Galaxy Quilt Secrets Revealed: Quilting & Binding

Care to space out with me? In today's installment outlining techniques used to create the Galaxy Quilt, I'm be orbiting the topics of quilting and binding. Check out my previous posts in case you missed them.

Quilting

For the quilting, I used spiral variation using a matching thread. 50 wt was used for the top and 80 wt was used in the bobbin. I left the planets unquilted so they would pop, but stitched around them to define the shape of the planets on the back of the quilt.

Instead of ending the center of the spiral in a u-turn or a point before changing direction, I made a circle before coming out of the spiral.

If I had a tight space to fill, I would use S-curves or C-curves.

Faux Flange Binding

To create the faux flange binding, I cut the flange fabric 5/8" wide and the main fabric 2 1/2" wide. I connected the 5/8" strips end to end, and did the same with the 2 1/2' wide strips these end to end. I sewed the 5/8" strip to the 2 1/2" strip.

 I trimmed the seam allowance to 1/8" to reduce bunk using an Add An Eighth and pressed it toward the flange fabric. I then pressed in half with the wrong sides together. I machine sewed the binding to the front with the flange portion facing the top. I hand-stitched the binding to the back using 80 wt Aurifil.

Thank you for joining me, and learning my little secrets. Make sure to subscribe via e-mail or your favorite blog reader as I will have an inside look at Quilt Market and more tutorials coming soon.

Galaxy Quilt Secrets Revealed: 3-Dimensional Details & Embellishment

You've probed, and I'm going to spill all the information. (Yes, my alien friends and those from my native planet, my puns have reached cosmic proportions.) Today, I'll  be sharing methods for adding 3-D and embellished details to my Galaxy Quilt that first appeared on the Aurifil blog as part of the Slice & Stitch Challenge sponsored by OLFA and Aurifil.

3-Dimensional Details & Embellishment

To create the pleats in the striped planets, I pressed a strip in half with the wrong sides together. I lined the raw edges of this strip in between two strips of a different color with their right sides facing and sewed at 1/4".

To create a planetary ring, I cut a strip the desired width multipled by 2 plus 1/2", by the desired width plus 1". Using a Clover Hot Ruler, I pressed each short end over 1/2".

Then I folded wrong sides together and pressed in half lengthwise. I took a planet block and sliced it down the middle. Then I sandwiched the strip in between the two planet halves with all the raw edges lined up. I made sure the outer edges of the planet matched up and sewed the layers together with a 1/4" seam.

To add details to the moon to match the fabric, I used a Fabrico marker.

There are many permanent fabric marker options. I suggest not using a regular Sharpie as these bleed when washed.

Galaxy Quilt Secrets Revealed: Paper-Piecing

If you are new here, and come in peace, I'm so glad to have you. You may want to check out my previous posts about the Galaxy Quilt here and on the Aurifil blog. Today I'm going to share some pointers pertaining to paper-piecing.

Resizing Paper-Pieced Units

When resizing paper-pieced units, set the scale to whatever percentage you desire. Since I wanted a 6" block instead of a 12" one, I set the scale to 50%. This will make the seam allowance 1/8", which is not what I want. Therefore, regardless of resizing ratio, cut a seam allowance that is 1/4" when you cut out each unit. Use the cut edge as a guide for seam allowance while ignoring the printed seam allowance line.

Matching Seams and Fussy Cutting Paper-Pieced Units

Spoiler Alert: The key to matching points on my 6" star blocks is a glue pen. I used the Bohin brand one (though any thin-tipped glue pen should work. It twists upward as shown in the video.

I ran the edge of the glue pen within the seam allowance. Then I finger pressed the seam allowances together with the units open enough to match the star points.



I heat set the seams to dry the glue, sewed as usual, and pressed open.

Since I didn't want a bunch of half planets floating in space, I decided to be intentional about how I positioned the fabric within the larger paper-pieced sections.

To accomplish this, I laid the fabric face down and positioned the paper units so planets would be intact. Holding the fabric up to a glass window or light can help if a fabric is darker. A lightbox would be fantastic for this. When the desired positioning is achieved, I used a glue stick to adhere the paper to the wrong side of the fabric.

An alternative is tracing the section on template material or a dollar store cutting mat, adding seam allowance, and using this as a template. Make sure to flip the template over, as the process of paper-piecing reverses everything.

Now, I'll throw a few general suggestions into the mix. I love using an Add-A-Quarter Plus ruler. It has a side for folding back the paper, and another with a groove that hugs the fold of the paper so you can cut a 1/4" without actually lining up the ruler and measuring. Confession: Coordinating things makes my heart happy, so I'm all 💕👀 over the pink Add-A-Quarter Plus paired with my pink OLFA Splash.

I prefer to do Step 1 with all of my units, chaining them through the machine, before doing Step 2 with all of my units, and so on. This means less running around the sewing room, less change of a piece flittering to the ground to be lost forever, and a greater chance all the units will be ready to be pieced together at the same time.

When I paper-piece really smallish things, I use a 1/4" seam, but then trim it down to 1/8" to reduce bulk. Sewing with the 1/8" seam is living dangerously since you can end up having the seam allowance disappear entirely if anything shuffles.

Galaxy Quilt Secrets Revealed: Reverse Appliqué

In case you missed my previous Galaxy Quilt post, I'll bring you up to (light)speed. I shared my Slice and Stitch Challenge project on the Aurifil blog, and made several promises to detail the process behind the finish. Keeping true to my word, today I'm sharing a look at reverse appliqué.

Reverse Appliqué

I began using the OLFA Circle Cutter to cut the largest circle possible from the fabric I pieced together, or set the guide on the Circle Cutter to the measurement I desired.

