Posted by stella on 2005-02-09 19:49:22
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i hate quilting, so i don't have much advice. okay, well, i don't like making patchwork things or the action of hand-quilting, but i don't mind making other kinds of quilts.
if you're doing any machine sewing, invest in a walking foot for your machine. you really need one to machine-quilt, but they also make it easier to sew on bindings, etc. my walking foot broke, and i'm very sad about it, because i used that thing all the damned time, even for non-quilting projects.
Posted by karikazo on 2004-08-02 13:32:36
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someone's talking about QUILTING *pantpantpant*--here I am--!!! uh. sorry.
Your top sounds great. I learned to quilt out of books (public library always has a lot of basic quilting books), so I don't know the best sites, but BH&G has some stuff here: http://ww4.bhg.com/bhg/category.jhtml?catref=cat40013
I just wrote something incredibly long and detailed and decided it was too much info. Here's the short version of what I suggest:
I'd suggest tying your quilt (BHG has a section on that) instead of quilting the layers together. It's faster, easier, and would be less frustrating than trying to learn to hand- or machine-quilt for the first time on a bed-sized project. Plus, I think it has a casual, old-fashioned look that would work well with the way I'm imagining your top.
(I meant I'm imagining your quilt top, not "your top" as in "your boobs"....uh....anyway.)
PLUS, I think this would work with any kind of backing fabric you use. Many sources say not to use sheets for backings, as the tighter weave of sheeting fabric can be hard to quilt through (though flannel has a looser weave, I think, and might be perfect). I think tying would work with sheets or anything just fine.
Just putting top & backing together without batt sounds great, if you aren't concerned with warmth. It will save you the money of buying the batt, and means you'll have fewer layers to baste & tie. I've also heard of using polar fleece as the backing (sans a batt), so you could try that if you want something warmer.
I haven't tried this, but here's a technique that might work for you. You can put the top and backing together, wrong sides out, and sew along the edges (like making an envelope). Leave an unstitched section big enough to turn the whole thing inside out, and voila...the edges are put together, and you don't have to worry about putting on binding. Then you can do the tying (or quilting); you might want to baste it with thread or safety pins first.
I'm sure there are some more detailed sites; I'll have to hunt around.
Posted by karikazo on 2004-05-04 09:07:48
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Morgan, I love that ds string quilt, too. The colors are so great.
When you talk about the designs on the quilts....do you mean the quilting (not pieced/appliqueed) part? And what kind of shapes do you mean?
I quilt by hand and I usually either a) echo the pattern of the pieced shapes (just quilting in or around them, in the same shapes) or b) do a simple geometric thing to contrast. A simple crosshatch of diagonal squares or lines is one of my favorites. I have a great little chalk wheel I use to draw the lines on the top of the quilt right before I quilt that line (I use a ruler or the edge of a book or whatever to help get the line straight).
For other patterns, like "feathers", cables, wreaths, or (for a more modern look) concentric circles (ds uses that a lot, and I love the look)...well, for concentric circles you could probably use a compass. I haven't tried this, so someone let me know if you have a better method of marking these. I've tried just eyeballing it and it's hard to do IF you want them to come out accurate (on the other hand, the wiggly homemade look can be really nice, too).
For feathers, cables, etc., a stencil is a big help. Quilt shops and fabric shops have them. There are also some books that tell you how to draft your own shapes and make your own stencils.
You can also machine-quilt, of course. You can get some neat techniques with wacky threads (invisible, metallic, etc.) that way, or use very very small motifs that would be impossible to hand-quilt but can be cranked out on the machine with practice (and may not even need to be marked on the top first). I haven't tried machine-quilting, however.
There's a great book called The Fine Line http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0809298848/qid=1083675755/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-9875854-7181707?v=glance&s=books that deals with how to choose a quilting design that will look great (and be practical) on your quilt. The quilts in that book are great inspiration anyway (no teddy bears!). See if your library has it--I highly recommend it.
Oh, I forgot to mention The Quilt Index.
http://www.quiltindex.org/ It's sort of a digital library for different online quilt exhibits, and it's really nice if you want a chance to look at a lot of older quilts. My favorite is this one: http://www.quiltindex.org/basicdisplay.php?pbd=illinoistest-a0a0b6-a Such a fantastic quilt!!
