Video Demos
See For Yourself- Picture Piecing Videos |
Welcome to our brand new videos page where we share videos of steps involved in sewing a Picture Piecing pattern. We've included two formats for each video - QuickTime (.mov) format and Windows Media Video (.wmv) format. To view a video, just click the link for the format you prefer. The movie should open in a new browser window. PLEASE be patient, these video files are big and it may take a few minutes for them to start playing after the new window is opened. |
We have now posted 13 videos showing Cynthia England's Picture Piecing technique. Note: In the videos Cynthia demonstrates creating the Ice Cream Cone block - a free pattern available on our Free Patterns page, so you might want to download that free pattern and try it yourself. |
 | 1. Getting Started | |
| In this video Cynthia shares her tips for organizing your fabrics and how to prepare the freezer paper pattern. Note: You'll only need to prepare a freezer paper pattern if you are using one of our free patterns such as one from this web site. All England Design commercial patterns include a freezer paper pattern. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (4993 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (3138 KB) | ||
 | 2. Preparing the Pattern | |
| In this video, Cynthia explains the pattern sectioning and markings and demonstrates how to cut apart the freezer paper pattern. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (6970 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (4407 KB) | ||
 | 3. Ironing Pattern Pieces to Fabric | |
| Cynthia demonstrates how to place pattern pieces onto the right side of the fabric and iron them into place. She shares her tip for spacing the pieces to conserve fabric. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (8229 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie(5207 KB) | ||
 | 4. Cutting the Fabric Pieces | |
| Cynthia explains how to cut the fabric out using a 'fat' quarter inch. It doesn't have to be a precise quarter inch, but you do need to follow the shape of the pattern piece. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (3493 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (2232 KB) | ||
 | 5. Finding Pairs to Sew | |
| Cynthia explains how to identify two pieces (or multi-piece sections) that can be sewn together. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (4912 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (3082 KB) | ||
 | 6. Pinning and Pinch-folding | |
| Cynthia's technique for pinning two pieces together for sewing helps you align the pattern pieces perfectly. Her pinch-folding technique creates a distinct line that shows you where to sew. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (5280 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (3325 KB) | ||
 | 7. Pinning and Pinch-folding - (closeup view) | |
| Here's a closeup view of Cynthia's pinning and pinch-folding technique shown in the previous video. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (3334 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (2138 KB) | ||
 | 8. Sewing and Repositioning | |
Use the pinch-fold line as a helpful sewing guide. Remember - cheating is allowed! If you do not sew close enough to the template pieces, simply reposition the freezer paper templates and iron in place. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (6661 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (4038 KB) | ||
 | 9. Pre-sewing Small Pieces | |
| Sometimes the small pieces can be intimidating - but don't worry, Cynthia demonstrates a technique that makes it easy to sew together even the tiniest pieces. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (5366 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (3382 KB) | ||
 | 10. Pre-sewing Directional Fabrics | |
| Cynthia demonstrates her technique for pre-sewing small pieces that involve directional fabrics. It is still easy, just a slightly modified approach. Note: This movie is 2 minutes long, so it is a big file. Be patient as it downloads. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (12419 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (7739 KB) | ||
 | 11. Sewing Section A | |
| Watch as Cynthia continues to stitch together the pieces in section A of the Ice Cream Cone block. As she stitches she reviews some of the techniques shown earlier. Note: This movie is over 3 minutes long, so it is a very big file. Click to get it started downloading and then find something else to do for a while as it downloads. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (18893 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (11815 KB) | ||
 | 12. Sewing Section B | |
| Cynthia describes a few additional tricks for precise picture piecing as she stitches together the pieces in section B of the Ice Cream Cone block. Note: This movie is almost 6 minutes long, so it is a very big file. Click to get it started downloading and then find something else to do for a while as it downloads. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (36438 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (22698 KB) | ||
 | 13. Sewing Section A to Section B | |
| Cynthia finishes up this video series by demonstrating how to sew two sections together. Note: This movie is almost 2 minutes long, so it is a big file and will take a while to download. | ||
| Quicktime Movie (11585 KB) | ||
| WMV Format Movie (7226 KB) | ||
We hope these mini-videos have been useful to you. We have complete printable tutorial that describes the Picture Piecing process in words and close-up still images, using a free pattern we offer on this website. To see those instructions, visit our Free Picture Piecing Block Patterns and then click on the Getting Started - Engine Instructions page. |
