For the novice or those who live in fear of bias edges:
Once you have your fabric selected, do some cutting. I generally cut segments about 6" to 7".......the length you need to start with will really depend on your strip width. Yes, you will have some tails---and waste---when you trim, but during the sewing process you don't have to contend with the bias. Note----all the seams are straight easy to sew seams!
In the photo--top right corner---a square starts you off. Add a strip to on side. Then add the second strip to the opposite side. Repeat...and repeat.
When the band is the length you want, you need to square it up. You will need to cut thru the center of the square to get the base. I chalked the cutting lines in on this sample.
Tip: I lined up the point of the square with a line on the ruler. The points of each segment should fall on that same line.
You will also find a variation of this that uses an offset center point......the final look is just a bit different because one side of the band has longer strips. You decide which way you want to go.
Tip: I do not cut and trim off the sides until I am ready to either join them together or add the separating strip to the bands. The less time the bias is "free to grow", the less stretch I have to worry about.
In this photo, you can see the bands are sewn but the sides are not cut yet. The bands were placed on the design wall until I was happy with the arrangement and had the separator strips prepared. Once the bands are sewn and cut.....you have bias edges! Just plan ahead how you will work with them.
In an email from Lynn at What a Hoot, she shared her tip:
For the very brave......If you are not afraid of bias, hate to waste an inch of fabric, and like to have the pieces cut exactly to measurement, then read on.
I ran across a quick video on Youtube that I thought was worth sharing. From the Missouri Star Quilt comes a quick method of cutting pairs of braid segments using the Binding Tool as a template. Since you probably have one of these, it's a free template.
There is a new ruler on the market that is set up to cut pieces for a braid quilt, but I found it $$ and confusing. So if I wanted a template, I would use the binding tool for sure.
Don't forget the check out the braid quilt examples on the Braid Quilt board on Pinterest. I added a couple of new ones. I would love to share some of those quilt photos here, but don't want to run into trouble...evil grin...so I just pinned them. I have mainly used narrow separator strips before.....but I am liking the wider separator bands I lot.
What else can I say about braid quilts? Hang on, there is more. Next post will talk about French Braid Quilts and what makes them different. Got to finish cutting strips, happy quilting!
Once you have your fabric selected, do some cutting. I generally cut segments about 6" to 7".......the length you need to start with will really depend on your strip width. Yes, you will have some tails---and waste---when you trim, but during the sewing process you don't have to contend with the bias. Note----all the seams are straight easy to sew seams!
When the band is the length you want, you need to square it up. You will need to cut thru the center of the square to get the base. I chalked the cutting lines in on this sample.
Tip: I lined up the point of the square with a line on the ruler. The points of each segment should fall on that same line.
You will also find a variation of this that uses an offset center point......the final look is just a bit different because one side of the band has longer strips. You decide which way you want to go.
In this photo, you can see the bands are sewn but the sides are not cut yet. The bands were placed on the design wall until I was happy with the arrangement and had the separator strips prepared. Once the bands are sewn and cut.....you have bias edges! Just plan ahead how you will work with them.
In an email from Lynn at What a Hoot, she shared her tip:
I have spacers between my braids, so there is a bias against a straight edge on each seam. If I were sewing braid directly to braid, I would definitely press them first with some *serious* starching to help control the double bias seam!
For the very brave......If you are not afraid of bias, hate to waste an inch of fabric, and like to have the pieces cut exactly to measurement, then read on.
I ran across a quick video on Youtube that I thought was worth sharing. From the Missouri Star Quilt comes a quick method of cutting pairs of braid segments using the Binding Tool as a template. Since you probably have one of these, it's a free template.
There is a new ruler on the market that is set up to cut pieces for a braid quilt, but I found it $$ and confusing. So if I wanted a template, I would use the binding tool for sure.
Don't forget the check out the braid quilt examples on the Braid Quilt board on Pinterest. I added a couple of new ones. I would love to share some of those quilt photos here, but don't want to run into trouble...evil grin...so I just pinned them. I have mainly used narrow separator strips before.....but I am liking the wider separator bands I lot.
What else can I say about braid quilts? Hang on, there is more. Next post will talk about French Braid Quilts and what makes them different. Got to finish cutting strips, happy quilting!
Nicely done! I am waiting on your tips for the French Braid as this is one I want to do.
ReplyDeleteI've wondered how to make French Braids. You explained the process so well. Thanks, Debbie.
ReplyDeleteI am enjoying this very much! I have lots of 2.5" strips to use "someday".
ReplyDeleteAfter my mini braid quilt, and the realization that braids were very stretchy with their bias edges, I wondered if I would dare to make a larger one. Maybe this will give me confidence to tackle it--someday. : )
ReplyDeleteNo,I`m enjoying every post!!
ReplyDelete