In article 1oPIe.171419$9A2.126409@edtnps89,
"~KK in BC~" wrote:
I need HELP. I have never actually MQ'd anything. I have done SITD and I
have tied and I have done QAYG but never have been able to quite figure out
where to start and how to do it and what is the easy way and how to develop
a technique for any kind of MQing.
What I need and cannot find anywhere is a step by step from the sandwich to
the stitching to the finishing of how to do this.
How do you get yourself in order to MQ? What steps do you take? How do you
tame the beast roll the thing, do small parts, etc? Since everyone has a
different way of attacking this I thought maybe some of us could benefit
from your helpful ideas and tips for this?
~KK in BC~ who is willing to bite off a new chew in the quilting world
Here's how I do it.
I decide if I'm going to hand or machine quilt. Then I decide how I'm
going to baste - usually it's a choice between thread basting or fusible
batt basting. I'm not a fan of pins as I find them heavy and a pain to
either pull out or work around when I am in a quilting groove. Since I
am anal about squaring things up the spray doesn't work to well with my
method but I use it occasionally for small things.
Tools - a carpenters square from the hardware store; a big flat space to
lay things out (I can do a table but I prefer a floor where things stay
put); big pins (I like those big quilting pins with the yellow bead at
the end); batting; backing sewn to size, selvedges removed and pressed
well; nicely pressed quilt top
Lay out the backing wrong side up and smooth it out flat. Spread out
the batting and smooth it out. Add the top, right side up, and smooth
everything out nicely.
Place the carpenters square (a big L shaped metal ruler) atop the center
block of the quilt. Gently using your fingers adjust the top so that
the right angle of the block exactly lines up with the right angle of
the square. Be sure you only move the top of the quilt and the batt and
backing remain in place to avoid wrinkles on the back. Using the big
pins, pin along the newly squared seams. Slide the ruler to the next
seam and line it up. Work across the quilt in both directions until
every seam is pinned and perfectly straight and square. Gently lift
each corner of the quilt and peek at the back to make sure it has
remained smooth and flat. Now I either thread baste or press with an
iron to fuse the batt to the top and back of the quilt. Then I thread
baste around the edges of the quilt folding the backing up over the
loose batting to keep it contained and give me a nice neat edge that
won't catch on my machine.
For quilting, I prefer the Paula Reid "puddling" method of machine
quilting. Keep the quilt loose (rather than rolled or folded and
clipped) under your machine. Using the walking foot I do some
stabilizing quilting in the ditch around the blocks, borders and outside
edge of the quilt. Now I can quilt my patterns either using the walking
foot (for straight line or gently curving designs) or the darning foot
for free motion quilting.
I'm a pretty traditional quilter so my quilts are usually made up of
rows of blocks surrounded by borders. I will typically quilt the center
of the quilt first. I will start the pattern at the edge of the border
with the first stitch in the seam line. I will take a few stitches and
then pull the bobbin thread to the top so I can hang on to them both and
not sew over them. When I have to stop I also leave a long tail and
pull the bobbin thread to the top.
After I have quilted the center I knot the threads together (needle and
bobbin thread) thread them onto a big eyed embroidery needle and weave
them into the quilt. I put the needle exactly into the hole the top
thread is coming out of and slide the needle into the batt between the
quilt layers. After sliding through the quilt layers a couple of inches
I pull the needle out the top of the quilt, make sure the knot has
popped into the quilt layers and trim the threads even with the top of
the quilt.
I happen to really like Sue Nickels Machine Quilting book (you can see
it at Amazon.com) I also took a class from Paula Reid and she had a lot
of good tips. She has some tips on her website
http://www.battsintheattic.com/PrimaryPages/tips.html
and I saw in the new Quilter's Newsletter Magazine that she has a DVD
coming out soon.
hope some of this helps
marcella