Quilting the Stargazer Quilt

(top view)

(back view)

After finishing the baby quilt last week, I was feeling a little guilty that my son's quilt (using the same pattern) was not done yet. It needed to be quilted and I decided to practice my swirls. It is getting easier, and I found pockets where I would get into a good groove. Then I would get stuck. I used the needle down function so I could stop and figure out where to go next. At one point, I sewed right over a basting pin that I didn't see and broke my needle. Whoops! Let's not do that again.

I really like the swirls, it has a rhythm to it that is more enjoyable than straight line quilting. Also, I think it adds a whimsical, dreamy quality to these stars. A hidden benefit is the workout it gave my arms. Quilting... oh yeah, feel the burn!

Thoughts on Quilting Swirls

I have admired swirly quilting for a long time. Do you know Kellie Wulfsohn's work? How about Karen McTavish? And of course, Angela Walters! I have watched Angela in action in her Craftsy class. I also have her book, Free Motion Quilting with Angela. Like she recommends, I practiced with my pen and paper first.  I thought I was ready.

Here is my test quilting on scraps.  Not bad!

via Instagram

Then I started quilting my Happy Christmas quilt. Oh-my-gosh. This is so much harder than it looks! Good thing my family will still love it and I only have to look at it once a year. Bwahahaha.

In hindsight, starting with a simple baby quilt would have been better for a first try.

TIPS

• Try different feet. I really like the closed toe foot, but it's different for everyone.
• Relax your shoulders and remember to breathe
• Fresh needle required
• Bounce. Yes, this one magical word from Angela helped me so much. Swirl until you come to the edge of something (block, quilt, another swirl) and the bounce off the edge and start another swirl.

PROBLEMS

• Flannel quilt backs make for a heavier quilt and more arm muscles required to move the quilt around a home sewing machine
• Managing the bulk of a quilt is two thirds the battle - at least!
• Basting pins break up the workflow (more than when quilting lines or stippling)
• The molding on my wall makes a crack wide enough for the quilt to escape off my extended sewing table. D'oh!
• I tend to like wider, more open quilt designs, but I found wider, bigger swirls much harder to make look smooth than smaller tighter swirls. Basically, whatever you can fit in-between your two hands while quilting is perfect.

NEXT TIME

• Spray Baste? - I'll try anything once
• Smaller Quilt - Definitley
• Tighter quilting - Perhaps
• Rent a long arm?!   : )

FURTHER READING
     -Kellie Wulfsohn: Blog
     -Karen McTavish: Website

     -Angela Walters: Blog, Craftsy, Book
     -I love this post about the process of quilting by Rossie

Angela cracked me up when she said to me the other day, #putaswirlonit

I've been...

Quilting. Circle quiting is a lot harder than I thought. I really want this to work and not look so wobbly. Unsewing is in my future. Try, try again. ; )


Buying fabric from Australia


Swapping with friends.


Adding to my bookshelf and contemplating new beginnings.

Starting A Supernova

A pretty stack of fabric...



Inspired by a Spring blossom...



Washed and line dried...



Cut into strips and sorted...



I'm a little behind the rest of the group but very excited to start my very own Supernova quilt. My friend Lee is hosting this quilt along. Visit her blog here and read all about it. You can join at any time!!  : )

I had a hard time deciding on which fabrics to use for this quilt. The quilt blocks are very graphic and I'm experimenting with a softer color palette. I started with a fat eighth stack of Sunkissed by Sweetwater and traded the green prints for more orange, yellow and pink from my stash.  Fresh and Springy, yes?

What colors are you playing with this week?

-A