QUILTER'S DICTIONARY

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Adhesive Template	A reusable quilting guide that adheres to the quilt top, eliminating the marking step. Once the quilting is completed along the edge of the template, the template is removed.
Album Quilt	A quilt in which each block is different. Many are friendship projects (friends make blocks and sign them). A sampler can be referred to as an album quilt.
Amish Quilt	A quilt made in the style of the original Amish quilts. These quilts are usually made from dark, solid colors and simple patterns.
Appliqué	The attaching of fabric to the surface of other fabric. Appliqué can be attached by hand, or by machine.
Assembly Piecing	Piecing identical units of several blocks at the same time, as opposed to piecing each unit and completing one block at a time.
Background Fabric	The foundation material, or fabric, on which appliqués are sewn.
Backing	Fabric that is used on the back of a quilt. In general, the backing needs to be four inches larger on all sides than the quilt top.
Backstitch	A machine stitch in reverse over previous stitches to strengthen the beginning and ending of a seam. In hand stitching, a backstitch is taken over two or more stitches for strengthening.
Baltimore-style Appliqué	Appliqué patterns depicting flora and fauna, baskets, people and architectural structures. This style originated with Methodist ladies in Maryland during 19th century.
Baste	attaching the layers of the quilt together in a temporary way, in preparation for quilting or tying. Often done with thread, safety pins, basting spray, or tack gun.
Basting	A means of temporarily holding the three layers of the quilt sandwich- top, batting, and backing - together in preparation for quilting. Hand quilters use long loose stitches, and machine quilters use safety pins.
Batik	Hand-dyed fabric, mottled and textured by using elements. Each batik is unique as they are all painted by hand. Batik has 'crackly' motifs on a differently colored background, but the term has been expanded to include fabric with no motifs.
Batting	The middle layer of a quilt. This can be cotton, wool, silk, polyester, or a blend. 100% polyester is not recommended for machine quilting as the quilt layers tend to slip. Called "wadding" in Great Britain. Choose batting at least four inches larger on all sides than the quilt top.
Bearding	When the batting seeps through the surface of the quilt. Can be caused by cheap, low thread count fabrics, fat needles, burrs on your needles, or cheap quilting thread.
Betweens:	Small sharp needles used in hand quilting.
Bias	The direction not along the grain of fabric. This means the direction which is stretchy. True bias is 45 degrees off from the grain of the fabric (either warp or welt). If you pull a fabric on the bias, it will distort out of shape. Bias binding is cut so that the length of the binding is along the bias, necessary for binding quilts with curved edges, because of the way the bias binding stretches.
Binding	The strip of fabric that goes on the edge of the quilt and encloses the batting and raw edges. Crosswise grain or bias strips are appropriate binding for straight-edged quilts. Curved-edged quilts must be bound with bias binding
Block	The basic unit of a quilt top.  Care should be taken that the outer edges of a block are not bias edges.  Either crosswise or lengthwise grain will work for the outer edges.
Block of the Month	A quilt pattern divided into 12 equal part that when finished you have a completed quilt top.
Block-to-Block Set	A block arrangement without sashing, set straight on the diagonal.
BOM	Abbreviation for Block of the Month
Border	The outer edge of the quilt used to frame the central section of the quilt top.  Can be plain, pieced, or appliqued.
Calico	A multi-colored patterned type fabric.  Usually a tiny floral print.  Called "muslin" in Great Britain.
Celtic	An appliqué technique using consistent-width, folded bias strips to produce complex, curved geometrical designs, like those made in 8th - 10th century Ireland.
Chain piecing	The recommended method of sewing patchwork on the machine. Patches are butted up one after the other, without lifting the presser foot, and without cutting the threads connecting them. Saves time and thread, and avoids thread snarls. The ends of the thread only have to held when sewing the first patch.
Charm quilt	A one-patch quilt where each patch is cut from a different fabric.
Charms	Small pieces of fabric of different patterns and colors, often square and all the same size. A charm quilt is usually composed of these charms. The goal in these quilts is to use as many different fabrics as possible, in small squares.
Chintz	A cotton fabric with a chemically applied glazed finish. Also known as polished cotton.
