Quilting - Where To Begin?

[Blooie]

I enjoyed machine quilting, and haven't done any for a long time. Must get back to it this winter! Need a new location in the house, part of the problem...
Hand quilting, tried, and don't have patience for it.
Mary

Hi, Mary!

 

[21hens-incharge]

I found out yesterday that my stepsons process in adopting an 11 year old little girl is moving forward well. If all continues to go well she will be in their home within 6 months. It has been a very long process.

Maybe the cheerful colors quilt will help make her feel welcome. She has had a rough start in life. Nick and his wife will make wonderful parents.

I think I will add yellow borders and send it out for long arm quilting then bind it in a bright medium blue.

 

[HomesteaderWife]

I've been gathering more and more material for the quilt idea as we have went along. Old t-shirts and such that hold memories for my husband and I, favorite articles that just tore or faded almost beyond recognition over the years. I've got a storage tote almost to the brim with them, so I'll cut squares from them eventually. I want to try and find a metal square to use as a pattern trace, then a reliable and clean cutting pair of scissors to cut the quilt squares.

What thread do you recommend? Has anyone tried with a smaller but durable fishing line when making their quilts?

Love the photos shared thus far. Thanks for reminding me of this thread, and I haven't forgotten my goals just had so much else going on lately and I'm hoping when we get our addition done, I can use it for these types of things. But getting the first part of the cabin done was a hard process. Now the porch that will connect both sides. Eventually the A-frame for a kitchen. Then one day, this part will become the sitting room and maybe I'll have some sort of frame to quilt with.

 

[Blooie]

I found out yesterday that my stepsons process in adopting an 11 year old little girl is moving forward well. If all continues to go well she will be in their home within 6 months. It has been a very long process.

Maybe the cheerful colors quilt will help make her feel welcome. She has had a rough start in life. Nick and his wife will make wonderful parents.

I think I will add yellow borders and send it out for long arm quilting then bind it in a bright medium blue.

Oh, congratulations to the whole family!! What a lucky little girl! I think that’s a wonderful idea!! Don’t forget to add a label commemorating the adoption and welcoming her to the warmth of your family!

@HomesteaderWife ….T-shirt material can be very difficult to work with, which is why I’ve never used it myself. It’s stretchy and the edges want to curl up as you work with it. I can’t tell you what the process is - I don’t know but I do know it includes a special process for working with it. You might Google how to sew stretchy fabrics for hints on threads , tension settings, needles, etc.

I don’t recommend fishing line for sewing. It will saw through the fibers and weaken anything you sew with it. There are nylon sewing threads you can buy.

 

[21hens-incharge]

That's a wonderful idea @Blooie. My machine has letters in it I have zero idea how to use BUT I do know how to hand embroider.

I bought polka dot backing that has big 2" dots on white background for it. It is a really bright happy quilt.

This is both an exciting and terrifying time for all of them I am certain. Hopefully a happy quilt will be comforting.

 

[NatJ]

I want to try and find a metal square to use as a pattern trace, then a reliable and clean cutting pair of scissors to cut the quilt squares.

You can cut a square of cardboard to trace around. If you cut several squares at once, you've got spares for when the first one gets dog-eared. I've used pieces of cereal boxes, cracker boxes, Kleenex boxes, and so forth.

Or you could look at "quilter's rulers" because they are usually made of a sturdy acrylic (so you can see through them), with markings running both directions.

I have one "ruler" that is 6 1/2 inches square, which is perfect for a 6 inch square with seam allowances.. It's got a grid of lines an inch apart, with little crosshatches to show the fractions. That means I can use it to mark or cut 2 sides of a square, then slide it until the already-cut parts line up with a certain marking and cut the other 2 sides of a square, if I want one smaller than the whole ruler.

Those quilter's rulers work really well with a rotary cutter (like a pizza cutter for fabric, used on a special mat so you do not cut your table or dull the blade. You hold the ruler down firmly with one hand, and roll the cutter along beside it for a straight, fast cut.) But they also work well if you just draw around them, then use scissors to cut on the lines you drew.

For scissors, I have a pair of 8" Gingher-brand "knife edge dressmaker's shears," and I really like them. They tend to be expensive to buy, so consider using a coupon at a place like Joanns or Michaels, or looking online for a deal, but they last practically forever. (Occasional sharpening can be a good idea, but they cut LOTS of fabric before you even need to consider that.)

My mother was unhappy when Dad borrowed her Gingher shears to cut foil-backed fiberglass insulation. But they cut it very well, and after Dad had them resharpened, they were as good as ever! I'm sure she's been using the same pair for at least 40 years.

What thread do you recommend? Has anyone tried with a smaller but durable fishing line when making their quilts?

I like Gutermann brand polyester sewing thread. Other brands may also be good, but I've just stuck with the brand my mother liked, and it's worked well for me. It's available at various fabric stores, and also online. Some online places have it much cheaper than Joanns does, so I usually order many spools at once to save on shipping, and then spend years using them before I have to buy more.

If you are comparing prices on thread, read the label to see how many yards they have. Some brands wind a few yards around a fat spool, while other brands wind many yards around a thin spool, so the "big" spool is not always a good deal!

I have not tried fishing line for a quilt, but I know if feels much different than thread to sew with. I would not like that feeling.

When I sew a quilt with polyester thread, the fabric usually wears out before the thread does, so using stronger thread would not help my quilts last any longer.

Then one day, this part will become the sitting room and maybe I'll have some sort of frame to quilt with.

The frame can be useful when you are putting in the quilting stitches that hold the front, batting, and back together, although there are also ways to do it without a frame.

But for pieceing the front together, you would not use a quilting frame even if you had space for one. So if you want to start, you can be making the front (and the back, if you want to make it from pieces as well.)

When I quilt, I do not use a quilting frame at all. I spread the quilt layers out on the floor, and put in large number of safety pins to keep all the layers together. Then I either pile it beside my sewing machine while I feed sections under the needle to quilt, or I pile it on the couch with part on my lap as I hand-quilt a bit at a time. My quilts are not perfect, and they have occasional crinkles that a frame might have prevented, but they do work to keep people warm until the fabric falls apart. (And no-one else ever seems to see the flaws I know are there.)

 

[21hens-incharge]

I got my pay stub yesterday and was surprised to see a bonus on there. The frugal me says squirrel it all away but the quilter in me has been eyeing a new chair and quilting frame!

Maybe I will get the chair and shop a thread sale I saw. And perhaps a couple assorted size hoops.

 

[Folly's place]

New chairs are a health issue! More comfortable, better on your back, and totally justified!
Mary

 

[Folly's place]

And better quilting set-up? Mental health improvement too...

 

[21hens-incharge]

Looking online I missed the thread sale completely.

This is the chair I am looking at. Casters are an optional additional purchase and not expensive at all.