Beginner's Guide to Quilting - UK (2020-02)

(Antfer) #1
Learn the lingo with our at-a-
glance guide to commonly used
acronyms and abbreviations! Keep
this guide to hand while reading
through your latest project
instructions and you can check it
whenever you come across a term
you’re not sure about.
BC bias cut
BOM block of the month
DF double fold
DSM domestic sewing machine
FE fat eighth
FMQ free-motion quilting
FQ fat quarter
HST Half-square Triangle
LOF length of fabric
LQ Long quarter
LQS local quilt shop
QST Quarter-square Triangle
RST right sides together
SF single fold
SOG straight of grain
UFO unfinished object
WIP work in progress
WOF width of fabric
WOW white on white
WST wrong sides together

PIECING


Another name for patchworking, piecing is
the act of sewing together the shapes that
make up a block.


PRESS


Pressing a fabric with an iron removes
unwanted creases but also sets necessary
ones along seams and edges. Pressing is
different from regular ironing as the iron is
lifted between each press rather than run
backwards and forwards across the grain
of the fabric.


QUILT


To quilt is to sew together layers of fabric
and batting to make an item such as a
bedspread or garment. Quilting is the
stitching that holds the layers together.


QUILT SANDWICH


The three layers of material that make up a
finished quilt – the backing, the batting
and the top – are collectively referred to as
a quilt sandwich.


QUILT TOP


The decorative top layer of a quilt
sandwich. This is the part that features all
your patchwork, appliqué and stitching!


RAW EDGE


The edge of a fabric where it’s been cut.
Many fabrics will fray at the raw edges if
they’re not hemmed or bound.


REVERSE APPLIQUÉ


The opposite of standard appliqué, reverse
appliqué involves sewing together several
layers of fabric and then cutting down
through the layers to create a design.


RIGHT SIDE


The ‘front’ of a piece of fabric that shows
the design (if it’s printed). When you’re
making up a pattern, the right side refers
to the side that will face outwards when
the project is finished.


ROTARY CUTTER


This bladed tool can cut straight lines
through several layers of fabric at once. It
should always be used with a cutting mat
and quilter’s ruler.


SASHIKO


A traditional Japanese form of running
stitch, it’s now popular for quilting.


SASHING


Sashing is a latticework of strips that can
sometimes be used to separate the blocks
on a quilt top.

SEAM ALLOWANCE
The distance that you need to leave
between your stitching and the raw edge
of the fabric. This is usually ¼in for
patchwork, but each pattern should
specify the amount. When cutting out
fabric from a template, the seam allowance
should be added around all sides, unless
the pattern says otherwise.

SETTING
Setting is the process of arranging all the
elements of a quilt top – blocks, sashing
and so on. A diagonal setting, for instance,
has the blocks turned at 45-degrees to the
internal edges of a square quilt.

SELVEDGE (SELVAGE)
The tightly woven edge of a bolt of fabric.
It may include information, such as the
manufacturer and pattern repeat length.
Because the fabric is more dense along
the selvedge it’s best to remove it rather
than to quilt with it.

SINK STITCHING
(Also: in-the-ditch stitching)
A process that involves sewing quilting
stitches that are either very close to, or
actually lie within, the seams between
blocks and other sewn-together elements
of a quilt top.

TACK
See ‘baste’.

TYING
Tying is a fast alternative to sewing together
the three layers of a quilt sandwich. As the
name suggests, it simply involves sewing
through the layers and back up again in the
same place, and tying a knot in the thread
to secure it. The knots are repeated at
regular intervals across the quilt.

UNIT
In patchwork, units are small pieces of
fabric (often sewn together in small sets)
that are then sewn together to form your
main blocks.

WADDING
See ‘batting’.

QUILTING
ABBREVIATIONS

WARP


Warp threads run lengthwise along a
woven fabric, at right angles to the weft.
There is almost no stretch or give in the
warp threads of a fabric.

WEFT
Weft threads run crosswise along a woven
fabric, at right angles to the warp. Weft
threads sometimes contain a little stretch.

WHOLECLOTH
Wholecloth quilts have a top layer that’s
made from one piece of fabric rather than
patchwork. Printed wholecloth tops can be
bought where you quilt around the design,
or templates are available so you can quilt
a pattern onto plain fabric.

WRONG SIDE
The back of a piece of fabric – either the
non-printed side, or the side that will be
on the back once the project is finished.
Free download pdf