Finally, I’m back.   I’ve been busy with autumn, my favorite season, and custom quilt-making.  These are quilts that I can’t show on line, at least at this time, which is another reason for my silence.

Do you find that you are always testing products?  It seems like I am testing with every quilt that I make.  This exciting photograph:

is just the result of another fabric test.  Any fabric that comes into my studio is tested for quality and to make sure the color will not run onto other fabrics.  I prefer to buy high quality fabric from local quilt shops.  However, in this case I needed a specific design that I could only find on-line.  Fortunately, the thread count appears high, quality good to excellent, and the black did not run onto the white fabric to which I attached it.

It is sliced to bits because I am having a problem with a new rotary cutter, so I used it for a cutting test as well.  We attempted to fix the rotary cutter, but it worked for only a few short swipes, and then the blade froze again.  I am pursuing the maker at this time.  I’ll have details once I determine how responsive the company is to product issues.

I tested some fusible interfacing as well recently.  I test it for fusibility, washability, and ability to keep the tee shirts from rolling, as I use this product for tee shirt quilts.

This is the front of the tee shirt with the interfacing on the back side.  As you can see none of these samples have puckered after numerous cold and warm water washings.

The curling of the tee shirt occurred only on the edge.  I had thought I would like the single square sample on the right because it is the midweight, Pellon 906F, but I didn’t.   I liked it least of all.  My go-to fusible interfacing for tee shirt quilts is the one on the top of the double sample, Pellon ES114, which is surprising because, as I hear, most people try to match the weight of the interfacing with the weight of the fabric and this is a very light interfacing.  Another benefit of the light interfacing is the tee shirt retains its softness.

So I’m off to do free motion, edge to edge quilting on a custom ordered baby quilt.  Happy  quilting!