Order of quilting

[Frances L.]

I am quilting a medallion quilt. There is a Mariner's Compass in the center with a border around that. The next border is made up of 12 star blocks. Then to make it not square, there is a small border on two opposite sides. Then there is a plain fabric border and then a pieced border. I have outlined the Compass and stars with MonoPoly on the top and Bottom Line in the bottom. I am planning on stipple quilting in the background of the Compass and the stars to make them stand out. The small border will probably get some scrolly looking something. The plain border will probably get straight lines. My question is, what do I do next? Do I work from the center out, stippling around the compass and doing something in the small border around it, and then work my way out? Do I do all the straight line stuff first and then go back and do the stipple? This is the first time I've done anything this involved and don't want to screw it up. I should mention that the first thing I did after pinning it was to go through with water soluble thread and sew around all the blocks and borders to keep everything in place. Thanks for any suggestions!

[Margo C.]

Frances, it sounds like you have already got everything pretty well stabilized, so it shouldn't make any difference what order you tackle the rest of the quilting.
Personally, when I'm working on my domestic, I like to stitch in the ditch (MonoPoly and Bottom Line) all of the border seams then go back and do motifs and fills.
I always try to keep the density even to prevent distortion. For instance, I wouldn't stipple around the entire center medallion before quilting anything else to avoid the issue of having the center draw up from quilting and leaving the outside border with a lot of fullness to ease in.
You can do this! Looking forward to seeing how it turns out!

[Renata L.]

Margo, thanks for your info for Frances--I had the very same question in mind as I was about to start quilting my project. Pardon my extreme ignorance ops: in asking one more question: I have Wonder Invisible Thread (100% Nylon) by YLI; is this similar enough to the MonoPoly you describe? Will it work to stabilize my project as you explained to Frances? THANKS!!! Renata

[Margo C.]

Margo, thanks for your info for Frances--I had the very same question in mind as I was about to start quilting my project. Pardon my extreme ignorance ops: in asking one more question: I have Wonder Invisible Thread (100% Nylon) by YLI; is this similar enough to the MonoPoly you describe? Will it work to stabilize my project as you explained to Frances? THANKS!!! Renata

Renata, I have used YLI invisible nylon thread for over 20 years and really do like it. I still use it in my domestic machine, but I now use more MonoPoly by Superior. It is a polyester thread that works well on my long-arm.

Nylon has a lower melting point than polyester so it is said that you need to be careful about ironing over it. However, I've never had a problem with it melting. Maybe my iron isn't hot enough?? It is also said that eventually nylon thread will get brittle and break. That may be a consideration if you don't expect your quilt to last more than one generation, but otherwise, I haven't had any problems with it so far!

[Renata L.]

Thanks, Margo, for the explanation. I've been using more Superior products lately and liking them. I also like YLI but did not grasp the differences. Since this quilt is a wall quilt, I think I will be safe with YLI. In the meantime, I'll order MonoPoly and see how I like that.
Cheers,
Renata

[Frances L.]

Renata, I first stabilized it with water soluble thread that will disappear when I wash the quilt. It was meant to add another layer of basting in addition to the pins. I also hope that it will help keep me from getting puckers on the back.
Frances

[Terry K.]

Renata, I too have used YLI's nylon for years and it will work for you. For nylon thread, it has a higher melt temperature than other nylon threads and it hasn't yellowed or become brittle in quilts that I quilted 15-20 years ago. However, once you stitch with either Superior's Monopoly or Maderia's Monofilament, you will find how much better these products are. The thread is finer and softer so that it buries more easily into your fabric and is even more transparent/invisible than the YLI product.

[Renata L.]

Terry and Frances,
Thank you, Terry, for you opinion about the differences between YLI and other threads. I am definitely going to try MonoPoly but will use the YLI I have for the current project. Frances, I would have never thought to add basting with water-soluble thread to reduce puckering! I have a spool of it but only thought about using it with trapunto! What a great idea!
Renata