PSers that Quilt

[rockysalamander]

I know quite a few people that have the Juki and love it. Everytime I go to a show I spend a bit of time playing with the long arm machine. I totally agree with you-I didn't like the APQS machines at all. Gammil was ok, some of the cheapo long arms were ridiculous. I can't believe people buy them. The skipped stitches and were so jerky. I have a friend who is an educator with Handiquilter, and she started with a Gammil and then moved to an Avante. She loves it. I keep wanting to take the classes so I can use a Handiquilter. I need to get ahead of the game because when I have a quilt finished I don't want to wait. I am pretty proficient at quilting with my home machine but I love the fluidity of the long arm. I think I want to start with the Little Foot frame and then progress to the larger as my older kids leave.
Cant wait for the next show here in two weeks. Road to California. If you have never been, it is worth a road trip. One of the best in the country, I think.

Spend some time with the little-foot frame before you decide. You still have to baste the quilt off the frame. And, for me, its time consuming to shift and clip. For my smaller space, I like the freedom of a sit-down longarm. I can quilt in any direction I want and the machine is totally reliable (though loud!). That said, I don't do pantos or all over patterns. Its totally creative and custom. If you want to do computerized quilting, you will need to consider a frame system. One day my house will grow a room and I'll get a huge frame. But, for now, I'm so pleased with my machine.

Here is the size difference. I can do up to a Queen with lots of breaks and painkillers on my Necchi, but its a breeze on the Juki.

 

[luv2sparkle]

@rockysalamander, you do have a point about the basting, although I pin baste before quilting now. I do need to try it. I did quilt with a Flynn frame for a while and thought that was just a pain. My 830 has 12 inches of space from the needle, so a sit down long arm doesn't seem like it will do that much for me. I can quilt pretty easy on it. The difference for me is the fluidity of movement. When I quilt on a long arm (in a frame), it feels like movements are more natural. I feel like I quilt better. I'm not sure if that is true in reality, but that is how it seems to me. I have quilted a king size quilt on my machine and I was pretty happy with the results. I like the fact, that with a frame, I can leave it and come back exactly where I stopped and nothing has moved. I have a big table that my machine is set in also, much larger than the tables that come with most sit down long arms.
Your set up looks pretty awesome. I quilt in a loft area upstairs. When we built the house I added some crazy amount of extra lighting but there are not outside windows. When #5 child moves out, I am going to get his room with its wonderful large window and that will be my time for a long arm and re-adjusting my quilting space. I am counting the days, lol. Hopefully, before then I can get some time on a Avante. I need to make a couple quilts to practice on, not ones I really love. That is the rub.

 

[Calliecake]

LOL. My husband is a woodworker. No tool I own can possibly be as loud as his tools. I wear blue-tooth head phones when I use my long-arm and he uses them when using his tools.

But, I AM currently winning the "most expensive tool used for a hobby" in the house with my Juki Miyabi.


Maybe. But, every quilter just wants the quilt to be used and loved. To wrap you in a hug. I'd be heart-broken if a quilt I made was still perfect a decade after I gifted it. I offer a life-time repair service for any quilt I make and gifted to make sure people will actually use them. For little kids, I often will cut off the first binding and add borders to make it bigger as they get bigger. Just love the quilt (and don't use them to line a dog crate or wrap furniture during moving).

You sound like great women with a big hearts @rockysalamander and @luv2sparkle

 

[monarch64]

Excited to attend this: https://www.ihqs.org/special-events...ghU9Rr71dnX0R6XnJzrjsSkidQLDFwBpyeGIRlX9W09NA

I gotta tell ya, the image of the quilt with the blue sky, corn, and telephone pole TOTALLY captures summer in Indiana. Looking at the picture online sent such a wave of nostalgia through me that I can't wait to see it in person. #geek

 

[luv2sparkle]

When is the actual show? Sometime between March 2-9. Looks like a great show.

 

[monarch64]

When is the actual show? Sometime between March 2-9. Looks like a great show.

It's the weekend of March 7-9.

 

[luv2sparkle]

Too fun! I love local shows. Road to CA is next thursday. Any time you want to come to CA for it Monarch, I will be happy to take you!

 

[rockysalamander]

So jealous. I love quilt shows.

 

[monarch64]

Too fun! I love local shows. Road to CA is next thursday. Any time you want to come to CA for it Monarch, I will be happy to take you!

Whoa, Road to CA looks HUGE! Maybe I will have to plan a winter getaway to CA next year--thank you for the offer!

 

[luv2sparkle]

I haven’t been to Paducah yet, but Road 2Ca is second only to the Houston show. I would love to get to Paducah this year. We have reservations to go to the Sisters, Or show the second weekend of July.
You would love the show, I hope you come!

