I am not a quilter/tree skirt help?????

[stashpanache]

Hi,

I am making a tree skirt.  The top and bottom are triangular wedges sewn together to make a circle.  The top pieces are sewn together except for the ends.  I have not made it into a complete circle yet.

The pattern says to sew the batting to the bottom wedges then sew all the wedges together for the bottom, except the ends.

Then, sew the top to the bottom right sides together and turn it through the trunk end.

I do not know how to stipple, echo stitch or anything like that.

It seems to me if I do it this way, the top will sort of float on top of the bottom and might be yucky.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what I could do?  I am going to sew some ribbon over the seam where the top pieces connect to the border on the top.  So, the top and bottom would be connected there if I do it after I do the sandwich.

Oh dear.  I am SO out of my element......Being a garment sewer and fairly unfamiliar with batting etc.

Stash

[LauraTS]

Could you stitch in the ditch where the segments of the skirt meet? I agree that it might be nicer to have the top and bottom connected more. Or you could tie it at a few points if you think the stitching would look bad.

I made a tree skirt a while ago and I didn't use batting at all. I just made a top and bottom, sewed them together inside out leaving a space for turning, turned it and pressed, then stitched in the ditch around all of the quilt blocks and the edges. It wasn't super-puffy but I thought it looked perfectly fine without the batting - or you could include it, and still do it the sew-and-turn way.

[Laurie H]

Stash, I can't say that I like your directions at all.  I've made a number of tree skirts and I treat them all like a regular quilt.  I sandwich the entire thing after the top is pieced, do all my quilting, whether by hand or machine or both, then trim all three layers so they are even with each other and put the binding around the entire thing.  Seems to me you could do the same.

You don't have to do anything fancy with your stitching.  Stitch-in-the-ditch, a nice grid all over, anything with straight lines would be easy and as long as you are using a cotton batting, nothing will shift and you should do fine.  Just remember, with a tree skirt, no one will be looking at the back anyway, only the top.  You don't have to worry about the back so much.

Please post a photo when you're done.  We'd all love to see it.  BTW, with all the ones I've made, I've never made one for us.  I'm going to try to find time to do that this year.  I think it's about time!

[Terri B]

I agree with Laurie.  I think you'll be much better off to quilt it simply (grids, in the ditch, whatever) and then attach a separate binding.  Trying to turn the whole thing rightside out seems like a pain, and it most likely won't lie flat on the outer edge.  Let us know if you need instructions for making binding and attaching it.   

[stashpanache]

Thank you!  I did the sandwich, then I stitched in the ditch where the border connects to the circle.  It is also connected up at the trunk end.  The border is about 4-5 inches wide.  So, it seems fairly well connected without stitching in the ditch between each segment.  I will take a picture when it is finished.  It is pretty, even though I don't know what I am doing.   Oh, I did not stich right sides together except at the sides either.  I am using metallic bias tape around the edge.  I stitched gold metallic trees on the border and have metallic gold rick rack where the border connects to the skirt.  There is a mistake on the pattern (IMHO) because it has you cut the ties that tie around the trunk on the cross grain.  I think it should have been cut on the bias and I don't have any fabric to redo the ties.  So, I will have to use my metallic bias tape to make the ties which I do not like the looks of but OH WELL!!  This is a 3 year old UFO.  Furthermore, it is nothing like my original plan but I like it better anyway.  A quilter suggested using a template design and it turned out really pretty. 

Another new thing I tried was clear, synthetic thread in my bobbin and metallic in my needle to stitch on the rich rack.  I went around twice with a ZZ stitch and it worked great.

Thank you everybody!!!    I still do not want to know how to quilt exactly but I would like to know how to do "free motion" or whatever you call it.  I bought a Janome 6600 to make clothes with and I guess it is supposed to be a great quilting machine.

Stash

[BetsyV]

This has been interesting Stash. I am glad LaurieH and TerriB chimed in they are experts at quilting.

Maybe I will finish my 5-year UFO tree skirt for this Christmas season. Not a quilter either. My directions however are to quilt through the top, batting, and backing, trim off any uneven edges, and bind at the end. Which made sense to this garment sewer.

[stashpanache]

It makes total sense to me too, Betsy.  My instructions made no sense whatsoever.

It is all finished and it turned out really nice.  I took a picture but because it is night time, it isn't a good pic.  I will do again tomorrow in the daylight.  Maybe it will look better in the pic.  It is really quite pretty. (If I do say so myself).  I live alone and there is nobody to ever look at anything I do so I have to compliment myself.  

Stash

[Laurie H]

Can't wait to see a photo of the tree skirt.  I think a lot of pattern writers think they are making things easier for beginners by telling them to use the turn method instead of quilting through the 3 layers and adding the binding, but that can lead to a big mess if you're not careful.  I just don't like that method and yes, I've done that in the past myself.

Betsy, I think you're being very kind, but thank you.  I know all this talk has me itching to make my own tree skirt.  I'm moving along nicely on the quilt for DS's GF, so I believe I'll be in good shape to do my other projects quickly and be able to get my tree skirt done in plenty of time for Christmas. 

[stashpanache]

OK, here it is.  It is difficult to see, but the green fabric has trees on it so I carried the tree theme to the border.

Stash

[Karendee]

Stash,

Your tree skirt is absolutely lovely. Congratulations on such a beautiful piece. It looks as though the piece doesn't need additional quilting to hold it together, but the same tree motif embroidered in the border could be made over and over in the body of the skirt. Also, free motion quilting is just meandering in a manner where all the space is filled in, but lines don't cross. You could practice this on a smaller item to begin with. But your skirt is perfect as it is. Congratulations!

Karend

[Terri B]

Great job!  It looks wonderful!!!   

[stashpanache]

Thanks for all your help and advice.  It is a relief to have it out of the way.

Now onto the next project.  A Cinderella dress for DGD for Christmas.

Stash

[Laurie H]

Stash, I think that's really neat.  I love what you did in the border.  You were absolutely right that binding needing to be on the bias, so even if you don't care for the look, I'm glad you used the binding you had for the center.  Keep it up and we'll make a quilter out of you yet!

[LauraTS]

Oh, very pretty, and not overdone (so many Christmas things are super-blingy IMO). Bravo.

[DottieMae]

Stash,

Well done!  The tree skirt looks great. 

Dottie