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mamu

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  1. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dbams in 1Ofoot or 12 foot TOP SIZE   
    I have a 12 ft table and have been able to quilt king size quilts on it with no problems.  If I get a oversize king, more than 115", I wouldn't be able to do it because the backing would be larger than the top and it wouldn't fit.
  2. Like
    mamu got a reaction from ValerieJ in Putting Millie on carpeting   
    The weight of these tables/machines will make indents in any carpet.  I would be concerned about using stacked 2x4 under the legs as it seems like it would wobble with the movement and vibration of the machine.  I have my machine on our carpet without anything under the legs.  I haven't moved the machine, but I am sure that there will be large indents in the carpet and pad.  It's just like having furniture on carpet... you get indents/marks from the furniture.  The only thing I might suggest you try is the plastic chair mats people use at desks for their roller chairs.  I wonder if that would work better for you?
  3. Like
    mamu got a reaction from HelenS in Long Arming "Hot Mess" Quilts   
    Now that you mentioned the cat hair and smell issues... that makes it a health issue for you and of course an issue for your machine.  Then any quilt coming up after  hers could possibly get some of the cat hair/smell on it too. That is a big problem.  I agree with the other comments that you absolutely need to let her know about the cat hair/smell and that it has become a health issue for you.  I would tell her that any tops she gives you that have cat hair and smells, you will not be quilting.  Then I would adhere to that rule and send back any quilt that wasn't 'clean'.  She will either correct the issue or find someone else to do her quilting.
    I have sent tops back to people when they were stained (blood or other ? fluids), excess hair and even excess threads.  I don't feel bad doing that at all as I will not subject myself or my machine to this nastiness.  I also include a paper on how to prepare a quilt top for the longarm quilter!
  4. Like
    mamu got a reaction from Gail O in Long Arming "Hot Mess" Quilts   
    I would never tell an 80 yr old that her sewing is a mess and I don't want to quilt her quilts anymore. It's a miracle that she is still quilting at her age and enjoying doing it.  She probably doesn't see well and can only do the best that she can.
    You have already made suggestions to her on how to improve her quilting.  Instead, keep your custom quilting to bare minimum, nothing fancy, avoid those wads in the corners, let the borders be full by bunching the fabric up between quilt lines and allow all of the raw edges and misaligned seams to be as they are.
      I'm sure she is not prolific at producing quilts so it's not like you are doing one of her quilts every couple weeks.  Not everyone's quilts are perfect (as we well know being longarm quilters) but they are all loved just as much as the quilts taking the Best of Show
  5. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dbams in Old Ultimate 1 for sale -UPDATED More Pictures, practically free - North Toronto Cananda   
    I would pull it out and give it a good clean.  Looks to me like the table is an upgrade with auto advance system.  Take measurement of table, it is either 12' or 14' table.  With it being in Canada, the electrical is made a bit different than the USA, however it can easily be adjusted to fit USA outlets.   The machine will have a serial number on it, you can send that number into APQS and they will tell you the year of it.  Once cleaned up, this machine could go for 3-4 thousand.  Depends on how badly you want to get rid of it as to the price you ask for.  I would then contact local quilt shops and quilt guilds letting them know you have this machine for sale.  I should sell rather quickly.  Hopes this helps
  6. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dbams in Stitch in the ditch then fill?   
    What I would do is load the quilt and then baste it.... very long stitches, verticle and horizontal rows about 2-3" apart.  Then you can do your fill work, taking out the basting stitches as you go
  7. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dbams in Ruler work on a non stitch regulated machine?   
    Yes, you should be able to do ruler work.  It will take practice as well since you do not have SR.  There will be alot of stopping and starting with ruler work so you may have to shut off stitching when you come to a stop area to minimize thread build up.  With practice you will get quicker at moving the ruler and hand placement so you won't have to shut off in stopping areas.
  8. Like
    mamu got a reaction from Liz F. in Millie sell   
    It would be great if you could post pictures and where you are located.  And the asking price!
  9. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dbams in Millie sell   
    It would be great if you could post pictures and where you are located.  And the asking price!