Clip	A small cut to ease fabric and to make it lie flat made perpendicular to the seam allowance edge and up to, but not touching the seam line.
Cornerstone	square of fabric joining sashing to sashing
Crazy Quilting	A kind of piecing where the pieces are not cut to specific sizes, but simply sewn together in no particular pattern. Traditional crazy quilting are thick with embroidery and were made with scraps of silks and velvets.
Cross-Hatching	A network of parallel quilting lines that run in two directions, forming either a grid of squares or of diamonds.
Crosswise Grain	threads of a woven fabric running perpendicular to the selvage.; Crosswise grain has a slight amount of stretch, which makes it appropriate for binding straight-edged quilts.
Cutting Line	The line on which a shape is cut out of the fabric.
Dear Jane	A book by Brenda Papadakis about an intricate sampler quilt made during the civil war by Jane A. Stickle. Dear Janers make the blocks and construct their own version of the quilt.
Directional Borders	Patchwork borders that flow in a particular direction.
Directional Prints	A printed fabric that has a clear direction.; There are both 1-way directional and 2-way directional prints.
English Paper Piecing	A type of hand piecing using paper templates. Fabric is basted to the paper templates and then sewn together. The paper can remain in the quilt or be removed.
Fat Eighth	A piece of fabric that measures 9" by 22".
Fat Quarter	A quarter yard of fabric, formed by first cutting a half yard of fabric and then cutting the half yard in the other direction to make two fat quarters.; Thus fat quarters can range from 18"; x 20"; to 18"; x 22 1/2",; depending on the width of the fabric.;; A conventional 1/4 yard is 9 inches wide x the width of the fabric. Fat Quarters are often a more useful configuration for both patchwork piecing and applique, plus they don′t wrap around the machine agitator as bad during pre-washing.
Feed Dogs	The mechanical teeth on the sewing machine bed that moves the fabric through the machine.;
Finger Pressing	A method of temporarily pressing with your fingers. Sometimes used during the preliminary steps of block construction, to avoid stretching bias edges with your iron.
Finished size	Refers to the size of a block after it has been incorporated in a quilt top. For example; a 12.5 unfinished block will finish to a size of 12 inches.
Foundation Paper Piecing	A method of assembling a block by sewing fabric pieces to a foundation of fabric. This gives the block added stability during piecing. Foundation piecing consists of sewing the printed fabric on top of the foundation which is left inside the quilt. Paper piecing is sometimes referred to as foundation piecing, but the process is different. See paper piecing.
Four Patch Block	A block design based on a 2 x 2 grid.; A simple four-patch block will comprise of four square fabric patches.
Free Motion Quilting	Machine quilting with the feed dogs down. The quilter is thus in full control of moving the quilt and can sew in any direction.
Freezer-Paper Appliqué	A technique in which freezer paper patterns are used as seam line guides for turning under seam allowances on appliqué pieces.
Friendship Quilt	A quilt made as a group project for one member of the group, with each participant making and signing a block or more for the top.
Fusible	An applique technique that involves adhering a webbing to the back of the fabric and fusing the fabric to the background with the heat of the iron.
Fusible web	An interfacing, thin, treated fabric, used as a foundation for appliqué and foundation piecing. These come in many varieties, including sticky, woven, non-woven, and gets sticky when heated with an iron. Used to hold two pieces of fabric together.
Fussy Cutting	Carefully selecting a specific area or image of the fabric.
GFG	Abbreviation for Grandmothers Flower Garden Quilt
Grain	The direction of the threads in fabric. Threads are woven together horizontally and vertically. Horizontally (the length of the fabric) there is no stretch. Vertically (the width of the fabric, usually 42"-45") there is very little stretch. Blocks are usually cut so that all the grains are parallel to the sides. This is known as 'on-grain'. There is less distortion with ironing and general handling.
Grid	Squares of uniform size
Hand Quilting Stitch	A small evenly-spaced stitch used to hold the layers of the quilt together and to form a design on the surface of the quilt.
Hand-dye	Fabric that has been dyed by hand. Each piece is unique. Hand-dyes can be mottled and textured, multi-colored, or even colored.
