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If you plan to do all SID first, start in the center. That's where the most fullness will live and where the eye focuses first, so it needs to be flat and symmetrical. The big issue with this is what happens to the rest of the quilt when you start in the middle. You'll need to float it, so secure the top edge of the top with pins (don't stitch it down because you may need to re-position it later). Then advance to the center, smoothing as you advance. When you reach the center, adjust so it's symmetrical then stitch baste or pin baste horizontally above and below the center. Then baste the entire top, stepping out from the center and keeping areas straight and flat. You will immediately see where else there is fullness and needing extra care. I've quilted over twenty Judy Niemeyer quilts as a pro, and none of them was flat---ever. With it fully basted, you can start anywhere you like, but I'd do the center first. Also, you aren't stuck with doing all the SID first if it involves a lot of thread color changes. You can SID and custom quilt a section at a time. The photo is my latest---Dinnerplate Dahlia. Good luck and have fun!

Caution *****It looks like Dave has re-registered on this site. This seller is Dave Jones, who has a bad reputation in the industry. He had a good gig buying and selling longarms and doing deliveries/set/up between buyers and sellers. But several deals went sour and caused a loss of reputation for him. Be very careful and make sure you pay AFTER delivery and not before.

Originally envisioned for the QUILT TULSA 2020 quilt show. Turned into my stay-at-home project. Took much longer than anticipated. Used left overs, class samples, rejects, cheater cloth, test blocks, random fabric, etc. Quilted in 6 parts on my APQS Millennium.

Well, after lots of thought, I went with my Circle Lord Jester boards. I really like how it looks, and so do my daughter and son-in-law!

Not sure how I did it or if I even need to fix it but realized I have two different memberships with this site. My original one was Bonnie in ok.

I call myself the 'cobbler with no shoes' because I quilt for everyone else except me! So my goal was to make a quilt for our new house, our new bed.... I wanted calm neutral colours reminding me of sand or pebbles.....I made this quilt using the pattern "Sweet Garden" from Carolina Patchworks. I was intending to make the entire king size with this pattern - and I did. Then I hated it, so I chopped 2/3s of the pattern off and added white for some neutral breathing space. Simple quilting in between the blocks. And then I got carried away in the white. [

Are you quilting a single piece back, or one you've seamed together? If you're using a pieced back, which way is the seam(s) mounted in relation to the rollers? If perpendicular, the seam allowance piles up, making the backing at the seam act like its shorter than the sides. Because of this, I almost always mount my pieced backs with the seams parallel to the rollers. That also allows me to pin the selvage to the leaders assuring me the back is square with the rollers. Jim

SueD has great advice and I agree that you will need to quilt sections separately and then join after quilting. I max out at about 120" on the rollersfor a quilt with cotton batting. Maybe make the sections 48"+ by 120" plus extra for attaching to the rollers and seaming together later. There are lots of tutorials pertaining to quilt-as-you-go that can help you decide which technique to use to butt the batting together and cover the joins on the back side. Plan it on graph paper, allowing extra fabric at the top and bottom of each section so joining is easier later. Assuming you are quilting the writing, mark the whole design on each section and mark exactly where the top and bottom joining seams will be so the writing looks natural. If you can find 120" muslin fabric for the backer (check Joanns on line), you will save money on fabric.

I loaded a back in the wrong direction. I did not charge. She still paid me and she was so grateful. Return customer!

Bonnie - Bob, Generally speaking, price, location, if seller will ship, other items included, why are you selling, etc., will greatly aid with your sale. Best of luck to you. Cagey

Bring a hand mirror to check underneath (flashlight on cell phone helps). You should also be able to run a fingernail along the stitching on the bottom - if your nail is catching on each stitch, there's a good chance the tension needs to be adjusted.

Don't really know anything about "Sure Stitch", but your problem sounds like the horizontal encoder (if sure Stitch) has encoders) isn't turning properly. Check for thread wrapped around it, and make sure there is enough tension on it to make firm contact with whatever it rides on. Good luck. Jim

When I had a Lenni, I used big strong binder clips to block the left-right movement of the machine. Worked very well. Just use a light hand with no sidewise pressure as you move Ms. Lucey. Blessings!