  10. Like
    mamu got a reaction from SueD in Millie sell   
    It would be great if you could post pictures and where you are located.  And the asking price!
  11. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dbams in Table question   
    I would contact APQS and see if there is a dealer near you that could possibly take your table. Or they might know of someone looking 
    for your size table.  
  12. Like
    mamu got a reaction from penelopefabric in Table question   
    I would contact APQS and see if there is a dealer near you that could possibly take your table. Or they might know of someone looking 
    for your size table.  
  13. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dbams in Should I scrap a 30 year old machine and start new?   
    JollyDude
    I would not scrap this machine!  If it only runs wide open, then the settings are not adjusted or the stitch regulator is not engaged.  Pictures would go a long way in us helping you to figure out what is going on with this machine.  The ULT1 machines are power house machines and there are many of them that are still running very well today.  Another option would be to contact APQS and see if they have any suggestions for you.
  14. Upvote
    mamu got a reaction from quiltmonkey in Cutting Off a Customer?   
    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! 
  15. Like
    mamu got a reaction from SueD in Cutting Off a Customer?   
    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! 
  16. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dianne31331 in Quilt shifts to the right during pantograph use   
    I also notice that occasionally I will see where there is some shifting even with basting both left/right sides with each advancement.  When quilting right to left consistently..the stitches and pull of the machine going over the quilt, will make the top shift ever so slightly.  To avoid this, quilt from both directions... right to left next row left to right.  Some panto patterns will make this difficult to do both directions.  I haven't found another way to do panto's to avoid the shifting.  
  17. Like
    mamu got a reaction from quiltmonkey in Trapunto look without wool batting   
    Use poly extra loft for the trapunto and cotton for the foundation
  18. Upvote
    mamu got a reaction from harcathy in Baby Quilt   
    Very cute... good job!
  19. Like
    mamu reacted to ffq-lar in How is your quilting business?   
    The number of quilters with longarms and mid-arms has risen like crazy in the past four years in my area. If you can spend the five to seven years left to sharpening your skills while taking a few customers here and there, go for it. It hasn't impacted my business, but I do primarily custom and have little competition. My quilts come from those who save the big ones and the special ones for me---I do 4 per month and sometimes struggle to get them done. Mine is a different situation so if you are able to analyse the competition, see if you can figure out a niche market. Are there lots of overall/e2e quilters so you'll be competing with them? Are there Modern quilters looking for a kindred-spirit longarmer? Is the custom market fully covered? Also, would you be happy to purchase a used machine to start out and upgrade to a new w/computer later? Please remember as well, the longarmer who advised you only has her best interests at heart---not yours. Though her advice may be spot-on, don't be deterred until you do some more research.
  20. Upvote
    mamu got a reaction from Marta in Finding clients   
    What I did when I first started out was I made up coupons for a Free quilting, edge to edge I choose the design, lap size or smaller, to be used within 3 months and handed them out to our sew group ladies.  I also made sure my prices were very competitive ...in fact I was less than the norm when first starting out and then after my clientele was established I gradually increased my price.  I do have another perk for loyal clients... 8 paid bed size quilts, gets a Free quilting for a lap size or smaller.
    Doing this I was able to pay off my longarm within 10 months!
     
  21. Like
    mamu reacted to quiltmonkey in Same size Backing and Top   
    Even if you sew scraps of fabric to all four sides, if the quilt top is the same size as the back, it's absolutely impossible to avoid quilting the extra strip's seam line into the quilt while quilting it. Trust me in my 15 years of longarm quilting, it is nearly impossible to accomplish this very difficult and extremely stressful situation. 
    I would contact customer and ask her to provide you with larger backing fabric that is at a minimum 8" wider and  8" longer than the quilt top. 
    My job is to quilt the customer's quilt without pulling my hair out... it's not my job to perform miracles due to the failure of the customer to provide ample backing fabric. IMHO. 
