BERNINA Stitch Regulator tips and techniques to help you start stitching successfully with this amazing accessory.
Welcome back for another round of freemotion tutorials! This is the last of the posts dedicated to the WISHBONE pattern variations, but there will be more tutorials, do not worry! I have a whole se…
I hate to pick favs but this one is my Favorite of the Trio. Thread - Iris Mint Batting - Hobbs 80/20 Tools - A ton of templates w...
I'm teaching a Free Motion Quilting class starting in April at my LQS, Heartstrings and Heirlooms. I finished up the class sample over the weekend. In the class the students will do larger samples, but I needed a small book of designs to advertise the class. As you can see in the above end view, I used three different types of batting for my sample book - Quilter's Dream 100% Cotton, Hobbs 80/20 (80% cotton and 20% polyester), and a 100% wool. I used a tutorial from a recent Quilting Arts Magazine issue (the February/March 2014 issue) to make my little book. The instructions involved drawing some lines on a piece of fabric, then sewing on the lines with a walking foot to make a larger sheet and baste the layers together. Then you quilt your designs and cut the "pages" apart. The tutorial in the magazine was very good. If you are interested in making a book like mine, I suggest you get a copy of the magazine. Below is a collage of designs I plan to cover in the class. Along the top of each page I wrote the name of the design, the batting type and page number from the book I will be using for the class. In case you are interested, I'm using the book Free Motion Quilting with Angela Waters. It has become my go-to book for quilting ideas as of late.
Today, I’m going to show you how to use stencils for quilting. And if you keep reading, you’ll find a special coupon to do some online shopping…. The quilt top is finished. The layers are basted. It’
Are you overwhelmed with the simple elegance of a wholecloth quilt but are clueless on how make one yourself? Read for 5 tips on how to wholecloth quilt:
Learn how to make the Hidden Wells quilt block with this tutorial. is very fast and easy to make and each time you make it.
In an unprecedented act of blogging fanciness I decided to make a video documenting how I create the woodgrain texture (so thoroughly photographed in my last post) with free-motion quilting. Warning:
I would define meandering as covering space randomly without a precise pattern. For most quilters, it means this. Meandering stitches up q...
Learn more about quilting with your walking foot during my "31 Days of Walking Foot Quilting" series.
When I posted an update about my sashiko style stitching the other day I received some really lovely comments. And I thank you for all of them. I was, however, left with this feeling that lots of people are afraid of hand stitching. Don't think they could get their stitches small enough. Or even enough. Or something or another enough. Hogwash! Before I get started though let me make something clear, I am not an expert in any way, shape, or form. This is just my opinion and how I do things. Many may do it differently. And their way is most likely as good as or better than mine. Hand stitching is not about getting every stitch exactly the same length. Experience makes you more likely to have even stitches but it is not necessary. It is more the overall effect created by the stitches, and if anyone ever comes up close - quilt police style - to examine each and every stitch then poke them in the eye I am sure this is not someone you associate with normally and don't offer them a mince pie, cookie or cup of tea. When hand stitching with perle cotton you are not going for teeny tiny stitches. That would be counter productive. You are going for impact, enhancement of the quilt design, etc. Big is better, really and truly. The other thing you need to do is look at the back, because if you are trying to get the stitches on the back of your quilt to look exactly like the ones on the front then you are a way better person than me. Personally I am trying to do what quilting does, hold the quilt layers together, compliment the piecing and fabrics with the stitching, create something usable and pretty. As you can see above, the stitches are there, the pattern is there but the stitch length is shorter and the gaps between wider. It is what happens when you weave a needle in and out between quilt layers. Trust me here, when I first tried this I spent anal hours trying to make the back and the front exact. What a waste of time! Sometimes, horror of horrors, you might not properly catch the backing layer of fabric, or just get the needle through a little bit. The world will not end. Remember, two photos up, the back didn't look too bad? Now look even closer. Imperfections abound, if you are the quilt police and looking that closely. My other piece of advice about hand stitching with perle is to do with seams. When I am stitching something like the Christmas stars I did a couple of weeks ago I never try to get close to the seam. I go with the same 1/4" rule we use in our seam allowance. There are two reasons I do this. In my mind it looks better set back from the seam. And two, you have less layers of fabric to stitch through if you have pressed the seams in that direction in that part of the quilt. You wouldn't think two more layers of cotton would make such a big difference, but it does. I am not sure if this blog post helped anyone at all, but if it encourages just one person to buy some perle and try it out I shall be smiling. Susan
In this post, you can explore your options of machine quilting designs as a beginner and create your first quilting project.
Learn how to quilt the Hooked Feather Filler Design in this longarm quilting video tutorial from Angela Huffman and APQS longarm machines.
I think we can all agree that as quilters we have this deeply implanted love of creating and being creative, and that creativity doesn’t just stop at piecing a quilt top. Doing the actu…
Looking for some quilting inspiration? Try these Nine Patch block ideas.
Learn how to sew by taking things one step at a time. You'll find everything you need in this article for sewing newbies.
I am delighted to have Patsy Thompson as our December FMQ Expert, for the 2012 Free Motion Quilting Challenge. Whe...
Applique Patchwork Cats Table Runner makes a great quilt project for your home and also includes full size templates in two sizes.
