Tips and Tutorials on the 22nd – #41 – Trimming a Quilt

Welcome to this month’s edition of Tips and Tutorials on the 22nd where we share our favorite quilting or sewing tips and tutes! My apologies for being late….enjoying the summer solstice and finishing up my sew alongs has just derailed me a tiny bit. But, here I am, with a tip on trimming your quilts. It was one of the tasks I had to do today and I thought a tip or two on how I do it might be helpful.

Last Month’s Link Ups

Here’s a list from last month’s link ups! We have two fabulous tutorials for your sewing space, one on a design wall from Wendy, and one on an IKEA cutting table from Cheree! My post was about organizing my card patterns and our friend, Andrée linked up her post on her large sketchbook. I am so grateful to those who share their tips and tutorials each month.

I do sometimes add one or two when the linkup party is slow, and, I may just turn this into a monthly newsletter with Tips and Tutorials I have found. I’ll see how the next couple of months go – any feedback you have on this, I welcome (email me here).

Tip: Trimming a Quilt

I was just trimming one of my quilts and thought I would share the way I line up things.

Generally, I look for a seam and a line that will work on my ruler. This border was cut at 3 1/2″, so 3 1/4″ should work. I make my first few cuts and see how close I am to the edge of the quilt. I also tug a little to make it line up if I need to. I don’t usually find it requires much tugging.

Now, if batting shows, I don’t worry, I can cover that with the binding. But sometimes as I trim, I find it is too much, then I may change my cut and go down another 1/4″. Of course, you may need to take into account if there is piecing in the border or other piecing that would be affected by taking that additional 1/4″.

As I get to corners, I often line up two ways, one on the vertical seam and on the horizontal seam. A square ruler can be a big help and sometimes I will square the 4 corners first, then go on to do the borders. For such a small quilt, this is not necessary, but the extra registration (horizontal and vertical) is always an important help in accurate trimming.

Join the Linky Party

Now it’s your turn to post, and the rules are simple – write up a tip or group of tips or a tutorial that is quilting or sewing-related and link that post below. The linky party is open from 12:01 am on the 22nd, through midnight on April 30th. The post does not have to be new but should be one that hasn’t been linked to Tips and Tutorials in the past. If you don’t have a blog, please send it to me (kathleen@kathleenmcmusing.com) and I will post your tip or tutorial for you!

Past Tips and Tutorials

In case you didn’t know, if you have missed some past #TTot22, you can check them out in the tab at the top of my page or on my Pinterest board.

Coming Up on My Blog

I am winding up all 3 SALs/QALs. Happily, two tops are quilted and need binding. The third one needs to be finished…a block made and the row constructed and then figuring out how I will quilt it – its a little bigger than my frame so I may do it in halves or take it to a friend’s. There is an island fair on July 1 where I will sell some things so there may be a few small finishes before that….depends if I get energized or if I spend more time outside….time will tell.

Fab Farm SAL – Assembling Fab Farm (6/26)
Rainbow Neighbourhood Finish
Fab Farm Quilt Top Party (7/16)

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