isennock Posted January 3, 2009 Report Share Posted January 3, 2009 Hello, I am a newbie (only have had my Lennie up for about a month). I am reading as much as I can, my head is spinning!!!!! Anyhow, I have been practicing on muslin for a month and need something else. I have a fun doggie fabric I have sewn borders to and am planning on practicing on this (around the doggies and such) to better my skills-then the dogs will have a new blankie!!!! So, now finally to my question…I have just finished reading a long arm quilting book, LONGARM MACHINE QUILTING by Linda Taylor and she suggest that we should stabilize every quilt with basting the quilts to stabilize them, is this the norm, does everyone pretty much baste stitch every quilt ??? My next question is surrounding when to quilt the borders for freehand quilting, if I am quilting a different pattern on the borders then in the body, when do I do the borders? I realize it also depends on the pattern, but for now, I just am doing free hand on borders and just want to keep it basic to develop my skill (no turning the quilt for me right now). The book suggests quilting the borders as I am basting it, starting with the left side border up and across the top and down the right side when I first start. Then quilt the borders as I advance the quilt for the basting, which means once I am done with the basting, my entire border will be quilted, this seem odd to me, to quilt the entire border first then quilt this top, is this normal??? . Thanks to anyone that is willing to take some time to help me, I really appreciate it; this is so much fun, but also so frustrating as I have nobody to really mentor me!!!!! Any suggestions on books would be appreciated also, thanks again to everyone!!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR! Tammy Isennock - Maryland Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie Posted January 3, 2009 Report Share Posted January 3, 2009 I just finished watching the DVD by Kim Brunner - Machine Quilting for Beginners. It is worth it weight in gold. It's packed with valuable information and covers topics such as loading a quilt, dealing with issues, design choices, etc. And, she demos on a Millennium! Here is her link: www.kimmyquilt.com Not affiliated yada, yada. And even though I have been mq'ing for a few years, I learned a lot! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isennock Posted January 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2009 thanks, just ordered the DVD!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted January 3, 2009 Report Share Posted January 3, 2009 Lots of different pathways through the quilt top are used. The key is to stabilize the entire quilting field before you advance. This may mean: Pin or baste the top edge. SID or pin-baste the first horizontal border seam. Then quilt the top border, advance, pin-baste or SID the two vertical border seams as far as you can without advancing. That is now stable, so pin-baste or sew the side edges. Quilt the body of the quilt--as much as you can reach without advancing. Quilt the border or leave until the end--but it must be pinned or basted before advancing. Work your way down the top stabilizing with pins or SID and quilting everything in the stitching field until you reach the bottom. OR: If you want to continuously quilt the border, stabilize the center of the quilt with pins, SID or regular basteing like you would do for hand-quilters ( great big ol' stitches in a grid or meander that covers the entire quilt inside the borders, that will be removed as you quilt.) The center is now stabilized and you can do the borders first and then the body. OR: Using the same principal of stabilization, if you have lots of thread color changes, some people quilt the entire top, rolling back and forth with one color thread in all areas that need that color. Then they change to another and quilt all those spots, rolling back and forth. The whole top will need to be stabilized with pins or basteing to do it this way. If you do not stabilize, there will be puckers/tucks on the top and/or the backer because of the rolling back and forth. My favorite way?--whatever works for the top I am doing. If I just cannot get my brain around a border design, I SID those border seams, pin the edges, and quilt the entire body first. Sometimes it's that second border or sashing that you save until last. Whatever you decide works best for you--it all must be stable before you advance to the next area. A little long-winded and soap-boxy, but my 2 cents-an-inch worth!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isennock Posted January 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2009 Thanks so very much for your time, this reconfirms what I have been reading (on my second book now), I can't imagine how any one ever:o gets more then one quilt a year done!!!!!!!! I feel so over whelmed, I can't wait till this gets fun!!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primitive1 Posted January 3, 2009 Report Share Posted January 3, 2009 Tammy, You'll get this down, don't worry! Don't forget to have fun too! Where are you in MD, I am in VA... Vicki Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hollyrw Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 I don't baste the entire quilt before quilting it. As I advance the quilt I either pin the edges or stitch down the edges. Then I quilt that section and advance again. Sometimes I may do all the SID work on the entire quilt and then go back to add the rest of the quilting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnnHenry Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 Originally posted by isennock I feel so over whelmed, I can't wait till this gets fun!!!!!!! It does! It does! Case in point: It's 2:00 a.m. I'm tired. My back hurts. I still don't want to quit and go to bed. That's how fun it gets! When I couldn't finish my UFO's fast enough to get enough quilting practice, I took a friend up on her offer to provide me with quilt top for practice and told her I'd only charge her a penny per square inch. She jumped at the offer and has brought me seven tops altogether. I'm on #4 now, and by the time I am done with them in addition to several of my own I have finished, I think I'll be "practiced" enough to call myself a longarmer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltmonkey Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 Agree with Laurie; Kimmy Brunner's DVD is great. And, good news: Kim is coming out with more DVDs so stay tuned! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 I have so many dvd's that teach specific techniques depending on who the teacher is. Talk about overwhelming! It was a pleasant surprise to watch Kimmy's dvd. The information was delivered in an articulate manner and with the humor I have read about on all the groups/forums that Kim is a participant of. She is a hoot! I'm taking a class from her at HMQS in May and I can't wait! Of course, there are many ways to do one thing but the information in this dvd is very basic and applies to many situations. Tammy, just keep investigating all the methods out there and you will find what works for you. And, don't forget to load some muslin once in a while and PLAY! It is so FUN! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isennock Posted January 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 Thanks for the responses from everyone!! I like Holly's technique, think I might start with the least invasive on the quilt. Like I said, I am just overwhelmed right now.........am looking forward to Kimmys DVD. Vicki, I am in Frederick Maryland, specifically New Market. I hope to find some long arm quilting classes in the area, but so far no luck, any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myrna Ficken Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 Hi Tammy and Vicki, I live in Germantown, Maryland and am a longarm educator and offer all levels of classes. I can set them to the students needs. Check out my website, aquilterschoice.com. I also have a beginners DVD available and other DVDs that I have gotten good reviews. In the Beginning DVD I show how I stabilize the borders and the rest of the quilt. t has tons of information. Give me a call I am happy to answer your questions. I am also Rep for APQS and know ours machines. Myrna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isennock Posted January 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 Myrna, I also sent you a message using the U2U......from the bobbin winding forum.........I am very interested in attending beginner classes and have been to your website. When you have time, please see my U2U message, I don't want to burden you with the same message in different places. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dib Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 I have Myrna's DVD and have really enjoyed it. I learned a bunch. Thanks Myrna. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belquilt Posted January 5, 2009 Report Share Posted January 5, 2009 I, too, have all of Myrna's DVD's and they are great. I have also attended her classes and I learned so much, I want to take some again!! I use her method of stablizing the quilt and it works great since most of my customers like custom work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary Beth Posted January 5, 2009 Report Share Posted January 5, 2009 Tammy, Did you receive free classes when you purchased your machine? If yes, they should have gone over all the basics for you - although asking here doesn't hurt either. Usually these classes are free when you purchase the machine - unless that has changed. Get in touch with your sales rep and see if there are free classes available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myrna Ficken Posted January 5, 2009 Report Share Posted January 5, 2009 Hi Tammy I replied to you U2U. Did you get it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barbie111 Posted April 1, 2009 Report Share Posted April 1, 2009 thanks for the great advice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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