It has been a weird week. I am running up against the deadline for finishing the "Elements" pieces and I essentially lost two days this week. Monday morning I woke up with a stiff neck and by bedtime I was in a serious amount of pain. Did not sleep and by morning I was in such pain and fear of what might be causing it that I went straight to the Urgent Care Clinic near us. It was a strained trapezius muscle in my neck, making my neck impossible to move without screaming, hot pain and sending tentacles of pain winding up around my skull. The recommendation was rest and drugs and sleep and a soft cervical collar to support the weight of my head. So I lounged around all day on Tuesday reading and sleeping, felt a little better on Wednesday and much better today. So I was back in the studio this afternoon. "Water" should have been easy (that's why I left it for last), but I had a hard time settling on an idea. Close to my heart is the wetland area where we walk, so that began to take shape in my head. I started with an assortment of blue, gray and tan fabrics and fused some strips to form a base. At the end of today I had this: I think I am nearly there. A few additions, then I will trim it to size and bind it. Speaking of the wetland area, we had a surprise when we walked last week. Sofia was with us, and as we came around the corner near the Fanno Farmhouse, Beth and I were talking away and Sofia piped in "look at the turtle!" There, studiously digging in the dirt at the side of the trail, was a large turtle. I took its picture with my phone. That evening on the local news was a story of another turtle that was captured in a backyard several miles away. They are snapping turtles that have invaded the wetlands and creek. They are not native to the area and are thought to have been pets, originally, that were released into the creek and have bred there for years. This is the season when they come onto land to dig holes and lay eggs. They are quite destructive, eating the native fish, frogs, even baby ducks and can take a finger off if you are dumb enough to offer it to one. We found this one pretty interesting and were happy to have encountered it until we learned later what pests they are. If we see another we are advised to call the Parks department or Fish and Wildlife, who will come and take it away. Wish I had known. Now I am on the lookout when we walk.
Here is a super awesome quilt design for any quilt needing a little bit of floral flare! This fun little Daisy Chain is easy and a great way to add more texture into some of your other FMQ patterns. Click HERE for a free downloadable PDF! Click HERE to watch the full tutorial!
I was struck the other day by this bit from Mr X's recent TEDx talk:
No More Getting Stuck in Corners or Having to Cross Over! Stipple quilting looks simple, and it actually is, yet many quilters have a hard time mastering it. It’s so easy to get stuck and have to cross over stitching lines, or to have your squiggles differ greatly in size. While you may have heard …
No More Getting Stuck in Corners or Having to Cross Over! Stipple quilting looks simple, and it actually is, yet many quilters have a hard time mastering it. It’s so easy to get stuck and have to cross over stitching lines, or to have your squiggles differ greatly in size. While you may have heard …
In quilting, the thickness of the thread will change how your quilt reads to the eye. Angela Huffman explains how thread weights will change your quilting.
I think we can all agree that as quilters we have this deeply implanted love of creating and being creative, and that creativity doesn’t just stop at piecing a quilt top. Doing the actu…
'Modern Curves' by Anita Shackelford - Tumbler Quilt Sometimes I find a new digital quilting pattern which becomes flavour of the month here at Fabadashery Long Arm quilting. This time around it is 'Modern Curves' by Anita Shackelford. 'Modern Curves' quilting pattern by Anita Shackelford There are plenty of patterns out there with flowers, feathers and fancy swirls, but like this simple square quilt, sometimes a quilt top needs to be quilted, but doesn't necessarily need an all over pattern which is going to alter it character significantly. The simple undulating lines of 'Modern Curves' seems to achieve this. 'Modern Curves' by Anita Shackelford - Tumbler Quilt After completing the Allietare Mystery quilt, I decided to use the scrap leftovers to make a small green tumbler quilt. It was quick to come together and once on the APQS quilting frame quick to quilt. It didn't really have a planned destination, but is just so happens that is co-ordinates nicely with this IKEA stool, so I think it has found a home. Joining up with Crazy Mom Quilts
I've had the chance to review the book Free Motion Quilting for Beginners (and those who think they can't), by Molly Hanson. I love that title! I'm a big proponent of quilting your own quilts, as you know, and I've read a lot of books about free motion quilting. I like how everyone presents the information in their own personal way....there is always more to learn! This book presents all the practical information you need to get started. More importantly, it gives you the confidence to jump in and give free motion quilting a try. There are 15 projects in the book that encourage you to start small and increase your comfort level with free motion quilting before you tackle something larger, like a quilt. What I love most about this book is Molly's tone of encouragement throughout the text and the projects. She is great at guiding you though the entire process! I've done a lot of free motion quilting and I love how relaxing it can be. I also know how easy it can be to get in a rut. I challenged myself to get out of my box, so to speak and try some new-to-me, designs. I gave this squared off stippling pattern a try and it went pretty well! I had to slow down and think about where I was going from time to time, but it was fun! I could see doing this all over a whole quilt. I also quilted a few swatches of different designs and I turned them into a set of coasters. Binding them was a little fiddly, but totally worth it! (I can say that now that they are done. Ha!) These are great because I not only used scraps of fabric, but scraps of batting as well. Hurray! I'm happy to count these as scrap project #94/101. If you would like the chance to win an e-book copy of Free Motion Quilting for Beginners, please leave me a comment in this post. In your comment, I'd love to hear what your favorite go-to FMQ pattern is. Or, if you are new to FMQ, I'd like to hear what pattern you would like to master. I will pick winner in a few days!
