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The Sew What’s New Archive

This archived content is from Mary Wilkins’ sewing and quilting message board “Sew What’s New,” which was retired in August 2007. It is being provided by “Sew What’s Up,” which serves as the new home for many members of “Sew What’s New.”

Sew What's New Archive > GENERAL QUILTING > First quilt (maybe)

From: Sparky

Date: 01-18-2006, 02:38 PM (1 of 20)

I'm thinking of making a quilt. Just a little one; just a throw. I've never quilted anything before, unless you count the times I sat at the frame beside my grandmother, who probably picked out my stitches as soon as I left, bless her heart. But I made some scrubs tops for my daughter, with pockets, and, since I wanted to match the patterns, I bought more than was called for and I have a lot left, so I was thinking of making this into a little throw for her.

I'm just planning to use simple squares, nothing too complicated. I'm pretty sure I can figure out piecing it together, and pinning the layers together, but I'll take any and all advice I can find on how to quilt the silly thing. Assuming I don't chicken out. I'm not sure if I'd machine quilt or hand quilt, but if I do hand quilt, how do I hide the knots? I think there's a way to do this but I don't know what it is.

I know there's a wealth of quilting information on the web, but it's overwhelming. Any advice would be welcomed. Can anyone direct me to a SIMPLE tutorial?

Thanks,

Sparky

User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005
Total posts: 94

From: carman

Date: 01-18-2006, 03:07 PM (2 of 20)

http://sew-whats-new.com/CMS/index.php?option=content&task=category&sectionid=2&id=7&Itemid=32

here is link to our own site here at SWN starts at the basics :up:

User: carman
Member since: 04-17-2000
Total posts: 692

From: JoanieB

Date: 01-19-2006, 01:39 PM (3 of 20)

When you start quilting you will discover just how addicting it can become, so be prepared. I hope you love it as much as I do. I've not been quilting very long, only 2 or 3 years so I still consider myself a beginner in the whole scheme of things. I hand and machine piece but I Primarily hand quilt. I just bought a book one day when I decided to teach myself. There a numerous books/videos/DVDs out there and if you are fortunate enough to have a place to take some classes you may be interested in that is a great help, as well as the camraderie of other quilters. To hide my knots I just insert my needle through the top layer and the batting making sure not to go through the back and just give it a tug until it pops through the top. If you do not make your knot too large it's not too hard to pull through. I'm sure there are other ways to hide the knot, but that is the way I was taught. Hope you have fun with your first quilt and hope it the first of many to come. :bg:

User: JoanieB
Member since: 01-28-2005
Total posts: 68

From: Sparky

Date: 01-20-2006, 02:16 PM (4 of 20)

Thanks!

I knew there was some knot-hiding trick, Joanie B. My grandmother didn't teach my that, back when I was five.

I'm debating whether to hand-quilt it or not. I'd really like to do it by hand, but I'm also in a hurry. It's cold NOW. Plus, my daughter's having a tough semester and I think it will cheer her up. Maybe I'll just try a few squares and see how it goes, and if it's going to take too long, I can pull out the stitches and knot it or machine-stitch in the ditch. I could always go back and quilt it later.

Also, I realized after posting that I probably should have put this in the "beginning quilting" forum. Sorry about that.

Sparky

User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005
Total posts: 94

From: Dustbunny01

Date: 01-20-2006, 10:57 PM (5 of 20)

sounds like you have a good plan.

Quilting is so much fun

simple squares will be fast and easy..

Just remember you use 1/4" seams when quilting, and press both seams over to one side and to the darkest side of the fabric.

When pinning take your backing and tape down tight on a big table. making sure your backing is nice and tight

User: Dustbunny01
Member since: 11-11-2005
Total posts: 159

From: Sparky

Date: 01-22-2006, 12:02 PM (6 of 20)

Thanks for the tip on taping down the backing, Dustbunny.

I have the top finished! It's rectangles of prints, with blue horizontal and vertical strips between, and hot-pink squares where the strips meet. (Does that make sense?) There may well be a name for this pattern but if so I don't know what it is. I used those colors because that's what I had. Everything but the batting and binding will be from leftovers.

