- Simple cardboard and plastic,
who would've thought
that it could help you with your sewing?
It can help you get crisp corners on your binding,
help you choose your fabric
and save time on marking and measuring
and so much more.
So stick with me and I'll show you how to do it.
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Hi there!
I'm Karen Brown of Just Get It Done Quilts.
If you're new to my channel, I give you tips, tricks,
and strategies to help you make the quilt
that you want to make.
I'd like to thank Skill Share for sponsoring this video.
Simple cardboard and plastic,
most of this is upcycled.
I like to use old cereal boxes,
but you can use old greeting cards or just card stock.
For the plastic, sometimes I use Mylar sheets.
You can use cutting mats from the Dollar Store.
Or you can even use old plastic lids.
You want to use a material that is stiff enough
to hold its shape.
So like this.
But then when you roll it, it's pliable enough to not crack.
And in some of these instances,
you're not going to want it too thick.
This template, I have had in my tool box for over two years.
It's just as valuable as my expensive scissors.
I use it to mark the 45 on my binding strips,
but I also use it to get those crisp corners on my binding.
For this tool, you will need a strip of template,
whether it be cardboard or plastic, 2 1/2 inches thick.
And it should be at least five inches in length.
Mine is 12 inches.
You're going to measure in 2 1/2 inches from the right side
and mark a vertical line.
Then you are going to cut from the top of this line
down up to the bottom right corner.
Be sure to double check that this line is 45 degrees.
So first, I use this tool on my binding strip.
Because it's 2 1/2 inches wide,
I just line it on the bottom of my strip,
point in the corner and then I make sure
that the top strip is in line with that 2 1/2 inch mark.
And then I mark.
It makes fast work of a lot of binding strips.
Next I use it when I'm actually sewing on the binding.
I actually mark the edge of this tool
at the quarter inch mark and I use it
to mark where I need to stop.
Now to get that nice sharp corner,
you need to flip the fabric on a 45 degree.
Then fold it back perpendicular to the seam,
aligning that fold with the edge of the quilt.
Now it's fairly easy to get the top fabric to do this.
But it's much more difficult to get the bottom fabric
to play nicely.
So let's use this binding tool.
Align your template along the edge of the fabric
with the point in the corner of the quilt.
Now make your 45 degree fold over the edge of the template.
Now remove the tool and then we are going to place it
with the opposite side in the corner of the quilt,
so we are aligning the corner of the tool
with the corner of the quilt.
And then fold this back against the template.
I like to use a couple of clips here
to help hold it in place.
A couple along the side
and one in the corner of these folds.
And when you turn this inside out, it should be crisp.
Now on the other side, as you're turning it over,
if you're having any difficulty
getting that nice 45 degree fold,
use this tool again to tuck in that underside of that fabric
so it falls nice and crisply.
When using a paper piece pattern, you're constantly
folding that paper back and it's very hard,
on its own to get that line completely straight.
Simply take your template with a straight edge
and lie it along the line.
And fold the paper over this.
Not only does it give you a straight line,
but that extra profile gets a really nice edge
for my at a quarter ruler to butt up against,
for better and more accurate cutting.
And honestly, I use the exact same tool
that I used in step one for paper piecing.
So I guess it's a three-in-one tool.
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Wasting fabric just drives me crazy.
So when I saw this really cool tool that
Irene at Sugaridoo came up with, I had to share it.
It looks like this and it cuts down my wastage
from this to this, to this.
And how do you use it?
I'll let at Irene at Sugaridoo tell you how.
I'll put a link down in the notes to her video.
So how do you know what fabrics to put and where?
Having a set of cut-out templates
in different sizes and shapes will help.
I make mine out of cereal box cardboard.
I have a set of them in one inch, two inch,
three inch, five inch, 10 inch sizes.
I also have them in triangles and flying geese shapes.
