Firstly, that is a pretty big statement right there – we are making free fabric now? What is THAT all about?! Actually it is all about using your scraps and what you have and at the moment with COVID sweeping through our lives, money is often short but we still want to craft. You can make a lot of things from your scraps without spending a dime.
So that means that it is time to step back and see what we have that can be used. We waste rather a lot when we look at it. All of the offcuts from each project end up in a bag or box and we promise ourselves that we will use them ‘one day’.
But what does that mean exactly. If you are really new to sewing, you may not have a scrap mountain threatening to take over the house but the rest of us have a pile that we can only see over if we stand on a chair. Seriously, I cannot get the outer doors of my house closed. Time to take action!
Right, we have established that we can tend to wastefulness and that we have scraps. How is this helping? Well we need a solution rather than just flying accusations. We can make larger and more useable panels of fabric using a technique called Quilt As You go or QAYG.
But I am not a quilter I hear your cry! Well you don’t have to be. These QAYG panels are super easy to make, you need next to nothing (and most of it you have already) and the panels are AWESOME for bag makers.
So what WILL we need then…
- scraps of some sort. I tend to cut them into strips and squares to make them easier to use and you can see what you have. You can stick to one shade or go absolutely crazy with colour. Oh and do press all of them! They are much easier to work with.
- thin batting. I am using scraps of #279 80/20 cotton mix wadding which is a quilt thing. It is a Vlieseline product. The name is a bit odd but your quilting store will know what you mean.
- your usual sewing needs including some neutral coloured thread. I like white best
If you have some pieces of batting that are too small but, again sitting around doing nothing (waiting for ‘one day’), join them together with a zig-zag stitch. To do this, butt them up together so that they do not overlap and then simply zig-zag along the join so that the stitches are half on each piece.
I have used a contrasting thread here to show you but in reality, you would use a matching one.
Now let’s get going and ‘Make’ some fabric. The idea of QAYG is actually used by quilters to cut their job in half but we bag makers can hijack it and use the panels to make some really nice bags. To begin with, let’s start smallish. Get yourself a piece of batting about 6″ wide x 18″ long (it must always be a little larger than the panel that you are making). I actually like to draw my parameters onto the batting with a water soluble marker so that I get an idea of how much space needs to be ‘coloured in’.
So how do you know how big the ‘parameters’ are? Well you have two choices. Either the pattern will tell you (in this case we are referencing my new Sacramento Storage Cubes) or else you just make it up as you go along. You WILL find uses for these panels and I will be posting some ideas on this blog to help you along.
To begin with, lay your scraps out to get some idea of how they fit together. Mix up the shapes as much as you can. This can be a bit of a puzzle and you might need to trim some if they do not fit together nicely. I usually have a spare piece of batting for this because trust me, you will NOT remember the placement. You could take a picture too of course.
And now choose a piece of fabric. Lay the fabric onto the batting about 1-2″ in from the edges. Somewhere in the middle is always good but not bang on centre.
Remember that the finished article will be a bit smaller than your layout puzzle because of the seams (and you need to ‘colour in’ just slightly over the lines so have some extra pieces ready if you need them)
Now topstitch that first piece on (for that is all quilting really is) with rows about 3/8″ apart
Okay, if you can do that, you have the technique down pat. Now get another piece (a rectangle this time) and place it right sides together on top of the first bit
Sew it on firstly with a normal seam. That is, 1/4″. The seam will be on the bottom part of the new addition.
Now flip the new piece over, finger press and topstitch as you did the first one. As you can see, the topstitching lines are at 90° to the first one. This doesn’t have to always be the case but it adds texture so just go with it.
Take your next bit and check it for size. If it is a little long, a quick trim helps
Now place it right sides together onto the two pieces that you have already and sew a 1/4″ seam. Flip it over and topstitch as before.
Keep going until you have filled the panel. Sometimes, I sew the pieces together first (normal 1/4″ seam) and then add them to the panel. Just treat them as one piece when you do this.
This breaks up the monotony of just strips which you can get sometimes. as you can see in the picture below, the added panel takes care of the odd assortment of edges from the first lot. Do be careful though. This only works if you are adding a dark strip over lighter. The other way round and you may see the edges.
The other panel was put together before it was added too – sometimes these things just get too complicated!
When you have added all of the pieces plus any extra where needed, trim your panel either to the size mentioned in the pattern or just to a convenient shape
Mine is to be a part of my new Sacramento Storage Cube pattern (link coming very soon) so I need it to be 6 1/4″ wide x 16 3/4″ long for the larger cube. I then added the base panel of canvas. You can see the result in the lead photo. These cubes are ultra practical and they do use your scraps so it is a win-win.
Now there are some things to consider when you are making your panels-
- make the panel slightly larger than you think you need. If you are following a pattern, the pattern will tell you what to do. If you are just prepping panels to use later, larger ones will be more useful because we can cut things out of them just like regular fabric.
- a thin batting like the one we are using here with the scraps added is about the same weight as canvas and that makes it PERFECT for bag makers because you can use these panels with canvas without a huge difference in weight.
- if you have made a mistake and run out of batting on one side (it happens), zig-zag a scrap onto the side and keep adding fabric.
- with really tiny scraps, sew them together first and then treat the resulting strip as once piece. This is an easier way to make the addition look neat
- speaking of neat, stay tidy even though you are using scraps. Sew straight and trim the treads away regularly.
- keep scraps of about 1 1/2″ and no smaller. There does come a time where we have to bite the bullet and accept that what we are holding is no longer useful. So trim and keep by all means but be sensible.
Right then You can turn these panels into cushions. coasters, placemats and bag panels to name only a few uses. I will be writing some blog posts in the next few weeks to show you some ideas but this is the master tute to come back to.
Because we are coming very close to Germany’s 30th birthday (I know right, it does seem much older), I am planning a special make for that. Watch this space!
Okay so it is time to go scrap mining and have heaps of fun! You run a serious risk of having a cleaner craft room too.
Happy sewing!
Debbie
xx