Slide the measurement on the OLFA Circle Cutter 1/4" smaller (closer to the handle and blade) and cut a circle out from the center of a square of double layered and pre-ironed freezer paper that is bigger than the circle.

Next I slid the measurement on the OLFA Circle Cutter 1/4" smaller for a second time. This is 1/2" smaller than the measurement I used when I cut the planet. I cut a circle into the background fabric. I pressed the waxy side of the freezer paper with the hole onto the wrong side of the background so there is a 1/4" gap between the background and the freezer paper on all sides.

I snipped slits into the seam allowance of the background fabric while still leaving the distance of a few threads between the slit and the freezer paper.

Apply glue stick or pen to the visible seam allowance of the background fabric. Finger press the background seam allowance to the non-waxy side of the freezer paper before pressing to dry the glue. Then gently pull the fabric from the freezer paper and press again. Apply glue to the seam allowance of the wrong side of the background.

Lay the planet circle over the opening to cover the hole with the right side down (unlike the picture above) and toward the wrong side of the background (as shown above).

Stitch the planet to the background using an 80 wt Aurifil thread (wooden spool & fine thickness) that matches the background and a zipzag stitch with a length of 2 and a width of 1.

Stitches should alternate being on the background and just barely on the planet. Reduce the length to .3 to start and stop.

Galaxy Quilt Secrets Revealed: Invisible Machine Appliqué

Welcome to those dropping by from the Aurifil blog! If not, check out my guest post on AURIbuzz where I was challenged by OLFA and Aurifil in the Slice & Stitch Challenge, a monthly event during which one Aurifil Artisan and one OLFA Ambassador each share how they put an OLFA tool and a specific weight of Aurifil thread to work.

I had the privilege of using 80 wt Aurifil and the OLFA Rotary Circle Cutter.

Don't tell anyone, but this was really not challenging. Both are soooooo easy to use. Getting them out of my tight grasp after I've experienced playing with these awesome notions in conjunction--- now that would be a challenge!

As promised, I'll divulge some the techniques I explored during the process of creating my Galaxy Quilt, and how you can apply these methods to your own projects. Today I'll be sharing strategies for invisible machine appliqué. Over the course of the coming weeks, I'll be adding weekly posts explaining more of the techniques, so be sure to following Quilting Mod, or subscribe by e-mail. Before I give you the scoop, here are my astronauts making the foreign planet inhabitable by introducing OLFA and Aurifil.

Invisible Machine Appliqué

The Galaxy Quilt gave me an opportunity to try methods from Machine Finished Hand Applique with Beth Ferrier on Bluprint, as recommended by Nancy Arseneault when I admired her beautiful work at Quilt Fiesta. Beth has an out-ot-print book, Hand Applique by Machine, also. I outfitted myself with the gear, which included foundation stabilizer, turning rods, tweezers and a glue pen with refill. Budget alternatives are freezer paper instead of foundation stabilizer, a precision screwdriver set or chopsticks instead of the rods, economical tweezers, and a school glue stick.

When using freezer paper, I tore two identical lengths and ironed one on top the other with the waxy side downward. The double layer is stiffer and preshrunk so it doesn't get smaller after I apply it to the fabric with the heat of an iron. I then used the OLFA Circle Cutter to cut a circle the exact size I'd like my planet. I adjust the OLFA Circle Cutter 1/4" larger using the guage to cut my fabric. I pressed the freezer paper circle in the center of the wrong side of the planet fabric with the waxy side toward the fabric. When I used the foundation stabilizer, I applied the stabilizer circle to the wrong side of the fabric with glue stick, and used a dry iron to dry the glue. While I've heard there's a fusible side to the foundation stabilizer, I found nothing to  indicate this.

To assist the seam allowance in turning under without creating lumpy pleats, I cut slits in the seam allowance almost to the stabilizer or freezer paper, but not quite. 

Run glue around the seam allowance, one small section at a time, so it doesn't dry before you get it turned over. If you have the turning rods, I recommend using the forked end to hold the foundation in place near the seam you're turning. Use the slanted side of the other rod to push the seam allowance over a bit at a time.

Spinning the appliqué shape on an OLFA Rotating Mat is helpful so that getting an ergonomic angle doesn't require lifting the shape from the mat and repositioning repeatedly.

I found the foundation stabilizer to be less stiff than freezer paper. At times, the stabilizer would fold onto itself and make the outer curve flatten into a straight line. The freezer paper does not have this problem; however, it must be removed unlike the stabilizer, which is meant to remain in the quilt and will turn into fiber as the quilt is washed in the future.



If the use of glue was liberal, it can be slightly challenging to remove the entirely of the freezer paper without fraying the edge of the fabric. Press the edges of the planet over again after removing the freezer paper.

Stitch the planet to the background using an 80 wt Aurifil thread that matches the planet and a zigzag stitch with a length of 2 and a width of 1. Stitches should alternate being on the planet and just barely on the background. Reduce the length to .3 to start and stop. If freezer paper was used, I recommend using a stabilizer on the wrong side of the background.

To add a ring to a small planet, the shape can be traced onto the foundation stabilizer with a Frixion pen and cut out. Glue to the desired fabric and trim 1/4" around the shape.

The ring only needs to extend 1/4" behind each side of the planet since it will be hidden underneath the planet.

Turn the edges that won't be hidden by the planet over using the tools or a precision screwdriver and/or chopstick.

I'll be back next week with more details on the techniques involved in the creation of the Galaxy Quilt, so be sure to follow via e-mail or your favorite blog reader.