This post is part of the Sewing Back-to-School series, 30 days of helpful sewing articles by guest bloggers. Feel free to check out the original Sewing Back-to-School post for schedule and previous posts!
Megan is over at Canoe Ridge Creations; my favorite thing about her blog is that she has a weekly link-up party for your finished projects, every single Monday! Stop by, say hello, and be sure to link up on Sew Modern Monday!
Hello Everyone! I’m Megan and I blog over at Canoe Ridge Creations! I am super excited that Sara asked me to guest post today (thanks Sara!). Today it’s all about quilting options! Whether you consider yourself a quilting queen (which I, my friends, am not!) or a quilting novice, I have picked four of my favorite all over quilting patterns to share will all of you!
- always start a quilting project with a new needle. Plain and simple.
- make sure you are using quality thread. I like to use a cotton thread (like Aurifil!) as both my top and bobbin thread.
- stitch length is very important in quilting. For straight-line quilting–or any quilting done with my walking foot, I prefer a stitch length of 3 (I normally piece with a stitch length of 2). When it comes to FMQ it’s all about getting a feel and controlling your speed and ultimately your stitch length.
- don’t rush through basting your quilt. Whether you like to use basting pins or spray basting, make sure your quilt is basted well. Trust me, there’s nothing more frustrating than having to rip out quilting because you didn’t spend the amount of time needed to make sure everything was situated.
- if you machine has a needle down position, use it!
- when all else fails, grab a glass of wine. 🙂 ok, ok…I’m not saying you should go and mix some serious quilting with some serious drinking, but sometimes a few good swallows of wine can be the difference between smooth, fluid quilting and rough, jagged quilting (i’m talking fmq, folks!). Trust me. It’s been proven. 🙂
First up, Straight-line Quilting!
- feed dogs up.
- straight stitch.
- walking foot.
- stitch length 3.
- mark fabric or use walking foot as a guide.
- slow and steady wins the race. 🙂
This wavy quilting pattern is quickly becoming a new favorite of mine! It’s fun, it’s fast, and it’s totally modern! Similar to the straight-line quilting, you are working your way back and forth your quilt in organic, free moving lines in a variety of widths. And, my favorite part–there is no right or wrong! Just have at it!
- feed dogs up.
- straight stitch.
- walking foot.
- stitch length 3.
- use organic, free moving lines.
- there’s no right or wrong! 🙂
Zig-Zag Quilting is another great option!
- feed dogs up.
- zig-zag stitch (as wide as it will go).
- walking foot.
- stitch length 3.
**Please note: this is where the wine really comes in handy! :)***
FMQ, like this all over meander, takes some time to master. In fact, I myself am still slowly just becoming comfortable with it. See those rough turns? Yep, I tried skipping the wine–not a good idea. Anyway, this quilting option is great for just about any quilt design!
- feed dogs down.
- straight-stitch.
- FMQ foot.
- stitch length 3.
And there you have it! I hope you all enjoyed these 4 fabulous quilting options. If you have any questions or use any of these tips on a quilt of your own, I would love to hear about it! Feel free to hop on over to my blog or send me an email!
Awesome instructions! I was wondering about the wavy pattern, now I can try it :o) And I really like the wine suggestion for the meandering,LMAO! I never thought of that before ;o) Thanks!!!!!
I really like the wavy/ organic one, I’m going to have to try that soon. So I just happened to try FMQ for the first time last night on a mini-quilt. I hadn’t had wine, but I had had some vodka infused watermelon (which is awesome.) I don’t know if it worked as well as the wine, it probably made me do worse. Or maybe I just had too much… Anyway, I was happy with it overall but my stitch length is pretty ridiculous in parts. Yours looks so consistent Megan! Thanks for the ideas! Jessica
Thanks Megan! Love your examples. 🙂
Thanks a lot for sharing this, i am itching to get quilting, and this post really helped me to get started, i have been sewing for ages now, but quilting, i need to figure it out!
Adithi’s Amma from Adithis Amma Sews
Sara, thanks for hosting the Back to School series. Megan, thanks for taking the time to compose the instructions. Very well said. I’ve been wanting to try FMQ, but havent yet. I really like the Wavy and Zig Zag, I’m going to try those. Thanks for the inspiration!
Great quick quilting guide! And I love how your samples came out!
I can’t wait to try one or two of these, thank you for the tutorial!
Thanks for reminding me about the wavy/organic option – I might just try that on my next quilt! 🙂
Excellent, Megan! I love your little quilting swatches.
Great tips. I haven’t tried quilting so closely with my walking foot or using the zig zag stitch. That is a great idea.
Will have to give these quilting options a try! Thanks for the great tutorial.
The wavy is great, I may well venture from the straight and narrow!
Thanks for this concise and helpful set of instructions. I’m new to this and haven’t tried machine quilting yet. I appreciate having this resource to guide me.
Lovely post! It makes me want to make up some sweet samples like those!
LOVE these ideas!!
Great, great, greeeeeat samples. I just love the way you used the colors on those squares.
I don’t think I’m ready for trying the last three just yet ;P , but I’ll keep it in mind…
Wow, I really have to try this. And, making a sampler, makes the work even more fun than just trying it on a larger piece of fabric.
Thank you!
Having your stitch length set at anything besides zero is just extra wear and tear on your feed dogs since they won’t actually be touching the fabric in the “down” position. Beautiful samples and beautiful blog, by the way!
Great tips and samples. I’m so glad I read this post 🙂
I’m excited to try these. I’ve been looking for a quick start guide and looks like I found it. I’m thinking that I’ll make samples that I can turn into place mats. Thanks again!
I tried the wavy zigzag just like you suggested and just got zigzag, no wavy lol… any ideas?
Brand new to quilting and want to try these. Do I sew off the edge or do I turn the fabric around before the edge to go back in the other direction? Thank you