Ann, If you are going to go to all the effort to quilt feathers in the outside border, I would be sure to use a gold or brown that matches some those bright colors in the inner part of the quilt, so the feather stand out. Concerning the inner blocks, I would either purchase the book "Shape by Shape" by Angela Walters, or go to the app store on your phone and search for the book. Then look at the free sample. There are a number of triangle shapes that you could use to fill the triangles. I would suggest a feather or fern so they somewhat match the outside border. Look at triangle #2, and #8 in the free sample Also, look at the Wild Feathers in the free sample of the book. Take a look at this video to get an idea of the blocks that you want to stand out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-1QUaqp0P4 Here is another video that should give you some ideas; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4bjgaRLC6U Look at the minute and 20 second mark. Even though she is using it to fill a diamond shape, it would be the same in a triangle. You could fill the large center square formed by the 4 triangles with this design; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1xHCRAHYtM Hopefully those videos or some of Angela's other videos that go with those above videos/challenges will help you decide what to actually quilt in each area. Please post pictures of you finished quilting. As you have asked for inputs, you should share the final product. Best of luck and I am sure it will turn out beautiful. Cagey

Heirloom quilting......I had a real challenge with this quilt. All of the blocks were hand embroidered and were quite thick in spots. There were lots of French knots and the client wanted the words of a particular hymn in the sashings. The sashings were linen and raveled very easily, so I serged the edges (no cutting) and that kept it stable enough to quilt without further fraying. Since I do freehand work without a computer, this was a bit scary, but I finished it and the client was thrilled and tearful with the outcome. My client is the daughter of the embroiderer. This will be a wedding gift for the client's granddaughter, and was embroidered by the recipient's great-grandmother who passed away some time ago.

Lenni's got new skates!

Sue: I checked the wheels on my Ult 2 yesterday. The OEM wheels have an effective diameter about 3/16" larger than the Edgerider Gammill set. I say "effective" because the profile of the wheel face is different, and depending what type rail they run on, they will sit higher or lower. Since the change is for each set (machine, carriage), the total height might be as much as 3/8" I think on your rails, it would be less than that. On my rails, I think the difference was about 3/8", but I can't really remember, and can't tell from just looking at the wheels. If you're willing to risk the cost of the Gammill Edgerider set, I think they will work on your set up. In addition to the wheel set, you will need to replace the wheel mounting bolts. The bolts that comes with the Gammill set are are metric, while the bolts on your Lenni are imperial (or at least they are on my Ult 2). The hub of the Edgerider wheel is just over 1/4" thicker than the OEM wheel, so you'll need to buy 8 bolts each a quarter inch longer than the original. ( I don't remember if they are all the same length or not). The bolts are standard 1/4 x 20 so most any hardware store should stock them. The Edgerider wheels are two row bearing wheels with a significantly wider base which makes them much more stable and durable than the OEM wheels. You will notice the difference when they are installed. The precision of my quilting improved significantly when I put them on my Ult 2. It also improved noticeably on my Gammill Classic when I installed a set on it. (having the two machines is how I became familiar with the Gammill designed set) I'm curious, so risking the purchase price of a set of aftermarket wheels wasn't a problem for me. In fact, after I fitted my Gammill with Edgerider wheels, I replaced them with another brand of aftermarket wheels. Not much difference, but both aftermarket sets were much better than OEMs. Hope this helps. Jim

I don't know about that brand but there are Red Snapper side clamps that look like they are similar. I've seen others use them but I don't have them. I'm going the DIY way - I got some paint stir sticks (free) and some leftovers of the grippy kind of shelf liner. The liner goes next to the fabric and then a stick on top and bottom. I clamp the "sandwich" using my two existing clamps on each side. Seems to work fine for me at no cost.

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I have just inherited three antique quilts that an Aunt of mine quilted. Her Motherwho would be my Grandmother, was a quilter and apparently taught her to quilt at a young age. Both are deceased and I never met either one of them. A cousin of mine inherited them in a cedar chest from Aunt Vera. They lived in Iowa. Recently my cousin told me after hearing me talking about quilting that she had the quilts and thought they would be better off with me. Two were quilt tops and one was a completed quilt. One top is tumbling blocks and the completed quilt we are looking for the name of the design. I have a Grandmothers Flower Garden and that will be my first top to tackle. One flower was apparently chewed by mice while in storage. I spent 3 days creating a new flower. IT WORKED!!! Our guestimate would be that this quilt is 100 years old. I am also concerned about hand quilting it and what type of thread to use as the fabric seems so fragile in comparison to our cotton fabrics. The flowers are surrounded with white hexigons and I used an antique handkerchief to replace damaged pieces. Those hankies are fragile also and worked out beautifully. That will give you an idea of the texture of some of the fabrics in it. I read article after article about washing them and finally put them in the bathtub with some special detergent and Oxi Clean as suggested in an article. I took the chance and you would not believe how beautiful the colors are and how white the white is now. I dried them over the porch railing. If you could help me decide what thread to use I will soon be ready to sandwich Grandmothers Flower Garden and quilting. I think it will take me forever to quilt it but I am so thrilled to be taking care of it. I would appreciate any comments you have.

