Tutorial: Cutting and Sewing Free Hand Curves

Thank you for all of your comments regarding both the foundation paper pieced Colorwheel Mini Quilt and the Making Waves Pillow Cover. Today I have written a tutorial for cutting and sewing free hand / improvised curves as featured in the Making Waves Pillow Cover.

Let's get started with the cutting ~

For this tutorial I have used strips of fabric 15 inches long and 3.5 inches wide. For my pillow cover I started with longer strips - 25 inches x 3.5 inches. Cut two strips of fabric, and with right side of the fabrics up (relevant if you are using printed fabrics) overlap the two fabric strips. I have overlapped my two strips by about two inches. Use a rotary cutter to cut a free hand wavy line where the two fabrics overlap.

Discard the excess fabric. You are now ready to start sewing your strips together.

Tips for sewing curves - no pins needed:

• Align the top edges of your fabric, right sides together, allowing for a 1/4 inch seam allowance.
• Reduce stitch length and aim to sew slowly and continuously, adjusting fabric as your sew rather than stopping and starting.
• With your left hand LIFT and hold the top fabric UP and away from the bottom fabric. Your right hand is in charge of guiding the bottom fabric along the quarter inch line on your stitch plate.
• Keep the two fabrics separated and gently ease the fabrics. Don't stretch or pull the edges.
• Go slow and sew continuously, allowing the top fabric to slip through your hand, and adjusting the bottom fabric with other hand as you sew. If you need to stop (and it is better to stop if you've lost control of the fabrics!) be sure to stop with needle in the down position. 

Gently press seam to one side. And you're ready for your next strip. Again overlap the fabric strips and with a rotary cutter cut a free hand wavy line where the fabrics overlap. This time you can be guided by the previous wavy line if you wish to create a certain shape or curve in your piece.

Sew and press ~

Don't be concerned by the frightful looking seam. Press with a warm steam iron. Use a little spray starch if needed. I have pressed all my seams together to one side, and in the same direction.

As you can see an accurate 1/4 inch seam is not important in this instance, nice - but not important as you are not trying to match pieces and seams with others. Instead, aim for slow sewing and continuous movement of fabric to get a smooth, even and gentle curve.

I have worked from left to right (above photo) to create my Making Waves fabric and used a discarded patched piece to finish off my project. The patchwork piece was my first attempt at using up my solid fabric scraps but it just wasn't working for me visually. I set it aside and started piecing together the wavy strips, then added the discarded patchwork back in to finish off my project. Waste nothing. My finished piece - after straightening the edges - measured approximately 25 inches x 18 inches.

I have pin basted the top with both batting (100% cotton batting) and a backing fabric, as you would a normal quilt. I then quilted closely spaced lines using a walking foot on my machine. Again, slow and steady is the best until you find your rhythm. Move the quilt sandwich whilst you stitch to gently go around the curves. You will quickly find a quilting rhythm and you will then be able to speed it up a little, but be sure to let your walking foot do the work for you, don't pull or push the quilt sandwich through the machine.  [I have used a stitch length of 3.4 on my machine. This is quite a long stitch and a personal preference. Adjust as you like]. I have color matched the top thread with the color of the fabric - sometimes switching around colors (see above- the yellow and orange fabrics that are alongside one another).

Once quilted I again trimmed and straightened the piece and over-locked the edges to secure the quilting stitches. I then turned my piece into a pillow cover with a zippered size seam.

Making Waves - Improvised / Free Hand Curves Pillow Cover
and matchstick quilting
24 inches x 17.5 inches
Listed for sale in my Etsy Store: Modern Waves Pillow Cover

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask by leaving a comment, and I will explain/clarify as required by reply to your comment. 

Happy Sewing,
Rita

RELEVANT LINKS:
More Red Pepper Quilts Tutorials
Red Pepper Quilts Etsy Store

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