by GillyMac | Jul 7, 2021 | cake, general, GillyMac Community
Cooking and baking are a large part of my life. For that reason, it was always likely that any business I started would have an element of cake included. Since starting GillyMac eight years ago, I must have made hundreds of cakes, traybakes and biscuits. Over the rest...
by GillyMac | Jun 16, 2021 | Beginners, blog, Patchwork, Quilting, Sewing Made Simple
My criteria as to what makes a quilt pattern suitable for a beginner is The project shouldn’t be too big The pattern should have lots of diagrams and simple steps to follow or be accompanied by a good video. The project should teach you something new, but not too...
by GillyMac | Jun 9, 2021 | blog, general, Quilting, Sewing Made Simple
Stabilising a quilt happens once the wadding and backing are sandwiched onto the quilt top and held temporarily in place by glue, pins, tack or thread. Stabilising the quilt is the starting part of the quilting process. What is Stabilising A Quilt? Stabilisation is a...
by GillyMac | Jun 2, 2021 | Beginners, blog, free, Patchwork, Patchwork Block, Quilting, Sewing Made Simple, Tutorial
In last week’s blog, we learned how to make Half Square Triangle Blocks. This week I have written an easy baby quilt pattern using them. My Super Quilt Baby Quilt is a simple quilt that is a winner every time. Each block is half colourful and half plain. You can...
by GillyMac | May 19, 2021 | Beginners, Patchwork, Quilting, Sewing Made Simple
Quilters have been layering and basting quilts for centuries, and as there are lots of different methods. One thing to be clear about is that layering the quilt and temporarily holding it together before sewing, typically referred to as basting, are two different...
by GillyMac | May 12, 2021 | GillyMac Doodle Challenge, Quilting, Sewing Made Simple, Uncategorised
Let’s get stuck in quickly to solving these problems. Free Motion Quilting (FMQ) does not need to get complicated, and the common issues that arise are easy to fix. You can find details of the set up for FMQ I recommend here. The most common Free Motion Quilting...
by GillyMac | May 5, 2021 | Doodles, Quilting, Sewing Made Simple
Doodle quilting is both a method of learning free motion designs and a way to stitch the patterns out. With doodle quilting, you will learn your designs with pen and paper first. Your brain learns the patterns by doodling them repeatedly. As a child in class, I would...
by GillyMac | Apr 28, 2021 | Beginners, Quilting, Sewing Made Simple
Start free-motion quilting by following my simple steps will make it easy. I have listened to many speakers who make it sound incredibly complicated. As a beginner, an essential activity for you to master is setting up and practising sewing regularly. The Foot To...
by GillyMac | Apr 21, 2021 | Beginners, blog, Quilting, Sewing Made Simple
Following on from last week’s blog, I am focusing on starting your quilting journey with your walking foot this week. Here is a list of my favourite beginner-friendly walking foot quilting designs for you to practise. The practice session aims to get you...
