Go Denim

GO DENIM

  Occasionally, we long arm a quilt made from denim jeans.  Some of them are easy and lay very nice and flat, others are heavy, bulky seams and nasty old—old denim.

   Several years ago, I made an all denim (old jeans) quilt for a customer.  She insisted that it had to be queen size.  I let her know that it could be very heavy for sleeping under but queen size was what she wanted, so a queen size is what I made.  A few months later, she brought the quilt in and asked if I could cut it in half and make it into 2 quilts for her.

Yes, I could do that and she told me that it was too heavy to sleep under.  The first thing to think about when making a denim quilt is the size of the quilt versus the weight.

  A few weeks ago, we had an all denim (old jeans) quilt was brought in to be quilted.  It was huge and made with denim squares.  They had included D-rings and belt loops within the quilt top.  We can handle the size and stitch around the D-rings and loops but it was the seam intersections of the squares that were the problem.  They were bulky and didn’t lay flat.  This made it impossible for the machine to go over them so we had to go around them.  Slow and steady we got the quilt done. 

  My point is that if you are going to tie the quilt, the bulky intersections are not as problematic.  Maybe consider a design or layout that will stagger the seams for easier quilting.  Adding a cotton fabric to the mix can make the seam allowances less bulky also.

  When working with old denim jeans, use sharp scissors or blade maybe pinking shears to help with the fraying.  A heavier needle like a 14 or 16 and a 1/2” seam allowance can be helpful.  Lengthen the stitch length by .5 (go from 2.5 to 3). Any of these adjustments may help make the sewing your denim quilt easier.

 Find that old denim and have fun.

     Terry