In 2019, I made a ballet pink dress with swans on it. I had about a yard of fabric left over and recently decided to make a pinwheel quilt from the leftover fabric.
At first glance, the pinwheel pattern looks complicated (at least, it did to me), but it’s incredibly simple! In 2016 I made a quilt with small squares, which was super difficult (never again). Anyway, this pattern is a breeze. Sewing quilts take me a long time though, I’m not sure if that’s true for everyone, but I feel like I’m extra slow. Either way, it’s still rewarding when I finish a quilting project!
My quilts are not perfect. Like, at all. There are so many mistakes! But honestly, I probably wouldn’t use a fancy perfect quilt…I would be afraid of messing it up. In fact, I didn’t bother sewing quilts for the longest time because I didn’t want to make a mistake. I realized quilts are for loved ones and for your home. They’re made with memories—scrap fabric, old t-shirts, etc. Don’t make the same mistake I did by not diving into the world of quilting just because you’re afraid it won’t be perfect.
Below are a few of my favorite quilting tools!
Fiskars Rotary Cutter || Rotary Cutter Set in Pink || Singer Sewing Scissors || Bohin Wrist Pincushion
Go ahead and do yourself a favor and buy a Bohin Wrist Pincushion…I know it’s expensive ($18), but it will be worth it! I can’t tell you how many times I stick my wrist with pins when I use a fabric wrist pincushion. I don’t have the pink rotary cutter set, but I wish I did! I have the Fiskars rotary cutter and the singer sewing scissors—both are fantastic!
I used two types of fabric making the design super easy. The first step is to cut out all the pieces of your fabric. Find a good audible book or a series on Netflix because this is going to take some time. I used this ruler to help guide me. After all your pieces are cut out, it’s time to begin sewing. Sew two pieces together at a time and then be sure to iron down the seams before sewing the next two pieces together. When you’ve finished your first large square, you should have a pinwheel effect with four triangles. Continue until all your pinwheel squares are sewn together (iron the seams as you go!). Then sew together your pinwheel squares. You can buy pre-made binding, but I usually make mine from an old sheet.
The quilt above is a lap quilt—it’s small because I had just enough swan fabric for a lap quilt. The size of your quilt is totally up to you. Have fun!
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