  22. Like
    mamu got a reaction from dianne31331 in Finding clients   
    What I did when I first started out was I made up coupons for a Free quilting, edge to edge I choose the design, lap size or smaller, to be used within 3 months and handed them out to our sew group ladies.  I also made sure my prices were very competitive ...in fact I was less than the norm when first starting out and then after my clientele was established I gradually increased my price.  I do have another perk for loyal clients... 8 paid bed size quilts, gets a Free quilting for a lap size or smaller.
    Doing this I was able to pay off my longarm within 10 months!
     
  23. Upvote
    mamu got a reaction from quilterkp in Finding clients   
    What I did when I first started out was I made up coupons for a Free quilting, edge to edge I choose the design, lap size or smaller, to be used within 3 months and handed them out to our sew group ladies.  I also made sure my prices were very competitive ...in fact I was less than the norm when first starting out and then after my clientele was established I gradually increased my price.  I do have another perk for loyal clients... 8 paid bed size quilts, gets a Free quilting for a lap size or smaller.
    Doing this I was able to pay off my longarm within 10 months!
     
  24. Upvote
    mamu got a reaction from quilterkp in Loyal customers. ???   
    I agree with Linda.  You upgraded to a computerized system but your customers are not interested in that, they just want a nice design on their quilts that do not cost them so much.  I have found that if a person is wanting a panto or all over design, they want this because they do not want to add more cost to their quilt.  The only time I have had customers ask for custom or more detailed all over designs is that they are either gifting as a special gift or wanting to place the quilt in a show.  Quilters are looking for the best deal they can get and the best quilting they can get.  You have lost some of your clients because of your increase in price.  You were wanting to off set the upgrade cost and hoping to get your clients to pay for this upgrade, hoping they would appreciate that computerized will make the designs more perfect for them.   I do not have a computerized system and  exclusively do panto's for my customers.  I use to offer both custom and pantos, but found that my bread and butter was in the pantos, so I only do custom for myself now.  There are other longarmers (some computerized) in my small rural area that do custom and some of my customers go to them for custom when that is what they want.   However, they always come to me for their pantos because I offer lower price and a fast turn around time.  These things are very important to them.   I have often thought of upgrading to a computerized system, but only to shorten my time at the machine and produce a better stitch line in designs.  It would help me do more quilts in less time I think, thus the volume of quilts done would actually help pay for this upgrade. 
    As Linda said... offer some incentives to get your clients to come back.  With more people getting their own quilting machines, we need to keep our businesses going with incentive marketing.  Know what your quilters want, know what is being offered out there from other longarmers and adjust your  pricing accordingly.
  25. Upvote
    mamu got a reaction from LisaC in Loyal customers. ???   
    I agree with Linda.  You upgraded to a computerized system but your customers are not interested in that, they just want a nice design on their quilts that do not cost them so much.  I have found that if a person is wanting a panto or all over design, they want this because they do not want to add more cost to their quilt.  The only time I have had customers ask for custom or more detailed all over designs is that they are either gifting as a special gift or wanting to place the quilt in a show.  Quilters are looking for the best deal they can get and the best quilting they can get.  You have lost some of your clients because of your increase in price.  You were wanting to off set the upgrade cost and hoping to get your clients to pay for this upgrade, hoping they would appreciate that computerized will make the designs more perfect for them.   I do not have a computerized system and  exclusively do panto's for my customers.  I use to offer both custom and pantos, but found that my bread and butter was in the pantos, so I only do custom for myself now.  There are other longarmers (some computerized) in my small rural area that do custom and some of my customers go to them for custom when that is what they want.   However, they always come to me for their pantos because I offer lower price and a fast turn around time.  These things are very important to them.   I have often thought of upgrading to a computerized system, but only to shorten my time at the machine and produce a better stitch line in designs.  It would help me do more quilts in less time I think, thus the volume of quilts done would actually help pay for this upgrade. 
    As Linda said... offer some incentives to get your clients to come back.  With more people getting their own quilting machines, we need to keep our businesses going with incentive marketing.  Know what your quilters want, know what is being offered out there from other longarmers and adjust your  pricing accordingly.
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