Accurate Piecing With Freezer Paper by Debby Kratovil I would much rather quilt than cook (sorry, honey) so my roll of freezer paper sits in my sewing room and has never seen the light of my kitchen! Many quilters use freezer paper as an aid for applique but with the resurgence of foundation piecing of intricate blocks, there is an equal number of quilters who use it for piecing blocks with odd angles and small sections. It provides both accuracy in piecing and stability to fabric which has been cut along the bias. Freezer paper has two sides: a dull, paper side which has the texture of typing paper and a shiny side which is plastic-coated. The dull side allows you to place the paper over a pattern and trace the markings with a pencil. The shiny side will stick to fabric when pressed with a hot iron. It will not harm the fabric nor leave a residue when it is easily peeled off. The extra bonus is that it keeps the fabric stable as you work with it.

Let's begin with one of my 6" patterns, The Stylized Flower. All graphics are on this page. The Stylized Flower pattern is here. For a pdf pattern of the flower, click here.

Step 1. Cut a piece of freezer paper 7" square. Lay the freezer paper plastic side down on top of the flower design. Using small bits of masking tape on the four edges will help keep the freezer paper from slipping as you trace/transfer the line markings from the pattern to the paper using a sharp #2 pencil. Be sure to include the outside markings of the pattern. Transfer the numbers also, which will assist in the piecing sequence.

Step 2. Cut apart the freezer paper pattern along the lines (Illustration 1). Notice that there are three major sections to the block.

Step 3. After having made your fabric choices for the Flower, transfer the freezer paper templates to the WRONG side of each fabric choice. Use a hot iron to press the freezer paper onto the fabric. For example, Pieces #1 in Sections A and B are green. Pieces #2 and 3 in these are light blue. Illustration 2 shows Piece # in Section A with the freezer paper template pressed to the wrong side of the blue fabric.

Step 4. Cut out each freezer paper template as shown, adding 1/4" seam allowance all the way around. It is best to work with each of the three sections one at a time.

Step 5. Stitch the fabric/freezer paper templates together using the edge of the freezer paper as your sewing guide. Illustration 3 shows the green Piece #1 being stitched to the blue Piece #2 (for Section A). The edge of freezer paper on Piece #2 provides a sewing guide to ensure accuracy.

Step 6. Illustration 4 shows Piece #3 stitched to Piece #1/2. Again, the edge of the freezer paper is used as the stitching guide.

Step 7. Continue stitching in this manner, one section at a time. When all three sections are finished, join them to each other, again using the edge of the freezer paper as your stitching guide. Press the block. Remove the freezer paper templates. These templates can be used again as the plastic coating will last for several ironings.

While most people would use paper piecing techniques for this simple Stylized Flower, the method described above is a great way for a beginning quilter to get accurate seams. This method is especially useful for intricate blocks that require many odd shaped pieces and angles. Try your hand at designing your own block. Size should be no limit as freezer paper sections can be taped together to make a large drawing foundation. Simply draw your design, mark natural sections, indicate stitching sequence and cut apart along your lines. Add 1/4" seam allowances around each template before cutting out your fabric and you're on your way!

 

The Stylized Flower is one of over two dozen flower patterns on my CD - Quilt Magazine Special Edition of Foundation Factory. Over 500 patterns for paper piecing from Quilt Pro. Click here to find out how you can get your copy.

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