Not only is it cheap and uprecycling,
the desaturated mid value colour
on the back side of the cereal box
doesn't compete with the colours in the fabric
so that beautiful big bold fabric
that you're admiring can look very different
cut down to a one inch size or a five inch size.
When you use these templates, you can see
whether your fabrics are directional
and if you're cutting multiple pieces
of the same fabric, will you get consistent results.
This way, when you audition your fabrics,
you can look at them with a more critical eye.
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Another thing that I have
a hard time dealing with is repetition.
So if I have to measure fabric more than twice
for marking, I'm thinking about a faster, easier way.
Sometimes it's marking lines, like I showed you before
in the binding strip tool.
Maybe it's a snowball block or even more complex marking
like I showed you in my video
for eight a time, Mary's triangles.
But sometimes you just need to mark points,
like in my "Stash Buster Four" video
where I had to mark a block at a certain height
just to keep a consistent line across the quilt.
So a good marking template requires two things.
Points are aligned for easy reference
and a notch, or edge for easy marking.
And the quilt that I made for my husband,
when I was quilting it,
I had to hit the centre of the block.
So I made this simple template
that aligned with the sides, so I could easily mark
the centre of the block that I could align
my quilting ruler to.
So there's all sorts of different places
where you can apply it to.
Just one more note here, when you're making templates
for marking, you need to know where your sew line is.
So normally when you're cutting your template,
you cut it perfectly on the sew line
and then you're drawn line is going to be
slightly to the side of this.
Where do you actually sew?
Do you sew on the line?
Do you sew to the left of the line?
Do you sew to the right of the line?
There's no exact answer for this
because it depends on the width of your marker.
It depends on the size of your needle
and your thread and your fabric.
So always do a test piece, so you can make adjustments
to ensure your accuracy.
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Sometimes you need a long edge, folded over nice and straight.
As when you're doing finished seams
on a table cloth or on table napkins.
Take a template with a straight edge.
The length of template that you're going to use for this
will depend on the length of your finished project.
If you are doing a really long straight edge,
you're going to want a longer template.
If you're working on small pieces or rounded edges,
you're going to want a tiny one.
I marked the depth of the fold that I'm looking for
on the template.
So on your ironing board, you're going to place
your template on the fabric with a ruler right next to it.
So your first fold, you'd want slightly smaller
than you second fold.
So if you're doing a quarter inch fold like I am,
you're going to want your first fold
to be just slightly less than that.
So maybe 3/16.
So you're going to mark on the ruler 3/16
and butt your template up against it
and then you're going to do a finger fold,
and then place your iron on top.
Now be careful, if you're using plastic,
you'll want to make sure that this does not melt
under the heat of the iron.
Once the whole edge is pressed,
repeat it again with your ruler at a quarter of an inch.
When you fold the fabric over,
it should touch the line on your template.
Finger press with your fingers,
then press with your iron.
It makes a nice clean edge.
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It can help you stuff pillows and toys.
This one's a great tip that a subscriber shared.
Roll a template into a tube,
put that in the hole of your pillow
and put your stuffing down here.
It will hold the opening round,
make the job faster and a lot less messy.
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Applique shapes.
Cut the template plastic to the size that you need.
Cut the fabric 1/8 to 3/16 larger than your template.
Then wrap your fabric over the edges of the template.
Finger-press it to make it conform to the shape,
then sew.
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For some of us that use wire-racking,
sometimes you have things that just fall through the cracks.
A piece of cardboard or plastic will keep the shelf flat
so you don't lose anything.
So many subscribers shared this one with me.
Take template plastic, cut it into the shape
of the bottom of the bag.
Now you can insert it while you're constructing it
or you can just simply put it in the bottom of the bag.
This will give the bag more structure and strength.
Well, that's my 10.
Let me know in the comments below
whether you've got anymore.
Don't forget to check out my Dollar Store hacks
and five sewing hacks with masking tape.
I'll put links to both of them in the notes below.
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Take care and I'll see yeah next time.