Robin

Thank you gals...you are right Carmen, this forum is a blessing for way more than just quilting!

Ditto with Sylvia and DOwens. Just go slow and quilt right through it all. I also use any kind of thread except monolon. I wrapped a bunch of that stuff up inside my domenstic machine and had to have it repaired. I don't want to go there with my longarm!

I charge $1.50 per bobbin solid color cotton and $2.00 per bobbin variegated and I seems to work out fine. I have a minimum $4.50 and $6.00 charge respectively. I used to charge a flat fee of $7.00 for solid and $10.00 for variegated but it didn't seem fair to the customer and then when I would do a king it didn't seem fair to me! So, I like this method much better.

That's just beautiful, Vicki. I want to make a Mariner's Compass wall handing for my studio and if I ever get one done I'll know just how to quilt it. Thanks!

Gorgeous! Are the block batterns free hand, quilting boards??? They are so perfect. Just nummy!

So, Karie, how did you quilt it?

My BIL is as we speak undergoing surgery for a tumor in his salivary gland. He is looking at 8 to 14 hours of surgery and most likely a broken jaw to get to the stage 3 tumor and get it out. He will most likely have to be fed by a tube for a while until his jaw heals and will have to undergo radiation so his recovery is not looking too enjoyable either. He is such a neat guy, always upbeat and happy going. I made him a "recovery" T-shirt quilt out of is favorite hockey team t-shirts and he was so thrilled. He called me to thank me and said he was busy eating everything he could think of t

Thanks gals...with all of that encouragement I'm about ready to give it a shot. I just have four other quilts to do first! But my brain is sure spinning about what I could try. This customer is an especially great gal, always so agreeable to whatever I want to do...she trusts me...she is one who definitely deserves a bargain.

You are truly an artist...and you sure do know how to use a long arm machine!! Going to my favorites from when I grow up!!

Thanks for the encouragement gals. You know I haven't really done freehand either...just panto's and whatever I can follow the line on. I can do fairly detailed pantos now, so I have advanced in that direction. The thing I am so anal about is even spacing, so freehand just scares me. I know I have to doodle, doodle, doodle, they say if you can draw it you can quilt it. I need to "Get over it!" and move on to the next level.

Sandra, Please post a picture when you get done. Would love to see what real quilters do with it (compared to me, I mean).

Terri, You make custom work sound so easy...just a little this and a little that. All I think of is panic! I know I have to get over it, but panto's really are my bread and butter, so I use that for my excuse to chicken out. I need to take some classes to get me out from behind the machine! Anybody make house calls? I live on Fort Peck Lake in Montana...you could come in the summer and my husband could take your husband fishing while we quilt...any takers?

Pamela, You have to be like me "custom challenged" and then you would not have even considered doing custom on that quilt! Plus, after you piece a quilt like that, you do not even want to look at the half square triangles again much less quilt CC's in every one of them!

To favorites it goes!! Beautiful!

Last one I promise!

Vicki, I managed to get a couple of pictures with the quilt on my bed. Texture shows a little better.

Oh, Sylvia, you are funny.

The problem is...I am a Panto kind of gal and my customer knows that and I don't think she is planning on paying for custom work. I was thinking of doing a separate border treatment especially as that little tiny inner border is actually one of those dimensional flaps, and then something across the main body of the quilt. I have gone right over applique before and it was fine, but this quilt just screams for custom...Shana can I send it to you in Alaska?? All of you gals do such gorgeous custom work and I have stayed with pretty much EtoE as I don't want to spend weeks on a quilt (that's ho

Vicki, I used the R & S Baptist Fan Boards, I'm pretty sure they are the #305 Board. The fans blades are one inch apart and there is only one full blade and then a partial on the boards (vertically I mean). I haven't had my Diet Coke yet so I am a little sluggish! I will try to get another picture of the quilt on a bed for you as I think that really will give a better view of how pretty the texture of the fan is on this quilt. Have to do chores first, but will put one on later.

Sandra...We want to see it when you are done...does anybody know how to unpost my pictures...I'm not worthy!!

So, where and when are your classes???

Anybody out there quilted The Queen and Her Court block of the month quilt? I just got one to do. Any ideas or pictures of what you have done would be greatly appreciated. This customer knows I do mostly edge to edge, but I might have to come out of my comfort zone on this one...

Last one...I think I'm so smart now that I can post a picture...I can't be stopped!!

You can see that the quilt is so busy...it really doesn't show the quilting all that much...but the back is really cool. So, wouldn't waste a lot of time custom quilting this quilt. The baptist fan really fits the era of the quilt. And on a bed the the texture of the fan really shows up better.

Hope I held my mouth right this time...