Category Archives: Tools and Techniques

Let’s Twist Again!

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You’ll be dancing for joy when you try this fun new technique for making pinwheel style blocks. “Twister” (A12618) includes a simple pattern and the easy to use template. If you prefer little projects (as I do,) you’ll be happy to know there’s also a “Lil’ Twister” (A12617) which comes with its own basic pattern and smaller template.

The technique involves using 5” squares (charms) or 10” squares (Layer Cakes), depending on the size of template you’re using and the size you want the finished project to be..

Sew together your squares, add a border, and the fun begins!

The template guides you through cutting your sewn piece to create pinwheels – so much easier and quicker than piecing triangles!

There’s also a way to “cheat”. We used a fabric with printed squares (996033) and the Lil Twister to create a table topper.

The books, “Let’s Twist” (A12677) and “Let’s Twist…Again” (A13679) each have 12 patterns using the Twister tools in both sizes, giving you lots of ideas and options.

You can add more borders, add pieced borders, change the arrangement of your pinwheels, and more, to give a variety of looks. Make table toppers, runners, wall hangings and quilts by changing the number and size of your blocks.

Once you start, you won’t want to stop!

(To find an item or event on our web page after clicking on the highlighted words, hold down the “Ctrl” key and touch F. Enter the item number in the box, press enter, and you’ll be taken to that item.)

You can see What’s New at Erica’s almost every day! Any page of our website has a column on the left that tells you where to find things, and all you have to do is look for “New Items” in purple, and click to find out.

Quilting Tips

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As I started piecing one of my last projects, I happened to think that some of my newer students haven’t heard of using an “anchor cloth” for chain piecing. So I thought I’d share it here in case it’s new to others. In fact, one of my students (Carol, you know who you are…) told me later “I’d heard about it before but thought I didn’t really need to do that. You emphasized it in class, so I tried it, and now I can’t imagine piecing without using the anchor cloth!”

You need four little scraps of fabric around 1” x 1” . They are used double, so you put two of them under your presser foot to start. Since I do a lot of piecing, I always have an anchor cloth under my presser foot, even when I’m not using my machine. Then it’s ready for me to start again.
You stitch first on the anchor cloth and then move on to your first pieces of the quilt. Continue feeding in your pieces, and when you get to the end, put your second pair of scraps under your presser foot and stitch onto them. You clip off the chain behind your anchor cloth, and remove the first one from the beginning, and it’s ready to be used the next time you end a chain. This keeps you from getting little birds’ nests at the beginning of your work, and saves thread between chains. Try it, if you haven’t.

Another tool I like is the “Purple Thang” but not just because it’s purple! You know how sometimes the end of your piece tries to move out to the left? The Purple Thang can fit where your finger doesn’t, and hold it in place. Happy Quilting!