A customer quilt from 2019. I did a combo of feathers, CCs, and freehand swirls. Every area/border was stitched differently-but-similar.

SueD is correct. You didn't quilt her quilt, she rented your machine and did it herself and that is what she will tell her friends and family...she did it ALL. This in no way reflects badly on you. Quite the opposite, she will tell them how much you helped her. For being in business of quilting for others, you need to take the bad tops with the good tops. You start picking and choosing what tops you will quilt and what you won't you WILL get a very bad reputation! I do agree that quilt instructors need to properly teach finish techniques, which most do not. I quilt for others and will 'fix' a wavy border on the first quilt. I do tell the owner the problems with the quilt and instruct on how to correct that in the future. Should I get more quilts from this person with the same problems, then I charge more money and tell them why the cost went up. It doesn't take too many of the increase in fees for them to do their quilts properly!! I have Never refused to quilt for a person because their quilt wasn't up to my person standards!

You won't want to force it, but can you rock the hand wheel at all? Remove the needle in case that's part of the problem. Spray some WD-40 all over the case and remove the needle plate to spray from the top, to ease things along. If it's a thread snarl stopping things, a soak overnight might help soften things up. Last solution---remove the bobbin assembly completely. That will require retiming, but may be the last resort. The jammed bobbin case will be much easier to work on outside the machine. Good luck!

Here is one I did with scraps had and made up design.

This often happens to me so I’m pleased I’m not alone. Mine is the right side when facing machine......I have tried numerous methods. Currently, if quilt does not have a straight line of horizontal seams, I mark my tops every 12” or so on each side before I load quilt, then use horizontal channel lock every time I roll to check the marks are in line. I also use the horizontal channel lock to run along the horizontal seam lines as I roll quilt. This has helped ......

i found a stack of over 50 vintage hankies for $10 this am wow, when I sorted through them there is enough to make three nice size quilts in three colorways. That said, a few of the light ones need stain removal. Does anyone know the name of the product ypunuse to soak vintage linens. i cannot remember it.

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It is my next project I will post when I get it done! I am so happy to see you too!!!

Here's a quilt with many National Park patches that travels with the couple in their RV. She sewed them down (I think she said she used a Featherweight) and I couldn't stitch on them with my Millie, but I echoed them once. If it will be a wallhanging, use a heavyweight double-sided fusible to attach them if they're too thick to stitch down.

Wool batting is also nice and warm. I love Quilter's Dream Wool.

Linda I bought that product and soaked the handkerchiefs. Absolutely amazing. Every single Stain came out. Thank you so much for the referral. Now on to making the quilt.

Thank you Linda. I will check it out. And find a source for the cleaning product. You are always so knowledgeable. I appreciate it. I see a handkerchief Quilt in my near future.

Hi Nancy Jo! Use Retro Clean to soak the hankies. It's not expensive and easy to find. It takes hot water and if there are heavy stains, more than one treatment. Works like a charm! If you haven't seen (Quilting Vintage) on Facebook, join to see lots of projects and advice for backing and stabilizing the hankies for use in quilts. Fun!

Just straighten the eye holding the bearing so it's at a right angle to the shaft, put a drop of oil on it, and you should be ready to go. Jim

Long day, completely forgot to check the carriage fuse! All is well, no damage. Thank you.

I do this about twice a year--mostly for my hand-quilting friends. I charge a half-cent per square inch with a $50 minimum for this. But if you want, you can charge her by the hour. It may take you longer to load it than to stitch it, but you still need to be paid for your time. A moderate-sized quilt may take 2 hours total, so the $50 minimum is fair. No way is it a 10 minute job. Attached is a diagram of my quilting path for basting. It's a grid without long verticals and is very fast. Use a heavier, contrasting poly and a long stitch-length for ease of stitch-removal. Don't cross at the corners so the fabric can be manipulated by the quilter if necessary. Don't let your friend make the decisions ---she doesn't know what's involved. This technique and attaching binding on the longarm are services you can advertise. Not everyone offers them.

