Expedite your quiltmaking tasks with quick methods, tools, and "convenience fabrics"

Three cuddle quilts completed in a week's time! Although these are smaller size quilts, the following tips can be applied to any quilt that you want to finish more quickly. 

Three finished cuddle quilts for charity.
Finished sizes (from left): 41.5" x 46", 29.5" x 35", 34.5" x 36.5"

Making the Quilt Tops

I used three different patchwork methods to create the tops for these quilts. 

• Big fabric patches of varying size
• A two-fabric block
• A fabric panel with added borders

Basted Cuddle Quilts. A two-patch block design (left) and a big patch design (right).

The Big Patch design

The quilt top on the right is the easiest and quickest to assemble.

• Pull a variety of fabric prints (these happened to all be from the same fabric collection).

• The blocks/patches are the same height but varying width. Mine were 9.5" in height by anywhere from 5.5" to 10" wide.

• Arrange the blocks/patches so the corners DO NOT meet.

Sew the blocks into rows. Then, when sewing the rows together, you won't have to worry about matching corners and nesting seam allowances because the patches are of different widths. It's an easy sew.

Two-patch blocks using various fabric prints and batiks.

Two-patch block design

The quilt top above is fun and scrappy. It started with a handful of rectangles that were about the same size—around 6.5"-7" by (about) 3".

• Pair the rectangles and chain piece them (on the long side) into 2-patch units. Do this in one sitting, or keep a stack of rectangles near your sewing machine and use them as "leaders" and "enders" while sewing other projects. (I did a little of both.)

• Pick the smallest pieced block and trim this one to make it square. Trim all the others to that size. Mine ended up at 6.5" square.

• Arrange blocks in a "rail fence" layout. Sew the blocks into rows and then sew the rows together.

Spinning the seams in the two-patch quilt top.

Tip: If the seam allowances of each row are pressed in an alternating fashion (toward the unpieced unit), the seam allowances will nest at the intersections when sewing the rows together. Spinning the seam allowances at the block intersections will minimize bulk, allow the top to lie flatter, and avoid any big lumps that would interfere with your machine quilting.

Cuddle Quilt using a fabric panel. 41.5" x 46"

Fabric panels—the "convenience fabric"

The peacock quilt was made using a fabric panel. How much easier can it get? It's like a microwave meal or a TV dinner... no fuss, no muss. Just add borders (or not!) and it's finished!

• I added a 4" border to the sides and a 6" border to the top and bottom. The borders made a nice frame aound the 4 "faux" quilt blocks.
• The border measurements were intentional. They kept the top within a 44/45" width to accomodate a single piece of fabric for the backing (no piecing the backing fabric—another time-saver).
• The larger top and bottom borders made the quilt rectangular (rather than square).

Spray basting the quilts

As mentioned in this post, spray basting is a fast way to get the quilt sandwich ready for quilting. If you have a quilting buddy to help you, it's even faster!

• Read the instructions on the can of spray baste. It tells how much, how far, etc.

• Account for any overspray: cover the floor around the area, lay down an old sheet beneath the quilt back, or cover/protect the table with newspaper.

• Spray baste in a well-ventilated space.

Quilting the quilts: Free-form and free-motion

Cuddle quilts and charity quilts are great for experimenting and practicing your free-motion quilting. The recipients of your endeavors will love the quilt and appreciate your kindness regardless of your skill level. And how do you get better at FMQ? With practice!

Load several bobbins before you start quilting.

Here are time-saving tips for machine quilting:

• I used the same backing fabric for all three quilts. Choose a matching thread and load several bobbins before starting. If your backing fabrics are different, you could use a neutral/blending thread in the bobbin for all.

• Load one extra bobbin for adding the binding by machine.

• I don't mark the tops. Just drop the feed dogs, hit the pedal, and quilt intuitively!

• Start quilting somewhere in the middle (on a "busy" fabric) and meander around, moving toward the edges of the quilt sandwich.

Large flowers were free-motion quilted on this Cuddle Quilt.

• Be inspired by the fabrics to come up with a quilting design. The big-patch quilt (above) was free-motion quilted with large flower motifs. The feather-and-swirl design was inspired by the peacock tails (below).

