Ghost Quilting Series - Block 1

Summer is starting, and I am so ready to head out camping and get up to some shenanigans!  But first, I want to introduce my summer series.  Each summer, I like to put together some shorter videos and explore some new designs or ideas to help me stay fresh.  This year I decided to try and tackle some fillers, mini borders, and ghost quilting.   

Ghost Quilting Series Block 1 - VIDEO

Here are some links to past series if you haven't watched them yet (keep in mind my video editing skills are better now, so please be kind to the older videos 🥰😆):

Block Series Modern Style (2023)

Modern Quilting with Feathers Block Series (2023)

Quilting Frames and Fillers (2024)

I kept the design for this quilt pretty simple, and if you would like to download the basic pattern, if you are on the e-mail list, you can find the pattern in your inbox, or if you're just getting here, you can find that link here:

Ghost Quilting Series Pattern

When I first came up with this idea, I knew I had to start by trying to define Ghost Quilting.... It's a concept thrown around the quilting world for a while, and I think we are starting to zero in on a definition.  So here is my definition of Ghost Quilting.

Ghost Quilting: The purposeful stitching of a shape that portrays an object, place, or thing that most people will recognize and understand at a glance, usually, but limited to a silhouette.  

So this is my opinion and should not be confused with a Quilt Motif.

Quilt Motif: An amalgamation of designs or shapes distinct from other quilted designs that exist within a singular piece.  The cluster of designs enhances and adds artistic interest to a quilted piece, but does not denote a recognizable shape (see Ghost Quilting). 

Please let me know what you think of these definitions, I'm still working on it 😆.

Now, the next thing I want to talk about is how to transfer a ghost quilting shape from idea to quilt.  All of the silhouettes that I use in this series are from an online platform called Canva.  You can create a free account if you would like to give it a try. I have a paid subscription to this platform because I publish content on the internet (like this Blog and my YouTube Channel), but there are many places to find free clipart silhouettes online.  Try searching for "Silhouette Unicorn" or "Silhouette Cat."

Canva Website Link

Once I have the image that I am looking for, there are a couple of ways to transfer the image to your quilt.  Some ideas require a person to print the shape to the correct size to fit within a block or negative space, and this can be tricky, but it usually doesn't take me more than twice to get pretty close. I may trace the image just outside the line or inside the line.

1. Print the image, cut it out, and trace around the shape
2. Print the image, and use a light box or window to trace the shape
3. Open the image on a tablet or iPad and place it under the quilt block (it is its own lightbox!).
4. Use a digital projector if you have one, or an old-school one so you can adjust the size. 

Those are just a couple of ideas, get creative, it isn't rocket science (thank goodness 😆).

Next, we should discuss marking tools, which for me are pretty simple. I use a blue water-soluble marker on lighter fabrics (no real favourite, but I like a thicker marker vs. a fine line).  And a chalk mechanical pencil for darker fabrics (Bohin, Sewline, or Fons and Porter, I use all three).   With the chalk, I only use pink leads and white leads.

OK! So we have our image, we have a plan and know how to mark it.  Do your best to place it straight and square (or not, depending on what you're going for), and it's time to stitch!

Ghost Quilting Series - Block 1 Video

Alright, I'm going to get down to this quilt finally!  This series was inspired by the men in my life. It can be pretty difficult to quilt for men, and one way I thought I could do that is to use ghost quilting.  So I chose images of things that the men in my life love and some things that are inspired by hobbies that many men (and all people) enjoy.  But just as a precursor here, I am not genderizing hobbies, skills, or interests.  I myself enjoy many of the things that I will be quilting. I just know that sometimes people who don't participate in quilting or other crafting hobbies can be difficult to make items for, and I was just trying to solve that problem. 

So, for block number one, I decided to go with a guitar. I've known many talented musicians, and I wanted to recognize these people with an instrument.  I find that most instruments could really work well for ghost quilting, as they are quite recognizable (Piano, Flute, Saxophone, you get the idea). 

I also forgot to share in my videos that I also do a little mini border type design in each block. Since this was block one, I decided to keep it simple and do a horizontal piano key.  

And finally, as a background filler, I went with flames, I think this style of flames is actually called ghost flames 😆.  I spent a little time doodling these out because I haven't really done a lot of flames in my quilting before, but it sure looks awesome with this guitar!

I hope you enjoy this series, and it will be back next week with block number two 😃🌞😎