Different Fabric Types... One Quilt.
 

I've been asked to make a quilt, actually 3 quilts from my grandmother's scarfs. They are mostly slick, rayon type fabrics. I'll be adding a cotton or poly/cotton blend to make enough fabric. The pattern I've chosen is a paper-pieced Pickle Dish. Any suggestions, hints, advice would be greatly appreciated please.

Starch will be your friend...it will give some body to the thinner, slick fabrics. I like to spray then iron multiple times instead of just 1 coat. I also like glue basting any points that need to line up.

You are braver than I am.

Or me. I've done extensive garment sewing, a lot with silks and rayons. I actually pieced on garment out of rayon batiks. It was very simple pattern with not matching points or corners. It was still tough. While I love to paper piece, I can't imagine doing it with silky scarf fabrics. You might want to use a fusible stabilizer on them. It will help a little.

I was thinking 'lightweight fusible stabilizer' too....

I have not done it, but have often thought it would be much the same as a Crazy Quilt, and I have seen a Crazy Quilt that was not very big, but sold for big, big bucks.

I too vote for fusible, lite weight, non woven interfacing. Pickle dish! Braver than me!

You're a VERY brave person, is all I can say, but I do wish you the best of luck.

Can you get pieces of fabric similar to your grandmother's scarves to practice on?

Lite fusible

Before you cut, I would practice first. If you look up directions for how to use neckties, that might help. The silk ties are fine and slippery also. You'll definitely need interfacing. Also look up bandana quilts. Pintrest might show you how to just sew them together in squares and not try to cut them. I would think raveling would be a big problem.

Terial Magic instead of starch.

Lightweight fusible stabilizer- recommended for rayons- is really going to help. Fuse the stabilizer on Before cutting any of your rayons. You need one for rayons because one for cottons will need too much heat and might melt your rayon.

I'd not thought of any of these suggestions. I learned something new, the Terial Magic, I'm excited to try this. The Pickle Dish pattern I choose is the 'blade' version, not the triangle version. Thank y'all so much for helping!!!

I think that is an ambitious project. Post us a pic when finished.

Definitely use stabilizer on the silky fabrics! That should "equalize" the fabrics some. I would make sure it is a lite weight one. Good luck!

Are these to be quilts to use or quilts to just look at?

I would use a pattern that allowed me to use the scarves as they are if possible. Raveling could be a huge problem. A fusible interfacing will help that and the make them somewhat less slippery, but they are still going to be a bit hard to work with. I would also get some similar scarves. Maybe from a resale or garage sales and practice a bit before I committed to a specific pattern or technique.

They would make an awesome crazy quilt and it would be much more forgiving than other patterns.

My Grandmother had three daughters. There is to be one for each of them. One daughter may hang it as display but I think the other 2 will put them away.

They why not just give them some of the scarves? They could use them or not - or display them on a mirror or something.

Who asked you to make the quilts? How big did they want them?

Did the person asking have ANY idea of what is involved?

And - it is okay to say "I've thought this over again - and I don't think it is something that will work out well."

But - I am just speaking for myself - I don't like working with those types of fabrics for quilty types of projects.