This small quilt is a gift for a new mom to be's baby shower next weekend. I've known this lady for about 25 years since she was about 12. It took her a long time to meet Mr Right and now they are expecting their first - a little boy. This pattern is a MSQC and is in the tutorials. 2 charm packs used with poly blend batt and glide threads.

This is one I just finished for a friend. She pieced the quilt and I quilted it. I thought it turned out really well. I used Quilter's Dream Batting, and light gray thread on top with white on bottom.

Have you tried searching this forum? There have been many storage ideas throughout the years. Here's my favorite, easy to move and fairly cheap to make:

Stuck as in you just can't get motivated to quilt? I make bargains with myself all the time. Just do "the thing I don't want to do" for 15 min or 20 or whatever, then I can do "the other thing I want to do" afterwards. It always seems like I want to be doing something other than what I should be doing. I have a quilt on my frame that I bought an estate sale. Thought it would be good practice. It was in decent shape - a few minor stains/discolorations but no holes. It's 7 blocks by 8 blocks. It's fan blocks and I'm doing ruler work and freehand feathers - same pattern in every block I'm over halfway through and it takes me almost 30 min to do each block. It seems like I've been working on it forever and I still have 21 blocks to go! Plus I think my feathers look sloppy. I don't know how people do detailed custom work for hire and meet customer deadlines. Or are you stuck meaning no idea what to quilt in the custom area? Pinterest, Instagram (which is down today along with facebook), quilting books, youtube. Start drawing on plastic/plexiglass over the quilt until something speaks to you.

My husband found a blown fuse and a replacement in the tray, it’s working again! Is the fuse something I can get locally, or do I need to order is from APQS?

I would consider this inappropriate.

I have issues with top thread shredding when I have the quilt rolled too tight on the frame. I think that might easily happen with minky on top and bottom. Have you tried loosening it a bit?

100% cotton will be heaviest. Poly and wool battings are both lighter weight. Check here for more info about battings: https://www.hobbsbatting.com/resources/for-quilters/faqs/ https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5lQYaFAMueAVUE0QUE4TUt2STA/view Quilters Dream

You get a more professional response to your questions here. I was surprised by the number of folks advocating using sheets for backing on FB. Plus no politics or alternative facts here. Only wish the more recent responses were on top and didn't have to wade through several years of responses. Some old ones are still helpful so don't want to dump the old.

SOLD! Thank you for your interest.

Hi, That message will come up and the machine will stop, as a safety feature when something is blocking the operation of the needle (ex. needle stuck in a really thick seam). If you had it off to the side without any fabric, you may have gotten some thread stuck in the bobbin race somewhere. With the machine off, you need to clear it and then turn it back on. It should then come up normally to the menu. Rotate your hand wheel a half turn at a time and check the bobbin area for stuck threads. I'm not sure if the needle was damaged, but you might want to check that too.

Joy and all, It took a little while to wrangle up a photo of the extra "zipper leader" idea since I don't have zippers myself. The attached photo illustrates how the zipper system could be adapted to allow you to still have "canvas" to attach your quilt parts to, instead of having to pin or sew your quilt top or backing directly to the zipper tape. My suggestion was to add another strip of canvas to each free half of the zipper that you normally attach to the quilt or backing. Then, transfer your center mark from the zipper to the canvas. Next, add numbers in one-inch increments out from the "zero" mark. Use these marks to do several things: [*]Make sure a quilt that started out square stays that way (the quilt's edges should come out to the same numbers to the left and right of zero) [*]Adjust a larger border by easing it in as you attach it to the leader edge (use common sense with how much fabric can be logically eased in; try a slightly busier quilting design and perhaps a loftier batting as well) [*]Align piecing seams with the reference marks if the seams reach the edge of the quilt to prevent over stretching [*]Make it easier to attach a quilt by machine basting or pinning. There is one "oops" to note on the photographs-- --in the first photo you'll see the numbers written so that they face the zipper. I think you'd prefer to mark them so that they face AWAY from the zipper, as the numbers are written in RED on the second photo.