Using Flat Piping to Stitch a Free-form Shape in Place
When I was making my “Fillers Sampler” quilt in 2010, I wanted the freedom to be able to position the strips randomly on the hand-dyed background fabric I had purchased from Freida Anderson. Piecing them in place would have made the entire process very complex, so I opted to use ‘flat piping’ instead. This is one of my favorite techniques when inserting a filler strip, in part because it is so simple!
- Cut a bias strip of fabric that is 1” wide and as long as the length of the free-form strip.
- Fold the strip in half, wrong sides together and press.
- Using a 1/4″ seam allowance, stitch the raw edge of the bias strip to the edge of the free-form strip.
- Turn the edges under and press.
- Pin the strip in place on the background.
- Using thread that matches the bias strip, stitch in the ditch on the bias to secure the free-form strip to the background!