Cuddle quilt made with a fabric panel.
Free-motion feather motifs mimic the peacock plumes.

• Quilt with a larger motifs to cover the top in less time.

• Combine one or more motifs such as the swirls and circles (below). Sometimes you need a different motif to fill weird spaces, to change the direction of your quilting path, or just make the quilting more interesting—for you (the quilter), and for the viewer.

Free-motion quilting with large swirls and circles.

Machine binding

Hands down, machine binding is much quicker than hand binding. 

• I periodically cut 2.5" strips of left-over or stash fabrics to make bindings. Sometimes they are from a single print, sometimes they are scrappy bindings.
• I use a piece of double-sided, water soluble sticky tape (made for sewing and quilting) to keep the miters in place when machine stitching the top. Or use a basting glue (like Roxanne's Glue Baste It).
• You could use the water soluble tape or basting glue to secure the entire binding to make the sewing go quickly.

Machine binding on Cuddle Quilts.

Adding a special detail

Just because a quilt is made with time-savings techniques and tools, doesn't mean you can't add a personal detail to make it special. Here are some ideas:

• Use a decorative stitch for the machine binding. Our sewing machines have bazillions to choose from!

• A scrappy binding can be a fun detail and echo the variety of colors that are in the patchwork.

Switch out the top thread with a variegated thread to add a special detail to the free-motion quilting.

• I used a variegated thread on the turquoise border on the peacock quilt. It doesn't show well in this photo, but the sparkles of the reds and oranges in this variegated thread add a surprising detail.

Here are additional photos of the quilting and the finished cuddle quilts.

Border and corner free-motion quilting.

Feathers and swirls on the peacock panel quilt.

Free-motion machine quilting (back view).

Finish quilt sizes:

• Peacock panel quilt: 41.5" x 46"

• Two-fabric block quilt: 29.5" x 35"

• Big patch quilt: 34.5" x 36.5"

Three completed cuddle quilts.

Basting the chickens at the Cuddle Quilt workshop

This orange, chicken improv quilt got basted yesterday... at the annual Cuddle Quilt workshop with my quilt guild. And I'm happy to report the quilt is already machine quilted and machine bound.

 A novelty fabric with chickens prompted the name for this quilt

The most beneficial part of the annual Cuddle Quilt workshop—for me and several guild members—is the group spray-basting activity. I don't have an open space to baste quilts in my studio—without clearing off a table, anyway. And it was obvious that many guild members made cuddle quilt tops last year during the pandemic lockdown as the spray basting station was extremely popular this year.

Finished cuddle quilt, 37.5" x 39.5".

Inspired by "Making Do" and using up scraps

In early 2017, we had a guild program called, "Making Do," that provided tips and ideas for using up scraps and repurposing blocks and abandoned projects. The blocks in this mostly-orange chicken quilt are improv pieced and employ ideas from the program. It's an example of repurposing fabric leftovers and fabric swatches using improvisational patchwork.

Improv blocks using scraps.

In addition to the orange chicken quilt, I got this top with the Greek Key blocks basted.

Two spray-basted quilt sandwiches.

I picked these strips from a box of pre-cut binding strips that were available at the workshop. Having strips already cut and sorted by color helps guild members expedite finishing the charity quilts. 

Pre-cut binding strips at the workshop.

This little floral print is my favorite of the binding strips I picked up. It echoes all the colors in the patchwork. But there was only a single piece, so the binding for this quilt is also scrappy.

A sweet floral print echos the colors of the patchwork.
And a view of the free-motion quilting.

And, this is the cuddle quilt I turned in.

Completed cuddle quilt.

For these quilts, I'm marking off two squares on my 2021 Quilting Success bingo card.

Quilting Success bingo card.

Understanding Cuddle Quilt math

The Choo Choo Quilters had a very productive Cuddle Quilt workshop yesterday. 

Quilt tops, backing fabrics and batting ready for the group spray basting session.

This annual workshop is a wonderful opportunity to spend the day with a group of generous and talented women from my guild while we make small lap size quilts for our community service recipient organization, the Chambliss Center for Children . As for the quiltmaking process, one of the most expeditious activities to take advantage of at this workshop is a spray basting session. Details about how we accomplish this are in this blog post.

