Quilts on the Floor!

Many of our customers have been making quite a fuss about some of our new decorating choices in the shop. But, hey, what’s the big deal? We’ve just been using quilts as … rugs! That’s right. We’ve been putting quilts on the floor for people to walk on.

We (meaning mainly Karen) have been making some major rearrangements in the shop. There are now many cozy fabric “rooms” that each house a certain style of fabric. We have a Kaffe room, an Amy Butler room, a baby quilt room, and a bunch more. Once we had each room carved out, we realized we needed some final touches, like a rug, that ties everything together.

Our new Kaffe room!

Are you cringing? If so, you are certainly not alone. Many of our customers refuse to step on them! However, hear us out. We’ve got some pretty good reasons for how practical quilt-rugs are. Many of our customers agree and have already started making their own.

Quilts are durable and washable. When was the last time you took a rug to the dry cleaners? Too expensive? Well, you can put a quilt into the washing machine and it comes out great. Here at the shop, we got a lot of foot traffic, so we just can’t afford to send off our rugs to get dry cleaned every week the way we can with quilts. Speaking of expensive…have you checked on the price of a room-sized rug lately? Even at Target, a large rug will run you a lot more than a simple fabric rug.

We’re not suggesting you go home and throw grandma’s heirloom quilt on your kitchen floor. Or that favorite quilt of yours that took you five years to complete. We’re a quilt shop, so it’s only natural that we have tons of extra quilts that aren’t on display that we can easily use as rugs. Maybe you do too! It saved us the time and money of buying new rugs. We also custom made a bunch of simple quilt-rugs to show how simple it is for anyone to make a stylish and inexpensive rug for any room in your house.

Here's the quilt we made as a rug for our Halloween fabric. It's so simple and easy!

So how do you make a simple fabric rug rug?  It’s more like a recipe than a pattern, but here is how you do it.

Fabric Requirements

¾ yard of main fabric

¾ yard of border fabric

1⅞ yards of backing fabric (muslin works great – make sure it is at least 44/45″ wide)

½ yard binding

Quilt batting (we used 80/20 cotton batting)

Cut the main fabric 27″ x WOF (width of fabric).

Cut four border strips 6 ½” x WOF

• Measure the long side of the main fabric and trim two borders strips to this length.  Sew these border strips to the long sides of the main fabric and press seams to the border.
• Measure the short sides of the top and cut the two remaining borders strips this length.  Sew to the main fabric and press seams towards the border.

The top should measure approximately 40″ x 54″.  This is such a simple quilt that you can easily make it bigger or smaller to fit any space. Once your top is finished, make sure your backing is bigger than your top, then quilt and bind.  Congratulations, you now have a rug!

If you’re looking for something a little more advanced, we also have a pattern for a rug called Daisy Dew Drop by Threaded Pear Studio that looks so cute in all kinds of color combinations.

We brought this minky rug back from market. Isn't it cute? Perfect for the kids' room!

To make sure the quilt-rugs don’t move around (causing people to slip!), we placed anti-slip rug backs under the larger quilts. For the quilt-rugs that were made just for being on the floor, we used a product called “Non-Skid Rug Backing.” You simply paint the product onto the rug back and let it dry. It makes the back tacky so it sticks to the floor. Quilts with the rug backing are washable and the tackiness lasts through many washings.

So what do you think? Are you against quilt-rugs or are you dying to make your own?

Baby Elephant Walk

Confession time. As much as I would like to believe otherwise, I’m not the greatest sewer. There. I said it. As a beginner quilter, you would think this shouldn’t come as a shock to me, but it does. You see, I’ve learned a lot about sewing over the last nine months of working at the quilt shop. I hear customer questions and our expert answers every day. So, I feel like I know a lot about quilting — but all in theory.

Every time I muster up the energy to sew, I realize how great the disconnect is between my quilting knowledge and my quilting ability. Really, the only solution is to sew, sew, sew some more, which can be difficult with how much time I spend at the shop. I’ve also learned that for someone with so little time to sew, small projects are key. I’m that girl that starts a million projects, but never finishes them. So my new policy is, if I’m gonna start something, I’ve gotta start small.

I was thinking quick and easy when I volunteered to make our next quilt kit sample, called Baby Elephant Walk. The honor of assembling our samples is often given to Della, who can easily whip up a quilt top in a day or two. Not this time. As soon as I saw the pattern — Square Dance by Bits ‘n Pieces  — I knew this baby quilt was within my skill set. Consisting of four-patches and five-inch squares, my greatest challenge would be those dang ¼” seams. I think I’ve got ‘em down, but gosh it isn’t as reliable as those blocks that are conveniently squared-up. Did I mention the finished size is only 36″ x 45″? And that we’re using super-cute grey, aqua and yellow flannel with zoo animals?! I’ve got this!

Even a 2-3/4" square of this fabric is adorable!

First step? Cutting. Cutting is my least favorite. The pressure is definitely on as this sample has. to. be. perfect! And already I’m going slower than all you quilting experts — rather than stack up 4 layers of fat quarters to cut at the same time (as the pattern suggests), I’ve kept things neat with just piles of 2. Can’t be too careful. I also learned that it’s a good idea to visualize each step of the cutting process so you don’t end up adding a step unnecessarily. For example? Step 1 says to cut the fat quarters into 5” x 21” strips and 2-3/4” x 21” strips. So, I made sure all my fat quarters were exactly 21” before slicing them down to 5” & 2-3/4” strips. Step 2? Cut the 5” strip into 5” squares, with an inch or so of scrap left over. I could have just left my strips longer than 21” to begin with and ended up with more scrap at the end. I’m still learning how to be efficient.

Next step was to arrange my fabrics. In addition to picking out the right fabrics,
assembling them in a pleasing way is a skill that takes practice and confidence. Again, I had added pressure knowing this quilt was not just for me, but for the shop. If I pick a bad arrangement, well then the fate of the store is in jeopardy. Clearly the success of my one, super simple quilt kit is linked to the survival of the store. Or at least that’s how serious I’m taking my little project. So what did I do? I brought in an outside opinion. Not Della. Not Karen. My fiance. For those of you with your jaws on the floor, don’t be so surprised. Guys can have an eye for color and design, too. I’m sure many of your husbands have weighed in on the fate of your projects as well. (And for all you keeping up with my personal life, you read that right. I got engaged…to Karen’s son. Ever see that movie “Monster in Law?”)

Does this work???

After much deliberation and mock-up four patches, I think we figured out the best arrangement. Just like the pattern tells me, I’ve alternated light and dark fabrics, mixed up large-scale and small-scale prints and I’ve put my best fabrics in the middle spots. Now it’s time to sew!

Four patches look alright.

I did it! My seams are exactly 1/4"! Woo hoo!

Here I am showing Nani how must faster it is to chain piece everything. She thinks I am so smart!

– Posted by Stacy