QUILTsocial | Issue 01 Fall 2014 Premiere Issue

Quilted Wall Art
Scrap Bin Diving Leads to Design
Those who love fabric have scraps.
Let’s dig out some scraps. If you love fabric, you have them,
it’s inevitable. In this quilted wallart – scrap bin diving leads to
design and creative endeavor.
I was sort of unsure how to proceed with this quilted (T-shirt)
wall art. I have one style, my son has another. I ended up putting
together a collection of scraps I believed would work with
the shirt design, and then let him have the final approval. I think
he chose well. They were a motley crew of random sizes, so I decided
on measuring them to fit a 14 x 20 stretched artist canvas
from the hobby store. For my canvas, they measure 3 1/2 inches
wide. The length will be determined largely by the side length
of the canvas used. As this is a scrappy project, it’s hard to be
precise. Just keep adding scraps of the same width until you
have enough to cover the sides.
Trim up the scraps to the desired width. Then play around with
the arrangement. It took me a few tries to get one I liked.
Then, pin the scraps together to make the bands that will frame
the shirt design.
Although quilters normally press the seam allowances to one
side, I opted to press the seams open so they were as flat as possible
to reduce the bulk around the frame. However, it will also
work if you use the traditional method.
Once you have the bands pieced together, sew the top and
bottom bands to the design first, and then trim them so they
are flush with the sides of the design. Next, sew the side bands
to the design. (I used GUTERMANN’S rPET RECYCLED thread
in this project. I like the notion of using threads made from
recycled pop bottles to upcycle a t shirt into wall art.)
Press the whole quilt very well, paying special attention to the
front of the design. Those seams need to be as flat as possible.
Free Motion Quilting
aka Free Mo is Preemo!
Press the seams as open and flat as possible.
Free motion quilting is indeed preemo, let’s discover
why.
When we last left our too-small T-shirt, it was on its way to
a new life as a piece of quilted wall art. Today, let’s make a quilt
sandwich of well-pressed foundation fabric, batting and the
quilt top.
The foundation fabric can be simple quilter’s muslin or a large
piece of lightweight cotton. I like to use cotton quilt batting for
art projects because it’s relatively flat and can be quilted quite
closely without bunching.
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