Thursday, June 6, 2013

Free Motion Quilting - June 6, 2013

When you are first learning free motion you spend a lot of time thinking, and drawing and if you are lucky watching videos of other people doing free motion quilting. And you learn a lot. But I think there comes a time when you just have to stop all of that and sit down at the sewing machine and do it.

 So that is what I did yesterday and today. I pulled out an old project that I'd put aside because I just did not know what I wanted to happen with it, and I wasn't too happy with where it was. And I sat down and put some free motion quilting into the areas that didn't have anything in them.

I did some spirals. I did some pebbles and I did a kind of foundation pattern that involved putting down a line of lose spirals and echoing them. That last one came from the Craftsy class I'm taking. I also have Leah Day's book of the first 365 patterns from her web site. Mine looks a lot different from hers not just in quality, but also because the line of spirals is a line, and it isn't being stitched into a square.

I don't think this is quite finished. There are a couple of spots on the top and bottom that need some stitching. It might become a pillow, or it just might never become anything except the practice piece it is.

Next up are the two log cabin blocks. Again, I think I need to just go for it.

9 comments:

  1. It's a great start. It would be very cute just simple bound and framed.

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  2. You are doing great with your free motion quilting. I love how you made this quilt and that you incorporated the designed stitches in it. Beautiful wallhanging. I read that you were going to try pebbling. Good luck. Everyone does them so nicely, but I just can't master them.

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  3. You are echoing some of my thoughts this morning. I just watched Leah Day's video from yesterday, and I thought, ok, stop watching videos and go TRY these stitches!! I love what you did with your beautiful batik here, incorporating machine embroidery stitches with free motion fillers. What a great idea! Thanks for sharing this.

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  4. Beautiful quilt! The colors and quilting work together so well.

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  5. Hello Stella,

    It's a lovely piece of work, it seems to flow. The colours, quilting and decorative stitching all work well with each other.

    Love,
    Muv

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  6. Love the colours of your thread and the decorative stitches. I wish reading about fmq would make me a better machine quilter!

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  7. So true, Stella. Sometimes you just need to chain yourself to the machine and let loose. Good for you for experimenting. You have done quite well working through multiple motifs, just as you used multiple machine embroidery stitches.

    I recall when I was learning FMQ. I was positive I would ruin each quilt I quilted. I had no idea "how" to quilt it in a way that would enhance the piecing. Then I was such a white knuckled quilter with my shoulders tight to my ears. I eventually figured out a few ways to quilt, such as stippling, a vine with leaves and echoing. That was my repertoire until I found Leah.

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  8. I feel encouraged each time I read one of your posts on FMQ. It's encouraging to hear about your progress. Thanks!

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