miniature quilts
 

While at a BoM class last week (my first class ever) the instructor/shop owner was showing some miniature quilts he had made. These quilts were all maybe 6"x8" and were pretty detailed. He said he will be teaching a class on them, but it looks like it won't happen for a couple months and it will most likely be during my workday... but for the first time ever I am tempted to take a day off work for a sewing class! I am really intrigued by these tiny quilts.

I have been googling mini quilts in my meager spare time lately, but I haven't really found much to help me yet. Or maybe I have found too much, and am just having trouble sorting through it all to find what I am really looking for. It seems a lot of the "mini quilts" I am finding are really just small quilts... I want to find patterns or foundation paper templates for tiny quilts. Should I instead be looking for doll quilts? Even though the doll quilts I saw still looked larger than what he had made.

If any of you guys know a good site or book for teaching the techniques for making teeny tiny quilts, please let me know. Or if you know an online shop that sells foundation papers for them, or patterns.

Thanks!!

Everything is the same as making a full sized quilt ... just smaller!

If you are wanting to do paper pieced minis, then just use regular PP patterns and reduce their size down to whatever size you want to work with. For non-PP minis, again just scale down your pattern pieces.

Here's my first mini .... and it was also my first Irish Chain ..............
http://www.quiltingboard.com/picture...h-t189484.html

I took classes from Sally Collins. Amazing techniques. Miniatures are different from a small version of a large quilt. Her book Mastering Precision Piecing is worth the purchase. Carol Doak also has some paper pieced miniatures. Google miniature quilts and you will find lots of info.

If you enjoyed the class you took and the instructor was one you found helpful and knowledgeable, you might find out a lot of useful information at the class. There might be some special techniques that you might find helpful. I suggest you treat yourself to a one day vacation and take the class. Like the saying "a picture is worth a thousand words" I think sometimes a live experience might be worth the time. And if you have questions there is a knowledgeable person right there to answer, plus you might also get some useful info from others in the class.

I took a mini-quilt class once. The finished 4 patch and 9 patch blocks ended up 1 inch, so it was definitely some different technique. We used a tear away stabilizer to assemble the tiny pieces, and the seam allowances were a scant 1/8 inch. They suggested using a flannel instead of batting. One key thing is to find interesting fabrics that have designs or textures small enough to read well at such a tiny size.

To be honest, I found it pretty tedious piecing, and I never actually finished my mini. I do think they are intriguing though.

I am a miniaturist and if you'd like to check out my stuff you can search Rhonda on QB and find alot of my tutorials. I use shortcut methods I created that allows you to make small tiny stuff without using the tiny pieces. I use templates usually 1 1/2" or 1 1/4" or 1" acrylic templates that I have available. I'd be more than happy to show you how to make htem the way I do.

This is not paper piecing.

I make checkbook covers bookmarks yes the 5" x8" mini quilts keychains with 1" hsts and more
7" x 4 1/2"
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These bookmarks are 7" x 2 1/2"
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Coin purses are 5" x 5"
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There used to be a Miniature Quilts magazine and I loved it. Maybe you could search some out on ebay or at your library?

You could spend a lot of time looking through this blog. http://makingminiaturequilts.blogspot.ca/

http://www.quiltingboard.com/picture...s-t110405.html Check out this info, wow!

Rhonda, do you have a name for the center block on the checkbook cover you showed here? And the last coin purse block? I used something similar for a large block quilt, and couldn't find a name for the block I used.

OH Rhonda, those are beautiful! You are really good!!

Dina

If you go to Home and then scroll down below the first section there is a bar with the link for User Defined Sections. You will find sections here that are managed by members. I have one for Miniature Quilts. I add any miniature quilt threads I find to this section so you can find all them in one place. I think I also left this one open so anyone can add a thread to the list.

You can find alot of good info and inspiration here from members who make minis.

http://www.quiltingboard.com/tags/mi...+quilting.html

the last 4 sections are mine and you will find all my tutorials and pictures of the things I make there.

Also if you are on a thread that is about a mini chances are I added it to the mini section. if so you can scroll down on that thread and at the bottom you will find a tag for the mini section. you can click on that tag and it will take you to that section.

Glad to see others enjoy miniatures.

I love miniatures, but have not made one... when I finish a few overdue UFOs I intend to go to Rhonda's tutorials and give it a try! That said, if there was a class taught by someone who I'd already found to be a good instructor, I would definitely take a day off and take the class!! Thanks everyone for talking about minis!!!!

thanks for all the great info... I am going to have fun looking into all of this! I am becoming more excited about minis and am probably going to take a vacation day to attend the class!

Never, ever in my whole life, have I been tempted to do a miniature. Good luck!

Sp romille did you take the class??? Have you tried any minis? I'd love to see any pics of what you make!

I LOVE making miniature quilts!

I second the suggestion to check out George Siciliano. He does amazing work, and has beautiful patterns for sale on his site. I own several of them, but haven't had a chance to make one yet.

Cindy Edgerton makes minis and sells paper-piecing patterns. Here is her website. I made one of her patterns, a diamond log cabin. The logs are 1/4" wide.

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And, as another poster said, you can always shrink regular patterns down. Here's one I made to be included in a fundraiser for a local hospital. It's a feathered star, and it finished at 5".

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Romille - what was the name of the guy who made minis and was teaching the class?

Those are awesome! I am definitely checking out those sites. I am totally in love with that diamond log cabin.

Danny Goux

They still haven't scheduled it! They said it would probably be in June, but I still don't see it on the calendar. I will be sure to bug them again or a date next time I am in the shop.

I just ordered the Itty Bitty Feathered Star and the Diamond Log Cabin... so excited!