Skip to content

Top Navigation

AllPeopleQuilt.com AllPeopleQuilt.com
  • Quilt patterns
  • Bags, pillows & gifts
  • Holiday quilts
  • How to quilt
  • Tips
  • Quilting News
  • Magazines & More
  • Shopping

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Newsletter
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore AllPeopleQuilt.com

AllPeopleQuilt.com AllPeopleQuilt.com
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Quilts for Kids

      Expectant mothers and little ones will love these handmade crib quilts! From cuddly baby quilts to quilted play throws, these quilts will be treasured for years to come. Read More Next
    • Free Fat Quarter-Friendly Quilt Patterns

      Fat quarters are fun to collect and even more fun to use! Get free quilt patterns that will make it easy for you to put your fat quarters to good use. Read More Next
    • Free Bag Patterns

      Purses, totes, and shoulder bags--we have all the free bag patterns you need! You’ll find more than 50 ideas for stylish accessories. Read More Next
  • Quilt patterns

    Quilt patterns

    See all Quilt patterns
    • Baby quilts
    • Bed quilts
    • Quilt Blocks
    • Quilt throws
    • Table runners
    • Wall quilts
  • Bags, pillows & gifts

    Bags, pillows & gifts

    See all Bags, pillows & gifts
    • Bags and purses
    • Gifts
    • Pillows
    • Pincushions
  • Holiday quilts

    Holiday quilts

    See all Holiday quilts
    • Christmas
    • Halloween
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Fall
    • Winter
  • How to quilt

    How to quilt

    See all How to quilt
    • Quilting basics
    • Cutting
    • Piecing
    • Finishing
    • Organization
    • Machine quilting
    • Hand quilting
    • Appliqué
    • Embellishing
    • Videos
  • Tips
  • Quilting News
  • Magazines & More

    Magazines & More

    See all Magazines & More
    • American Patchwork & Quilting
    • Quilts and More
    • Quilt Sampler
    • One Million Pillowcase Challenge
    • Quilting podcast
    • Quilt designers
    • Pattern Corrections
  • Shopping

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Newsletter
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow us

  1. Home Chevron Right
  2. Magazines & More Chevron Right
  3. Quilt designers Chevron Right
  4. Designers' Favorite Quilting Notions

Designers' Favorite Quilting Notions

June 14, 2013
Skip gallery slides
Pin
We asked quilting experts what notion or gadget they couldn't live without. Use these tips, gadgets, and notions to help you with your next quilting project.
Start Slideshow

1 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Design

My design wall. (a design wall, pictured) -Valori Wells

Electric Quilt 6 has changed the way I plan quilts. I love that you can scan fabrics into your fabric library so that you can play with the placement of fabrics before you start cutting and sewing. -Tammy Johnson

I always use the little green reducer. It helps me balance all of those colors and textures that I use. -Linda Lum DeBono

My iPod Nano - whether I listen to music or books on CD, my iPod keeps me focused and happy. -Mary Sorensen

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

1 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Irons

My favorite iron-one of those Rowenta Steam Generators (pictured)-allows me to press dry and then set the piece with a shot of steam. -Carrie Nelson of Miss Rosie's Co.

I have a Rowenta tank steam iron...another best thing that I bought! -Avis Shirer of Joined at the Hip

A wooden iron (pictured), I use it for paper piecing because I don't like to get up to iron every little seam when paper piecing. -Cori Derksen of Blue Meadow Designs

I could never live without my iron. I even travel with one! I press every step of the way. There is no way you can end up with perfect piecing, great appliqué, or a nice flat quilt top with out pressing each step of the way. I could live without my sewing machine but never my iron! -Cynthia Tomaszewski of Simple Pleasures

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

2 of 10

3 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Starch

Niagara spray starch (pictured) in the green bottle (not the can). It's great. -Alice Berg

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

3 of 10

Advertisement

4 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Cutting

I love the Bias Tool (pictured). It gives me the confidence to cut stripe fabric for binding. -Roseann Meehan Kermes

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

4 of 10

5 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Templates

I wish I'd known about template stamps (pictured) 30 years ago. I wouldn't hand piece without them, now. -Cindy Blackberg

Putting a loop of tape or double-faced tape on the back of a template. It's helped us to cut more precisely without the template slipping. -Bill Kerr and Weeks Ringle of FunQuilts

Freezer paper-It's inexpensive, accessible and perfect for making templates and pattern pieces. -Amy Butler

Freezer paper-It can be used in so many ways. -Alex Anderson

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

5 of 10

6 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Bias Tape Makers

We love the Clover Bias Tape maker tool (pictured) which we use to make binding. The Clover Binding Tool helps us bind totally by machine. Our quilts are machine washed and dried and the binding has to be very durable so the machine stitching aids in that. -Bill Kerr and Weeks Ringle of FunQuilts

The fastest and easiest way to make bias vines for appliqué. -Cynthia Tomaszewski of Simple Pleasures

You can make bias tape with this tool in less than 30 seconds! -Joanna Figueroa of Fig Tree Quilts

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

6 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Marking Tools

Chalk marker-I usually mark lines as I quilt, then dust them away. -Alice Berg

I really like the Clover marking pen that you can use on dark fabric. -Mabeth Oxenreider

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

7 of 10

8 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Needles & Pins

Clover Needle Threader (pictured)-My eyes don't work like they used to and it saves time and frustration when threading my little needles. -Mary Lou Wiedman

With a needle threader, I can thread ANYTHING! -Pat Sloan

I love my magnetic pincushion. I don't have to even glance at putting my pins away. I simply toss my pins in the general direction of the pincushion, and it grabs them every time. -Myra Harder of Blue Meadow Designs

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

8 of 10

9 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Appliqué

Toothpick-turn appliqué (pictured): I learned this great appliqué method from my dear friend, Laurene Sinema. Use a round toothpick to turn the ends under rather than a slick needle. Let the toothpick rest between your lips to gather a little moisture - that's the magic of this technique. Try it I think you will like stitching with a toothpick too! -Renée Plains

YLI silk thread is so thin (yet strong!) that it sinks into the fabric hides the stitches. -Joanna Figueroa of Fig Tree Quilts

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

9 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Seams and Binding

Fork pins (pictured) have changed the way I join seams. -Roseann Meehan Kermes

I use hair clips to hold binding when I am hand sewing it down to the back of the quilt. No more pins sticking me. I only use three-one where I begin which stays on the quilt until the last stitch of binding is ready to be done. Two holding the binding where I'm sewing. As I remove one, I put it back on beyond the other one. -Lila Taylor Scott

My Binding Miter Tool because I can cut separate binding for each side of my quilt, insuring that parallel sides are the same length and THEN miter perfect corners on my bindings. -Jackie Robinson of Animas Quilts

  • Tips from Quilt Designers and Teachers

10 of 10

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 10 Design
2 of 10 Irons
3 of 10 Starch
4 of 10 Cutting
5 of 10 Templates
6 of 10 Bias Tape Makers
7 of 10 Marking Tools
8 of 10 Needles & Pins
9 of 10 Appliqué
10 of 10 Seams and Binding

Share options

Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message
AllPeopleQuilt.com

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Content Licensing

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Allpeoplequilt is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.allpeoplequilt.com

View image

Designers' Favorite Quilting Notions
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.