red-warrior

My daughter would like this ombre baby quilt and I have only made 2 quilts. Could anyone tell me the skill level and how hard a 60 degree ruler is to use? Thanks so much!

http://www.vanessachristenson.com/

Prism99

She wants the star quilt? The bias edges make this type of block challenging, but it can be done.

One thing I would absolutely do is heavily starch the fabric before cutting. Starch stabilizes the fabric so the bias edges will be less likely to stretch and distort while you are working with them. My method is to mix a 1:1 solution of Sta-Flo liquid laundry starch and water, "paint" this on the yardage with a large wall painting brush until the fabric is saturated, wait a couple of minutes to make sure the fibers have absorbed as much starch as possible, then toss in dryer, and iron with steam. This will make the fabric fairly stiff but don't worry; all the starch will wash out later. The starch will help make your cuts more accurate, as the fabric will not "wiggle" under the ruler.

Handle carefully while sewing and pressing so you do not stretch the bias edges. Especially with ironing, be aware not to push the iron this way and that way to get something flat. You might get it flat, but it may be distorted. Up-and-down iron carefully.

Test your seam allowance to make sure you are sewing with a scant 1/4"; otherwise the pieces of the block will not fit together well. It helps to use a physical guide while sewing, and it also helps to use a good quality fine thread (I like Aurifil 50wt 2-ply) for piecing.

racerh

I have made a few quilts with triangles and a 60 degree ruler and personally I do not find it hard. One piece of advice I received from my LAQ was that when you press the seams apart do not go up/down or right/left away from the seam but use a sweeping motion so you are moving with the grain of the fabric. I set the seam, open it with my fingers and the place the iron in the seam and sweep over the fabric at a 45 degree angle. Before embarking on this quilt you should get some scrap material and give it a go.

Oh one more thing - I measure after each new seam to make sure everything will fit together.

AliKat

Ditto above. Though I use a sleeve pressing ham for ironing the seams either open or to the side. I never have any little hiccups at the seam line that way. I press not iron. That is an up and down motion only not moving the iron around on the fabric.

red-warrior

No she wants the one further down with the triangles done in the ombre material. Would your advice be the same?
I can not tell you how much I appreciate the help!
to+the+point+baby+quilts+color+me+happy+4.jpg

Prism99

The same tips would apply. Two of the sides of the triangle will be on the bias, so you will be sewing a bias edge to a bias edge about one-third of the time. If you are very careful and use all the tips above, it can be pieced by machine. Just be sure to use *heavy* starch. Spray starch will not stiffen the fabric enough.