 

[luv2sparkle]

Come on out!

So jealous. I love quilt shows.

Name the show, I will meet you all!

 

[Cozystitches]

Just a quick update on my daughter's quilt. I'm almost done quilting the center (it's about 36x42). I keep going with the hand piecing and will probably do the boarder in the "log cabin" style (one side, then do the bottom, then the other side, then the top). Still trying to figure out how I'll attach the border to the center as the border is hand pieced (English Paper Pieced) and the center is solid.

 

[rockysalamander]

Just a quick update on my daughter's quilt. I'm almost done quilting the center (it's about 36x42). I keep going with the hand piecing and will probably do the boarder in the "log cabin" style (one side, then do the bottom, then the other side, then the top). Still trying to figure out how I'll attach the border to the center as the border is hand pieced (English Paper Pieced) and the center is solid.

That is gorgeous! I so admire your handwork. It would be so hard to achieve that lovely basket weave/bamboo pattern with a machine.

 

[Cozystitches]

That is gorgeous! I so admire your handwork. It would be so hard to achieve that lovely basket weave/bamboo pattern with a machine.

Thanks! This is my first time doing the basket weave. My daughter voted for that vs the orange peel design. I don't mind the hand work, it makes watching tv acceptable as I'm still productive.

 

[luv2sparkle]

I can't do hand work watching football, I would make too many mistakes. I am doing a project with little 2 1/2 inch stars. Had to put it away for the day, I wouldn't be able to focus and one thread width is an error and do over.

Love the basketweave, Cozystitches. It looks awesome.

 

[rockysalamander]

I'm still working on machine quilting a BIG quilt, so I took a break. Not a great photo, but I spent a few hours turning my quilting practice pieces and offcuts from squaring up quilts into mug-rugs. I leave a stack of these in the office kitchen and folks can just take them as they like. It is fun to spread a little quilting around a bunch of very straight-up scientists and field biologists.

This is the back of the quilting shown against the batting. You can see the stitching a bit better.


And here are the ones I've already made today. They are like little slices of all the quilts I've made of late.

 

[luv2sparkle]

I got all my little blankets stitched together and I will put the binding on as needed. I bought 25 yard rolls of binding online. I can bind one in about 20 minutes. The large rolls of binding make it super easy. Here is one I added the binding. As I was pressing my iron spit a dirt spot (didn’t flush it after I cleaned the sole plate) so I had to wash it-so I had to bind it. It was my least favorite of all the cute prints I bought but I think some little boy will like it.

 

[luv2sparkle]

Here are the little stars for the pillow I am making for my bunco group. These little stars are kicking my butt a bit. I don’t usually do tiny but I will be really happy if I am good at it by the time I’m done.

 

[rockysalamander]

Here are the little stars for the pillow I am making for my bunco group. These little stars are kicking my butt a bit. I don’t usually do tiny but I will be really happy if I am good at it by the time I’m done.

Ugh...little blocks are my kryptonite! Yours are quilt lovely.

 

[rockysalamander]

I got all my little blankets stitched together and I will put the binding on as needed. I bought 25 yard rolls of binding online. I can bind one in about 20 minutes. The large rolls of binding make it super easy. Here is one I added the binding. As I was pressing my iron spit a dirt spot (didn’t flush it after I cleaned the sole plate) so I had to wash it-so I had to bind it. It was my least favorite of all the cute prints I bought but I think some little boy will like it.

These are adorable. Can you tell us how you apply the binding? I've never done this. I'm thinking it might be a good serger project. I may sew on a vintage machine, but my serger is only 1 year old (thank you Babylock for tubular threading).

 

[luv2sparkle]

Ugh...little blocks are my kryptonite! Yours are quilt lovely.[/QUOTE

I have three that I had to scrap because they weren’t 2 1/2 inches when I was finished. I can do the exact same thing and one thread makes a difference. I check my measurements every time. I want to be good at it!

 

[luv2sparkle]

I sew them on my sewing machine. I use my #4 stitch which is a variable zig zag-I think that’s true on most machines. I sew the two pieces of flannel together at one selvage edge, then trim the sides and sew them from the selvage side down, then trim up the bottom and sew that seam. I also heavily starch both fabrics before I start. It makes them so much easier to work with. I think I went through 12 bottles of starch for these blankies. Then I start in the middle of one long side and start applying the binding with the longer side of the binding on the bottom-on my machine I set my stitches at 3.7 width and 1.15 length for the binding. It gives a nice rounded serpentine stitch. When I get to the corner I miter the edge and keep on going. When I get to the place I started I fold the edge under and overlap about an inch. If I was doing a quilt I would miter the last edge but not here. Then when I am done I go over the corners with the same stitch set at 6.2w x 1.35L and also the overlap. I don’t want the miter to come undone. I have done this so many times I wrote myself directions on a big note card so I could remember how I liked it done.
I have had so many moms tell me that these blankets are their kids favorites. I know they were for mine. They are about 50 x 42 so they are a bit bigger than a store bought blanket. My kids kept them well into childhood. Flannel and satin binding are great combo. They tuck well into car seats and strollers as well.

