Free Motion Quilting

[Jeanne A.]

I have been practicing, practicing and practicing for about two months now and I still can't seem to GET IT. I can do loops and spirals but everything else looks really bad.
I have some books - lots, actually but I can't seem to get my free motion quilting to look good.
Has anybody had this problem and solved it???
Maybe I should just quilt by checkbook

[Margo C.]

Hmmmm....a couple of months??? How many HOURS have you actually quilted???

Why don't you try quilting something that you are really familiar with? Fill up a whole quilt sandwich (45" x 45") with your signature!
Rows and rows of your name. By the time you finish you should either be lots more comfortable with it, or get out the wallet!! :wink:

Be sure that your work space is set up properly and your machine is working well so that you aren't frustrated with mechanical issues.

Good luck!

[Margo C.]

And possibly, slow down. That was my biggest problem--once I slowed down things looked better. Of course, there is always the--put the design on paper and sew over it method.

[Nancy R.]

It's hard to know what might be happening without watching you, but here are some things that I keep in mind as I quilt. I'm assuming you're using a domestic machine since you are just starting. Most of them have to do with moving your quilt easily and smoothly.
- quilt on a surface that is a large and as flat as possible. You want your surface to support as much of the weight of the quilt as possible. With a large quilt, most of my problems come from the front edge getting caught on the edge of the table in front of my stomach so I try to pay particular attention to that.
- make your quilting surface as slick as possible. I've used a Supreme Slider and silicone spray, both with success. If using spray, make sure to use a kind that will not stain your quilt!
- wear quilting gloves to get more traction between your hands and the quilt.
- don't press down too hard on the quilt as you're trying to move it. I realized one day that I do this, so now I try to think about lightening up so the quilt can move more easily and smoothly. (I'm a control freak so I have to pay careful attention to this one.)
- move your hands more often than you want. I sometimes get worried about moving my hands and perhaps creating a jog in the quilting, and end up not being able to move the quilt smoothly because my hands are in a bad position.
- relax and breathe. I tend to grit my teeth, hold my breath and tense my shoulders so I also have to concentrate on this one.
- don't be too hard on yourself. The quilting doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful. As I'm quilting I see every little error, every place where the line isn't smooth or didn't go quite where I wanted it to. But if I continue on and then step back to look at it, the flaws recede and I get the effect of the quilting as a whole. Look closely at the quilting in pictures from magazines and books. While some quilts have seemly unattainably perfect quilting, other very stunning quilts have more human-looking quilting. But the quilting is impressive when you let yourself step back and experience it as a whole.

That's all I can think of for now. I hope some of it is helpful. Most of all, enjoy the process. It's worth it!

Nancy

[Susan B.]

2 months? I've been practicing for years! I've discovered Wonderfil Invisifil thread. It's 100wt, very fine and great for beautiful free-motion quilting. Contrasting thread looks awful when you're first starting, as does heavy thread. If you match the thread to the fabric, errors really don't show as bad but the textures come through. I'm really liking the result.

I use Bottomline in the bobbin & drop the top tension a fair amount with the Invisifil thread. (2.75 on my machine) Right now my needle of choice is a Schmetz 75 Quilting Needle. I also loosened the presser foot pressure a bit (I think that's what you call it)

The bite-sized quilting technique (see the Bernina video on the homepage) takes away having to wrestle with a full-sized quilt & turns out a really nice product. Right now I'm working on 12" blocks with the OESD Feathered Beauties embroidered in the middle. I cut the block and batting bigger than the finished size to give something to hold on to to get to the edges.

After having a BSR for 3 years, I'm finally hooked. I go slow, a loop at a time, use gloves, and a small stitch length (2.0 to 2.5 for feathers, 1.5 for tiny stipple). After poking needle holes in two supreme sliders, I've given up on those. I just use my fingertips with very light pressure to guide the fabric, rotating lots for good visibility.

Doodle constantly, waiting at the doctor's office, watching tv, in meetings. This has helped tremendously with free-motion feathers and lots more.

http://dianegaudynski.blogspot.com/
http://www.daystyledesigns.com/365project.htm
Patsy Thompson's classroom videos
http://mqresource.com/ - free registration and free videos with absolutely stunning quilts to look at

I even watch every long-armer video I can find just to watch their techniques & see how it might apply. It's amazing to see the pros make mistakes :lol: Karen McTavish actually picks out stitches if they look bad.
Be patient with yourself, enjoy the process & keep at it. You will get better!
hth
Susan

[Margo C.]

Bean, you are getting lots of good advice here! You can do this!!!

[Margo C.]

I just took my first class in machine free-motion quilting and it is a little daunting, to say the least. Our instructor told us to plan on making lots and lots of placemats, so we have something to show for all that practice.

[Margo C.]

Crocus 999 you might want to look at this young ladies blog, she puts up a new machine quilting pattern each week complete with video and and commentary. http://freemotionquilting.blogspot.c...t-in-wind.html.

[Margo C.]

Lots of good advise already posted. May I add that I had been feeling rather good about my quilting until a recent piece that was driving me to drink. Thinking about it the only change was because of color choice I was using a different brand of thread. Next piece I deliberately went back to the brand I used most often. It is a softer thread and just glided better in the loops, etc. Needless to say I now have my threads sorted, one drawer for piecing and one for quilting to not get caught again. I am getting a lot of practice right now making mug rugs, approx 6x8" for a tuck shop.

[Margo C.]

Thanks for the link, Dorothy. I'm going to try it.

[Jeanne A.]

Thank you everyone for all the good advice!!!
I feel more confident already.
Dorothy, I loved that link!

[Pam D.]

Dorothy, that link is really good, thank you.

[Lotti D.]

fabulous link, dorothy, thank you
i think that one day soon, i'll really have to tackle it too

[Margo C.]

Bean, you may also get some additional tips by watching Patsy Thompson's videos in the TQS Classroom!

learn/classrooms/

[susan h.]

I have just run across the videos and blog of Leah Day (http://www.daystyledesigns.com/index.htm). She has something called "The FreeMotion Quilting Project" (http://www.freemotionquilting.blogspot.com/). She is aiming to create 365 free motion quilting designs, and the 280+ she has already are pretty amazing. Her YouTube videos are also great. She quilts each design in a 4" square, using dark fabric and very light thread, so you can see everything, and she has great commentary. Highly recommend checking this out and would be great to see her on TQS.