Hand-Quilting Stitch	A small running stitch that is made through all three layers of a quilt.
Hanging Sleeve	A tube sewed on the back of the quilt so that it can be hung.
Hanging Tabs	Small loops of folded fabric sewn to the top edge of the quilt through which a decorative rod can be inserted.
Homespun Fabric	A loosely woven fabric, usually of wool or linen, hand-loomed from hand-spun yarns.
Hue	color
In the Ditch	Quilting on the edge of the appliqued shape or right next to a patchwork seam on the side of the seam with no seam allowances.; Both a machine quilting and a hand quilting style.
Intensity	The strength of a color.; Color intensity is diluted when white, black, gray, or any other hue is added.
Jewel Tones	Vibrant, 'jewel'-like colors; usually fully saturated (highest intensity) colors.
Lap Quilting	The process of quilting blocks or sections of a quilt before assembling it.
Layering	The process of spreading out and aligning the backing, batting and top of a quilt before basting them together in preparation for quilting.
Lengthwise Grain	threads of a woven fabric running parallel to the selvage. A good choice for borders.
Loft	A term used to describe the thickness, height, and resilience of the quilt batting
Log Cabin	A quilt pattern in which narrow fabric strips or logs surround a center square to form a block.
Long Arm Quilting	Machine quilting using a commercial long arm sewing machine. Fundamentally different than standard machine quilting on a domestic machine, as in this system the machine head is moved, while the quilt is held stable. The three layers on the quilt are set up on a roller system, which makes basting unnecessary.
Marbled	A not-quite solid fabric that is a tone-on-tone with a kind of 'marbled' effect, sort of like swirling clouds. The most famous are the Moda Marbles, which come in many different colors.
Meander Quilting	machine quilting a loose meander throughout the quilt top. Similar to stippling but the quilting lines are much further apart. Does not require marking, and is done on both domestic and long arm machines.
Medallion Quilt	A quilt with a center block surrounded by multiple borders.
Miniature Quilt	A small-scaled reproduction of a full-size quilt.
Mitered Corner	A method of making borders by joining a Vertical and Horizontal Strip of fabric in a 45 degree angle.
Mitered Seam	A 45-degree angle seam that is most often used when joining borders at corners.
Muslin	A plain cotton fabric available bleached or unbleached.; Called "Calico" in Great Britain.
Needling	The process of inserting the needle through the layers when hand quilting. Fabrics and batting are sometimes described in terms of ease or difficulty of needling.
Nine Patch Block	A block design based on a 3 x 3 grid.; A simple nine-patch block will comprise of nine square fabric patches.
On Point	A block arrangement in which a block is placed with its corners up and down and to the sides.
One Patch Quilt	Any pieced quilt pattern that uses a single patch shape.
Paper Piecing	See: Foundation paper piecing and English paper piecing.
Patch	An individual fabric shape joined with other patches to make a block or a quilt.
Patchwork	The network of small pieces of fabric sewn together to form a larger piece. Creating patchwork is called piecing.
Patis	plastic hexagons made by Pati Shaumbaugh for constructing hexagon-based quilts. Example; Grandmother's Flower Garden.
Pieced Border	A long strip of fabric of patchwork units to be joined to the inner quilt.
Piecing	A process of sewing together pieces of fabric by hand or machine to make patchwork.
Prairie Points	Folded fabric triangles used as an edge finish.
Prewashing Fabric	The process of rinsing fabric in hot water with or without detergent to shrink it and remove sizing before cutting and piecing. After drying, steam-iron fabric.
Quilt sandwich	the three layers of the quilt together:; quilt top, batting, and backing
Quilt top	the top layer of the quilt sandwich.; Can be pieced, appliqued, a combination of piecing and applique, or whole cloth.
Quilt-as-you-go	A quilting/piecing process which incorporates sewing together blocks and quilting it at the same time.
Quilting	The small running stitches that hold the three layers of a quilt together.
Quilting frame	A large free-standing floor apparatus made of wood or plastic tubing used; to hold the three layers of the quilt together during the hand quilting process.
Quilting Guide	A sewing machine attachment that helps to space rows of straight stitching more evenly.