The squares don't all line up perfectly, but it came out better than I expected. For a first effort done on the fly it's pretty cute. Now to put it together!

One more silly-newbie question, please? I know I have to assemble the layers and baste them next. Then do I put the binding on before or after I quilt? Or does it matter?

Thanks again for all your kind help, everyone.

Sparky

User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005
Total posts: 94

From: carman

Date: 01-22-2006, 12:05 PM (7 of 20)

after you are done the quilting :up:

User: carman
Member since: 04-17-2000
Total posts: 692

From: Sparky

Date: 01-22-2006, 10:48 PM (8 of 20)

Great!

I guess the only thing I forgot was that I don't know how to quilt. I look at the beautiful stitching on the quilts my grandmother made, and at the stitches I did tonight. Apparently I haven't improved any since I was five.

Well, maybe practice will help. The fourth block I did looked like it was done by a six-year-old. Hey, it's progress!

Sparky

User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005
Total posts: 94

From: Magot

Date: 01-23-2006, 02:21 AM (9 of 20)

On all those Amish website they say that the best quilting by hand is done at 20 stsitches to the inch - ha! personaly I don't believe that is humanly possible ans so long as I get my stitches even I am a happy bunny - I don't think I average at more than 5-6 to the inch...hand quilting is very theraputic - regard it as balm for the soul.

love and kisses, Jan
Guts-R-Us
Cells a Speciality
DNA to order.

User: Magot
Member since: 12-22-2002
Total posts: 3626

From: Sparky

Date: 01-23-2006, 10:59 AM (10 of 20)

5-6 to the inch? I'm getting MAYBE 3 to the inch. How in the heck to you get the needle through those layers and up again so close? I mean, seriously, I can't figure out how to do it. I frequently resorted to pushing the needle back up from the bottom, which still looked pretty bad.

I know I just need (years and years of) practice, but I can't help but wonder if there's some trick I'm missing. Is it possible that my batting's too fat? I used Thinsulate.

I finally figured out that I do better if I push the needle toward me rather than away from me.

Sparky

User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005
Total posts: 94

From: HeyJudee

Date: 01-23-2006, 09:04 PM (11 of 20)

Maybe this will help...it talks about hand quilting and shows you how to do the "rocking stitch" - the hand quilting stitch. I'm a machine quilter...only hand quilted my first quilt...didn't worry about the size of my stitches at that time. In my opinion, if a quilt is quilted by hand it doesn't matter how large or small the stitches are!
http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/t00024.asp
http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/cr_quilting_tips/article/0,1789,HGTV_3307_1390575,00.html

TTFN from
Judy

User: HeyJudee
Member since: 01-25-2005
Total posts: 1366

From: JoanieB

Date: 01-23-2006, 11:15 PM (12 of 20)

Sparky: The number of stitches per inch is not as important as being consistent, try for eveness between stitches. I only quilt bringing my needle towards me, thats the only way I've been taught. Practice, practice, practice. I've noticed that my stitches get smaller and more even the further I get into a quilt. By the time I am getting close to finishing they don't look half bad. Hang in there you will truly learn to love and greatly enjoy quilting.

Joanie B :up:

User: JoanieB
Member since: 01-28-2005
Total posts: 68

From: Sparky

Date: 01-24-2006, 09:18 AM (13 of 20)

Thanks for the links, Judee. That first one is an eye-opener. So THAT'S what it looks like! I'd found the second one myself, and it is a good site. (See? I do make an effort to learn stuff for myself before I bother you guys.) And thanks for your encouragement too, Joanie.

I worked on it a bit more last night and I finally realized that, while I certainly need lots of practice, 90% of my problem is that I used fabric that really isn't suitable for what I'm trying to do. My blocks were lightweight cotton-poly blends, but my in-between strips and backing are leftovers from fabrics I'd used for pants. They're not quite as heavy as denim, but almost. Trying to make tiny stitches in this stuff is not going to work, and even when I work on the lightweight blocks, I keep running into the seams, which include heavy fabric, and even if I don't hit a seam, there's still the heavy backing. My fingers are sore from pulling the needle out. I push it through as far as I can with the thimble, but it gets stuck and I have to yank it out. I did a small section on one of the blocks where the seam had been pressed away, and I was amazed at how easy it was, and how, well, I won't say good, but how not-too-bad my stitches looked! They were downright acceptable!

