of fabric, so you can use your stash efficiently.

Remember, if you’re looking to score our huge mystery prize, leave a comment at the bottom of this post and every post with National Sewing Month 2012 in the headline. You’ll be automatically entered to win. We’re picking a winner this Saturday so stay tuned!

Now let’s hear from Deanna!

How often do you see a quilt and say, “I love it, BUT…it’s a twin, and I need a baby quilt” or “it’s a baby quilt, and I have a queen-sized bed.” Well, there is a solution to that—it just takes a little math and the quilt can be yours.

This is Deanna from WeddingDressBlue here to share a little very non-scary quilters’ math to show you how to make that great quilt idea a perfect quilt idea.

The Hundred Patch Charm Quilt you may have seen on FaveQuilts is a great example. Here is the original pattern:

It finished at 75 x 99″.

But what if I want a couch quilt, like Cindy did?

Or what if I have a lot of 2-1/2” squares and the pattern calls for 2”? Do I really have to recut all those squares? NO! Birgit didn’t; she just changed up the pattern a bit.

Or, what if I, the original designer of the quilt, decide that I really need a queen size quilt? Can I do that? YES!

First of all, you need to know what size quilt you want to make. My favorite reference for quilt sizes is this chart.

Some patterns are written for multiple sizes, and that is a big help. If your pattern isn’t, you can arm yourself with a little information and make the changes yourself. You need to decide what you plan to change. If it is overall size, you will just add or subtract blocks from the pattern. Most patterns have the block size included and will say something like “Block Size: 12″ finished.” This means you can change the size 12 inches at a time by adding or subtracting blocks from the original pattern. That is what I did in the Hundred Patch modification above: I added four blocks to create a wider quilt. The finished size of the larger Hundred Patch is 99” x 99”.

The slightly more complex change is a change in the size of the pieces or components in the quilt. When Lillian changed from 2” to 1-1/2” starting squares, she used the quilters’ rule: “subtract ¼” all the way around.” Because quilters use a ¼” seam allowance standard, you can figure the finished size of any square or rectangle by subtracting the seam allowances from the size of the cut piece. So 1-1/2” squares will finish at 1”. How many of those squares do you have? That is how many inches across the quilt will be.

You can check this math with other size squares. Do you have 2-1/2” squares? They finish at 2”. Do you have 2” squares? Yep, 1-1/2”.

So, next time you face an almost-perfect quilt pattern, be brave and change things up a bit to make it your own.