Oh my, that's a good question. I haven't tied anything in years so I can't help with that. I MQ all my quilts because for me it's WAY faster and so much more durable than handquilting.
I think the fastest way for you to MQ it would be to buy a walking foot (which are pricey for Berninas--nearly $100 I'd guess, but well worth it esp if you plan to get serious about MQing), PRACTICE on some quilt sandwiches (the bigger the better) and then quilt simple straight lines, which would look fine on a 9-patch. Be really fussy when you make the quilt sandwich, too--the more time you spend doing that, the less aggravation with tucks you'll have later.
Finally-- I admire you for wanting to make a quilt in 2 months...my experience, over some years, is that they *always* take much longer than I expect, or want! Murphy's Law thrives in my quiltmaking. If that's true for you, you might consider a)making them placemats or a table runner instead--easier to learn MQing on and certainly beautiful--you could make matching napkins, too--or b) let them know their present is coming a month or more after they get married. I"ve never had anyone object to getting a quilt late! I sure don't mean to rain on your parade here; rather to possibly save you some major frustration which I have experienced more times than I care to recall! Whatever you do, go for it and have fun and remember, there's no such thing as a stupid question at RCTQ!
Dogmom
Okay, here's the deal: my niece is getting married Sept 14th. I'd like to
> make a quilt for her for a wedding present. For those of you who have not read
> my posts before--I am a newbie. Here's the situation:
>
> General considerations: I've made 3 quilts in my life, the last one about 7
> years ago. Two of those were tied off, one was a sort of "cheater's" quilt
> using a method called "Woven and Quilted", so I've never really quilted a
> quilt. I recently got a new machine (Bernina 125, which has a relatively
> smaller bed, I think) and this will be my first project on it.
>
> Quilt considerations: I've chosen a NinePatch pattern, figuring I could strip
> piece it relatively easily and quickly (one of my other two quilts was a
> NinePatch). The patches will be going straight across (my other NinePatch was
> on the diagonal). Each square will be 6 inches. Total quilt size will be 59 X
> 83. I plan to use 3/8 inch seams, because I'm new and I'm afraid of it falling
> apart. ;-)
>
> Time considersations: I'm a teacher, so I'm off for a few more weeks, and can
> spend a substantial amount of time on the quilt. However, in mid-August, I'll
> be back at school, and will have VERY limited time (setting up classrooms and
> getting lessons ready is time-consuming). Similarly, the first few weeks of
> school can be hectic.
>
> I'd like some opinions: should I attempt to machine quilt this quilt, or
> should I tied off? If I tie it off, does anyone have a recommendation about a
> pattern of doing it? If I machine quilt it, what would be the
simplest/least
time-consuming/least capable of having me screw it up way? :-)
>
> Sheila, aka She of the Stupid Questions