I probably could finish this by hand, but I think it will just look better if I quilt it by machine. I don't have a special machine, but since this is not a full-size quilt (it's around 48 X 60) I think I can manage it. It would also go a lot faster, and I'm in a bit of a hurry, since January's almost over, and I want to give it to my daughter this winter.

But, I am frustrated at not succeeding. I feel like I could learn to do this stitch if I stuck with it. I have a feeling I'm going to have to try again, one day.

Thank you for all your encouragement, everybody. Got any tips on machine-quilting?

Sparky

User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005
Total posts: 94

From: Dede

Date: 01-24-2006, 11:28 AM (14 of 20)

Sparky, you have succeeded. No if, buts or maybes about it. You've gone from beginning to end and that's success. This is supposed to fun so be proud of your first work of art. :up:

User: Dede
Member since: 03-23-2001
Total posts: 469

From: HeyJudee

Date: 01-24-2006, 06:34 PM (15 of 20)

Sparky, do you have a walking foot...or a darning foot? If you have a walking foot, you could quilt it with straight lines since your quilt is made of squares. Using the walking foot would be the easier method of quilting.

If not, then you could use a darning foot and you could do free-motion quilting...either stipple quilting or loops, etc. But free motion takes practice to get the hang of it. Generally you would make some practice sandwiches - approx. 18" square of material on top and bottom with the batting in between - and try the quilting. Also, you might want to check out other posts under the Beginner Quilting thread. There have been other discussions about quilting in the past. You may get some tips there.

Here are some links that might help.

http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesArticle/id-1792,subcat-HOBBIES.html

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Prairie/7628/studio.html http://www.acornhillquilts.com/starquilting.htm

http://www.quiltindex.com/ATQF/q_and_a_single.asp?QAID=49

TTFN from
Judy

User: HeyJudee
Member since: 01-25-2005
Total posts: 1366

From: Sparky

Date: 01-25-2006, 01:20 PM (16 of 20)

You know, if I'd been a bit more patient and actually waited for some ANSWERS before forging ahead, this project would have gone much smoother.

I do not have a walking foot, but I did some quilting last night anyway. I sort of held the fabric down with both arms and pushed it forward as the machine moved it. It looks okay, except that some of my stitches are VERY uneven in length, because every now and then I'd sort of get stuck. Far from perfect, but I'll probably just let it go rather than trying to fix those parts, but I'll look into getting a walking foot, too.

Repeatedly pushing the whole thing back and forth through the machine was a chore, but manageable. I did kind of figure out rolling up the ends, and I did put my ironing board on the far side of my sewing table at the same height, which was kind of handy. Fortunately, my machine's mounted in a vertical cabinet, so the quilt can't "pull it right off the table" as the links cautioned me about.

I think I do have an embroidery/darning foot, and I think I'll practice with it. If I can figure out how I'd like to do a little paw-print design on my smallest squares. But if that doesn't work I'll figure something else.

You have all been so wonderful. I just can't get over how friendly and helpful the people here are. And not once did you say, "Sparky, get off your lazy butt and go look it up yourself!" I really appreciate all your help and encouragement, and I can't wait to get home from work and work on this some more!

Sparky

User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005
Total posts: 94

From: Sparky

Date: 01-30-2006, 04:41 PM (17 of 20)

It's finished! It's beautiful! (Okay, don't look too hard at those stitches.)

It's far, far better than I expected, and I couldn't have done it without your help. Thanks again, everyone.

It's going in the mail this afternoon.

Sparky

User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005
Total posts: 94

From: HeyJudee

Date: 01-30-2006, 08:26 PM (18 of 20)

Congratulations! One down and many many more to come!!! :bg: