Ongoing Quilt Projects, Continued from the "No Appreciation...." Thread

[User395221]

holey moley, I wasn't paying much attention when you were discussing the cost of the fancy machines.
Somebody local is selling a sewing machine and all of their stuff (cabinet, accessories) and that's quite cheap compared to new. So I thought I'd just have a look at machines online.....
I've just brought one up with the frame and the long arm. It costs as much as my car.

 

[speckledhen]

Speckledhen that is basically McTavishing. You can use it anywhere if small as a background or larger add more curves to make it interesting. Adds tons of texture.

I was watching this Angela Walters video and tried it and I can do it (which is often how I choose my motifs, LOL, that I can do it). I'm not sure what to do in the stars unless I don't separate them out and just put them in the all-over pattern. I really, really don't want to get out my hand quilting skills on those stars! It will bog me down too much getting it done.

I was also trying this motif by Lori Kennedy that I was considering for the center square on the stars, which may be more appropriate than the other one:

holey moley, I wasn't paying much attention when you were discussing the cost of the fancy machines.
Somebody local is selling a sewing machine and all of their stuff (cabinet, accessories) and that's quite cheap compared to new. So I thought I'd just have a look at machines online.....
I've just brought one up with the frame and the long arm. It costs as much as my car.

Oh, yeah, they can be $1500-5000 for a decent machine, all the way up to around $10K for a quality longarm, which is more than I paid for my last small SUV! The ones I've been considering are about $2-3K, sitdown longarm quilters like the Janome Artistic. I don't need or want a computer on it to break down, though there is a version of the Artistic that does have a console for other features that seems pretty darn cool (and more pricey).

 

[User395221]

Oh, yeah, they can be $1500-5000 for a decent machine, all the way up to around $10K for a quality longarm,

It was over AU$20,000. Yes, seriously.

 

[speckledhen]

It was over AU$20,000. Yes, seriously.

I believe you! Prices there seem high on a lot of things. With me, it wouldn't matter if it was 10K or 50K, I still couldn't afford it. Even if I could, there is no place for a longarm in my house unless I stuck it in the basement and no way I'm going down there to quilt unless it's finished off and warmer in the winter than it is now!

 

[User395221]

there is no place for a longarm in my house

Yes, it is huge. For that outlay and space requirement, it'd have to be a commercial purchase. Probably quite a learning curve, as well.

 

[speckledhen]

Yes, it is huge. For that outlay and space requirement, it'd have to be a commercial purchase. Probably quite a learning curve, as well.

Definitely. Even very proficient quilters on a home machine have to learn control on a longarm. I watched Leah Day, who has supreme control and is an expert quilter, struggle a little when she got her longarm machine. Makes me feel less fumble-fisted learning machine quilting after 30 years of hand quilting. Each skill is a little different.

 

[DuckLady]

holey moley, I wasn't paying much attention when you were discussing the cost of the fancy machines.
Somebody local is selling a sewing machine and all of their stuff (cabinet, accessories) and that's quite cheap compared to new. So I thought I'd just have a look at machines online.....
I've just brought one up with the frame and the long arm. It costs as much as my car.

They can definitely be a spendy investment. I would have loved to have a top of the line Gammill or APQS machine, but $30k was out of my reach. The HandiQuilter was in my price range and perfect for what I do. Still an investment, but well worth it for me. The HQ dealer nearest me is selling their fully loaded demo HQ Infinity with Pro Stitcher for $20k. It's a steal, relatively speaking. It's an almost $30k setup, once you figure delivery, setup and lessons. While I would love a Pro Stitcher, I don't want to spend $10k on it.

Now I am looking to upgrade my Brother QC1000 to either a Brother DreamWeaver VQ3000 or DreamWeaver XE VM6200D embroidery/quilting combo. I would love "The Dream Machine" but even with my trade in and loyalty discount it's out of my league.

Such first world problems. LOL

 

[speckledhen]

Such first world problems. LOL

Yup, no kidding! Aren't we lucky folks?

Well, I figured out how to use my wavy line quilting on this quilt. I think this made sense. Not sure still about the center of the star, but I can figure that out. The radiating sun rays make the center square puffy and really stands it up.

 

[speckledhen]

Two funny sayings by Christina Cameli on YouTube:
Quilting Jedi--I love this. I wanna be a quilting Jedi Master!
"I hope you give yourself plenty of time to pet your quilting", referencing running your hands over the texture of pebbling, LOL.

 

[speckledhen]

Suggestions for the middle of the stars? It's too puffy right now. Can't be quilted densely or will have folds, but maybe a heart with a couple of echoes? I'd rather not do straight lines (not my forte).