I hope this makes sense...

 

[luv2sparkle]

I bought the bulk binding @doveoriginaltrims. It takes about 5 yards of binding and it requires two packages and a miter. I hate piecing them because satin is slippery and you have to make sure you get it right so the long side is still on the bottom. That can be close to $20 for binding if you can’t find it on sale. Bulk binding is 25 yards for $25. I buy white because most times white goes just fine. I have used colored binding for my grandchildren, I have to admit. My grandson loves Mickey Mouse so he has quite a few Mickey Mouse flannel ya-ya’s.

 

[luv2sparkle]

Rocky, you may be able to stitch them with your serger if you have a cover stitch. The stitches will be different but it should come out nicely. You may just have to hand stitch the miters in place.

 

[luv2sparkle]

@rockysalamander, I am so excited. I ordered my long are today. I got a Bernina Q20. It is a sit down long arm that come with a large table. If I decide I want a frame later it can be on a frame. Woohoo!

 

[Maria D]

@rockysalamander, I am so excited. I ordered my long are today. I got a Bernina Q20. It is a sit down long arm that come with a large table. If I decide I want a frame later it can be on a frame. Woohoo!

Lucky you! I've never seen one in person but in pics online it looks like a beast of a machine. Will it have its own room? Does it only do free-motion quilting or can you put a walking foot on it for regular machine quilting...

 

[MamaBee]

I got a few requests to post pictures of some of my quilts from folks over on Rocky Talky. This year, I fell off the Rocky Talky map while I worked on charity quilts. I committed to making 10 charity quilts for the holidays with a focus on boys that are in foster care. I finished 5 done myself. When I knew I would not make the deadline, I enlisted my mom to make 4 and a friend to make 3. So, together we mailed off 12 before the holidays.

As is always the case, I mailed mine them off before taking proper photos. This is the last of 5 like this I made in the same color palette to appeal to older boys in foster care. Piecing these takes about 4 hours each and the quilting takes about 15 hours each. This is the last one in this color set.

On this last one for this round and I'm about 2/3 done. I quilt the thread designs free-hand using a long-arm machine that I sit down at (called free-motion quilting). I use clamps and bungee cords to hang the quilt into order to make it move a bit better under the needle. Its a bit like sketching with thread. There are also words of love and support and strength tucked into the quilting here and there. They are like little easter-eggs for the kids to find.





I was asked to make a quilt for the same charity for a wheel-chair bound boy with FAS. They sent me a list of his favorite things and this is what I came up with. I quilted in words and spirals in the lower half of love and support. There are hearts and a few little sparkly unicorns pieced into the back.




Art quilts just for me.



Quilt given to my sister for a big birthday this year.


Do you have quilts to share? Please feel free to post your quilts!!

I love them! I have a vintage quilt that I use for my bed in Maryland. I thought I had a pic but I deleted it..It’s actually posted on here somewhere..I’ll post it on Saturday when I’m at my house in Maryland. You’re so talented!

 

[rockysalamander]

@rockysalamander, I am so excited. I ordered my long are today. I got a Bernina Q20. It is a sit down long arm that come with a large table. If I decide I want a frame later it can be on a frame. Woohoo!

So wonderful. My Juki has many of the same features. Just jump in and practice practice practice. I love mine.

 

[rockysalamander]

I love them! I have a vintage quilt that I use for my bed in Maryland. I thought I had a pic but I deleted it..It’s actually posted on here somewhere..I’ll post it on Saturday when I’m at my house in Maryland. You’re so talented!

I'd love to see a picture. Quilting is just fun and pretty easy to learn. Give it a try if you don't quilt.

 

[rockysalamander]

Excited to attend this: https://www.ihqs.org/special-events...ghU9Rr71dnX0R6XnJzrjsSkidQLDFwBpyeGIRlX9W09NA

I gotta tell ya, the image of the quilt with the blue sky, corn, and telephone pole TOTALLY captures summer in Indiana. Looking at the picture online sent such a wave of nostalgia through me that I can't wait to see it in person. #geek

How was the show?