Quilting hoop	A circular, square, or oval apparatus made of wood or plastic tubing used to hold the three layers of the quilt together during the hand quilting process.
Quilting Stencil	A firm one-piece guide that contains the quilting designs in a cutout format. A marking tool is inserted through the cutout to transfer the quilting design onto the quilt.
Quilting Template	A solid, firm pattern of one quilting motif.
Quilting Thread	A cotton or cotton-covered polyester thread, heavier than ordinary sewing thread.
Rag Quilts	A quilt, usually using flannel, whose raw edges of seam allowances are exposed and then cut to form a fringe.
Raw Edge	The unfinished cut side of fabric.
Rotary Cutter and Mat	A fabric cutting tool with a circular blade that cuts through several layers of fabric at once. It is best used with a clear plastic ruler as a quilting guide. A cutting mat is essential to protect the work surface and preserve the blade's sharpness.
Round Robin	A quilt exchange where an entire top is passed around and each member of the round robin adds on pieces to the top forming a large quilt top.
Sampler Quilt	A quilt constructed of a collection of blocks in different patterns, usually with no pattern repeated. Blocks may be the same or different sizes.
Sandwich	Combining the quilt top, batting and the backing in preparation of quilting.
Sashing	A strip of fabric used between blocks to set them together.
Scant 1/4"	One or two threads shy of a 1/4" seam allowance.
Scrap/Scrappy Quilts	Patchwork or appliqué quilt done with many different fabrics. Usually made from scraps left over from other quilts.
Seam Allowance	The distance between the cut edge of the fabric and the stitching line.; In quilting, the seam allowance is usually 1/4 inch.
Selvage	The finished edges of the woven fabric.  Along the lengthwise grain.; The selvages should be cut off and not included in the seam allowance.
Setting	the arrangement of completed blocks forming the quilt top.
Setting square	A plain fabric square used to set completed patchwork or applique blocks in a quilt top.
Shade	A graduation of a color made by adding black to lessen its saturation.;
Sharps	Longish, thin, sharp needles used in hand-appliqué.
Stack 'N Whack	A book and process by Bethany Reynolds. Using fabric repeats and cutting multiple layers, when stitched together they form kaleidoscope effects.
Stash	The contents of one's fabric collections.
Stippling	Very closely stitched background quilting.; Can be done by hand or machine.
Straight of grain	lengthwise or cross grain.; Not bias.
Strip Piecing	A technique in which strips of fabric are cut and joined lengthwise to form a strip set of fabric strips that resemble striped fabric. The strip set is cut at intervals across seam lines to form segments. Joining these segments to form block units is also called strip-piecing.
Swap	A group of people who get together and exchange quilt blocks or fabric.
Template	A shape cut from cardboard or plastic used to cut units of a pattern for patchwork or applique.
Thimble	A metal or leather finger shield to protect the finger from needle pricking during stitching.
Tied Quilt	A type of quilt in which yarn or thread ties are used to secure layers of the quilt, instead of quilting stitches.
Tint	A gradation of a color made by adding white to it to lessen its saturation.;
Tone	A graduation of color made by adding gray to it to lessen its saturation.
Tone-on-Tone:	Fabric comprised of different tones of the same color, such as dark red flowers on a lighter red background.
TOT	Abbreviation for Tone on Tone, such sa green on green, blue on blue, etc
Tying:	Attaching the sandwiched layers together by tying knots at certain intervals.
UFO	Abbreviation for Unfinished object – a project started but not yet finished.
Unfinished:	Usually referring to the raw size of a quilt block after it is pieced together but before it is sewn to another block.
Utility Quilt	A quilt made for everyday use, generally in a similar pattern involving no elaborate sewing skills.
Value	The lightness or darkness of a color.
Walking Foot	A necessary sewing machine accessory for straight-line machine quilting and binding.; Ensures an even feed of the three layers of the quilt.
Whole Cloth Quilt	Quilt top that is composed of one fabric only.; Minimal piecing may be required if the quilt is wider than the fabric.; Usually a solid fabric is used in order to display the quilting.
WIP	Work in Progress
WOW	Abbreviation for White On White

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