How to Make a Bridal Shower Quilt
If one of your close friends or family members is getting married, it's a good idea to start thinking about a special gift to give them before their big day. Quilts are precious gifts for those at a turning point in their lives, as they will be sentimentally treasured forever. Even if you have never made a quilt before, advances in sewing technology have made the process a simpler task than ever before. Prior to beginning, determine how big you want your quilt to be, as this will help you in planning the square layout and pattern.
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Things You'll Need
- Fabric
- Rotary cutter
- Ruler
- Dressmaker's pins
- Sewing machine
- Needle
- Thread
- Scissors
- Quilting filler
Instructions
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1
Purchase your fabric. For a bridal shower quilt, look for wedding-inspired prints, such as bells, gowns and rings. Additionally, stick to a few basic colors, as using too many hues can look cluttered. Find a large piece of fabric to use as the quilt's backing. Use only quilting cotton fabrics, as the weave has enough give for such projects without being unstructured.
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2
Cut your fabric into 5-inch squares using the rotary cutter. The rotary cutter will allow you to get a clean, straight line free from the jagged edges that occasionally accompany scissor cutting. This is especially important in quilting, as the seams are very thin, making jagged edges prone to unraveling within the seams.
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3
Lay your squares out in the formation you want. Spread out the patterned squares to avoid a buildup of any one design.
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Sew your quilting squares into long, thin strips using 1/4-inch seams. This should leave you with several strips that are only one square wide. Lay your strips next to one another and sew them together with right sides together. Ensure that the the seams line up with one another before you sew.
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Place the quilt's outside portion on top of the quilt filler and cut around the outer edge of the quilt. This will ensure that the filler goes right to the edge of the quilt, helping it to stay put. Repeat the process with the backing fabric and lay all three layers on top of one another with the quilt and backing fabric facing out.
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Use a scrap of one of the fabrics you used in the quilt and trim it to a long, 2-inch wide strip. Pin the strip around the perimeter of the quilt and sew it in place through all the quilt's layers. This keeps the layers together while adding an attractive border to the outer edge.
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Tips & Warnings
This is the template for a basic quilt. If you are using a quilting pattern, follow the instructions provided.
If you are concerned about matching quilting fabrics correctly, look for fat quarters. These are little bundles of coordinating quilting fabric intended to speed the process of finding the appropriate colors.
References
- Photo Credit Comstock/Comstock/Getty Images
