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5 essential tips for quickly finishing a baby quilt

by Claire Haillot

Have you figured out the size of your quilt based on my post yesterday? Even if the recipient is little, it’s important to get the right quilt size for maximum satisfaction. This week, I’m showing you how to make a baby using PFAFF creative icon, stay tuned for that.

In this post, I want to talk about the 5 essential tips for quickly finishing a baby quilt. A topic equally as important in the process.

Baby quilts are easy to make with the PFAFF creative icon.

Baby quilts are easy to make with the PFAFF creative icon.

I know the stress involved in making a quilt for a friend who’s having a baby and you’re on a time crunch to making her a baby quilt. I remember my surprise when two of my friends said they were expecting twins! If this is happening in your life, these 5 essential tips for quickly finishing a baby quilt are very useful.

The ultimate quick finish baby quilt to me is a Rag Quilt!

The ultimate quick finish baby quilt to me is a Rag Quilt!

1 Go for bold colors

For a long time, we believed that newborns could only see in black and white. New research suggests that babies see about 5% of an adult’s visual acuity. What does this mean for us quilters? Go for bold colors to keep them looking. Researchers recommend the following colors: red, green, blue, purple, and “yellowish brown.” But remember to have a contrast between your fabrics so that they can see the geometric forms in the design.

I remember how happy I was to see my kids outlining the shapes and quilting on their quilts when they were babies! Whether it was when exercising on their tummies or just sitting in the chair. It kept them busy and intrigued.

My kids were always intrigued by their quilts and would stare at the fabrics, geometric forms and quilting.

My kids were always intrigued by their quilts and would stare at the fabrics, geometric forms and quilting.

Once a baby is 6 months old, they pretty much have the same visual acuity as an adult, you can go for more faded and light colored fabrics.

2 Keep it small

As I shared my thoughts on the various sizes to make a baby quilt yesterday, I want to highlight today a 20” x 30” size for a baby quilt as a gift. It’s really perfect for a newborn. And if you stick to that size, you’ll be able to make it in time for the birth as opposed to their graduation!

3 Leave some negative space

Another idea is to leave a portion of the quilt without any piecing. I have found that some parents were nervous that the seams of a quilt could be uncomfortable for their newborn. So I started leaving negative space in a quilt. It also enables me to finish the project a bit faster. Keep in mind that the average height of a newborn is 20”.

If you’re not sure how much negative space to include in your quilt, buy a newborn pajama and use it as a gauge for the length and width of the negative space. This will serve double duty as you can gift the little pajama with the quilt!

Here's an improv quilt I'm working on for my niece, the negative space adds to the design.

Here’s an improv quilt I’m working on for my niece, the negative space adds to the design.

4 Don’t use solids

I know that the modern movement is all about solids, but I do suggest going for another texture as baby quilts will get dirty quickly and sometimes stains can leave a mark which will stick out like a sore thumb in the quilt forever!

Might I suggest you look into the Canvas collection by Northcott Fabrics? They have nice bold colors that are almost solids, but the texture is perfect to hide any stain.

5 Keep it natural

As the quilt is meant for a baby, I’d like to state the obvious! Keep it all natural with cotton, which includes flannel of course. From the fabric for the quilt top to the backing, batting and threads!  Keep in mind that the quilt will be washed on many occasions, I’d say at least once a week, and it will be in close proximity of a newborn.

I hope these 5 essential tips for making a baby quilt have helped you figure out your next baby project. Looking forward to seeing what you made!

And don’t forget to put a label on your finished project!

You can retrieve the PFAFF creative icon User Guide on the screen for a quick reference.

You can retrieve the PFAFF creative icon User Guide on the screen for a quick reference.

I learned over the weekend how to embroider my name on a quilt using the PFAFF creative icon. I didn’t even have to get the user’s manual. It was all at my fingertips, on the screen!

I never thought it would be this easy!

It's easy to sign your quilts using the PFAFF creative icon

It’s easy to sign your quilts using the PFAFF creative icon

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s blog as I’ll show you a quick and easy baby quilt pattern using the PFAFF creative icon. Its features make the task of piecing and quilting pleasant and easy. See you then.

This is part 2 of 5 in this series.
Go back to part 1: Does size matter? Helpful tips to choose ideal size for a baby quilt

Go to part 3: Easy baby quilt pattern you can make in a day (Part 1)

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2 comments

Margaret Sweete April 24, 2018 - 10:19 am

Hi
I had thought that Raggy quilts are not good for infants due to a potential choking hazard. Older children that are not chewing on stuff fine but not for the very little. Our local new natal unit requests
All Cotton quilts with all cotton threads machine quilted and machine bound are there requests they stand up to the machine washing and sterilizing required and are safe for baby. That’s the “ receipe” I follow but I like your size and idea recommendations for new Aunties and Grandmas

Reply
Claire Haillot April 25, 2018 - 12:21 pm

Hi Margaret,
Thanks for your comment. And you are right! It’s not a good idea to leave a child under 3 years of age unattended with a Rag quilt. I had made the mention not to let a baby 0-6months sleep with a quilt to prevent SIDS but forgot to add this information for the rags. I have always used rags as floor mats in winter to ensure my babies would stay warm and to change diapers when I had nothing else handy (they do absorb a lot). In both of these cases, I was always right by their side. I do emphasize that when giving a quilt to a new mom, we need to let her know to never leave a baby unattended with a quilt.

Reply

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