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

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.