Ginny (left) and Linda spray basting.

I geared up and was prepared for the spray basting session this year. 7 cuddle quilt tops were ready for basting. There were:

Basted quilts at the Choo Choo Cuddle Quilt workshop.

• Three tops made with blocks from the Making Do program.
• One top from blocks made at last year's Cuddle Quilt workshop.
• One improv scrap quilt top.
• One top featuring a panel.
• And one sample top from a fabric line called Bugalicious.

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During the 7-hour workshop, 45 quilt tops were spray basted by our dedicated quiltmakers. An amazing accomplishment! This was nearly double our first record of 27 quilts back in 2011.

My friend and fellow guild member, Ginny, enjoys the binding process. She had offered to bind cuddle quilts if I would quilt them. (She attached the binding to this cowboy cuddle quilt for me.) So, in addition to my quilt tops, I brought an extension table for my sewing machine with the plan to free-motion quilt as many basted tops as possible for her.

Cuddle quilts ready for binding.

By 3 pm, I had free-motion quilted 5 cuddle quilts which I turned over to Ginny for binding. At the end of the workshop, however, I still took home 5 spray basted quilt sandwiches from the 7 tops I brought in.

The Cuddle Quilt Math word problem:
"A quilter brings in 7 quilt tops for basting, then quilts 5 basted quilts while at a workshop. If said quilter gives 5 quilts to another quilter to bind, how is it that I still brought home 5 quilts to quilt?"

I guess this is "Cuddle Quilt Math."

Getting ready for a "Group Baste" session

Cuddle quilt top pressed and ready for basting.

My quilt guild, the Choo Choo Quilters, does a "group baste" at our annual Cuddle Quilt workshop. This is so efficient and fast—ya gotta love it!

1. We boost the tables up on wooden blocks to a height more conducive to standing (without having to bend). 2. Two people—on opposite sides of the table—tape the backing down. 3. The batting is positioned. 4. We use a spray baste product (follow the instructions on the can). 5. Then two people lay the pieced quilt top over the sprayed batting. Smooth the top to adhere. DONE! Basted.

We crank these basted cuddle quilts (child size and lap size) out like an assembly line that Mr. Ford would be proud of.

So, with our Cuddle Quilt workshop coming next month, it behooves one to get as many quilt tops ready for this process as possible. Hey, who wouldn't want a speedy solution for this [booooring, but necessary] step in the quiltmaking process??? I have three tops ready for the Group Baste session.

I finally found time to assemble a batch of strippy blocks from last year's Cuddle Quilt workshop (or was it two years ago?).

Strip pieced quilt top. 32" x 40"

This next one is an improv "Make Do" quilt top using scraps and leftover patchwork. (I've been making improv chunks since the February guild program.)

Improv cuddle quilt. 41" x 30"

Panels are good for these quilts, too. (This one is a more recent finish, but you can see it required little cutting and sewing.)

Fabric panel with borders. 33" x 42"

So... I'm making progress... a few found minutes at a time... over the course of the year. 

Kudos to the other members of the Choo Choo Quilters... who have just as little spare time, but always come through making these quilts for our guild's community service project. A true team effort!

Kits + food = Cuddle Quilt productivity

We had a productive Cuddle Quilt workshop today. With pre-cut fabric squares, block kits, a buffet of bakery goods, fruit and coffee, and 2 cans of basting spray, a small group of Choo Choo Quilters made [lots of] hay while the 90-degree sun was shining. Seven guild members took home a total of 27 quilts that were basted (or close to it) and ready for quilting.

Tops ready for basting, backing fabrics piled high and pre-cut squares.

Here are block packets and quilt layouts from a group exercise we did at the "Value in Color" guild program.

Quilt kits with layouts for assembly.

A smorgasbord of fruit, baked goods, juice and coffee were on hand to keep us sustained. (Yummy!)

We teamed up in pairs to baste the quilts. Working from both sides of the table was very effective.

And, we had two cans of basting spray and got 20+ cuddle quilts basted. Talk about a production line... the spray makes that process go really fast!

I had not tried the basting spray until today. I'm in the process of quilting one of the cuddle quilts that was spray basted.  I'll post a review when complete. Has anyone else used basting spray? What do you think about it? Leave a comment.