dramaqueenB

SHE'S DONE IT AGAIN!! Why doesn't this happen when we're practicing a new design on muslin, or doing a personal quilt, or not on a deadline??? Sunday afternoon, while quilting a deadline customer quilt, I broke thread and moved to a new spot...and an inch in, bad sound, needle down, needle break, lost power. After manually removing quilt from danger, collecting the shattered needle pieces and tracing power, I realized I was in trouble. I called my awesome retailer and left a message, and then after reading loads of comments on the forum about getting real time help from APQS, I called their service and they assured me someone would call back asap. Dawn called shortly later, and using FaceTime, was able to quickly diagnose the problem, talk me through changing the fuse and regaining power, diagnose a jammed thread cutter, talk me through trying to remove the bent blade...when that didn't co-operate, talked me through disabling the thread cutter and re positioning the ruined blade out of harms way...then retesting power. We then determined the needle break had tweaked timing and the position of the bobbin assembly. Dawn patiently, kindly, and cheerfully sat through inadequate tool search, iPhone death and charger fetching, trial and error on my end, work arounds, and adjusting my bobbin assembly, sanding and truing it's post, timing adjustment, restoring front and side panels, test stitching and VICTORY. While the new bobbin cutter is on its way, I am back on the air, finished the customer quilt on time, and had it in the mail on my way to work at 3:30 am. As you can see, I continue to be a big fan of Dawn's, and am amazed at the remarkable teacher and tech she is, and how reasonable she was when I was pretty much falling apart when tool after tool failed and I felt pretty helpless. It was another APQS AMAZING EXPERIENCE, and I am so grateful for the help. What a Sunday miracle. Thanks a million, Dawn!!!! Beth Maitland, Quilting Again In Nipomo!!

Magnificent. Meets all your goals, kicks it up a notch, and then quilting takes off like a rocket. Fantastic!!!!

I also use a side light. I don't have a hanging system yet, so I go with Linda's suggestion of throwing finished quilts over a chair or my dining table in a vignette. Then I bring a stand light over to the side with a paper lantern (bought at Cost Plus World Market or Pier One Imports) over the light source to soften the glare. It brings out the stitching and shows off my work well. I used Pinterest and other photo sources to get ideas. Good Luck.