any tips for this FM problem

I have been learning how to do FM quilting this week. I keep getting into trouble when my darning foot slides under a basting stitch instead of over the top of it. What's a good remedy for this irritation?

Karen, Queen of Squishies

Reply to
Karen, Queen of Squishies
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I don't thread baste if I'm machine quilting. I use safety pins, a basting gun, or basting spray. Actually, I don't thread baste for hand quilting either -- it's either safety pins or a basting gun for that, too. Of course, that doesn't help a lot if you've already thread basted. I don't know what to do other than be very careful or re-baste with pins.

Julia > I have been learning how to do FM quilting this week. I keep getting into

Reply to
Julia in MN

But basting with pins would stop me in my tracks just as much as the foot going under a thread, wouldn't it? I'm having a hard time developing any smoothness or evenness for my free motion technique, and dodging pins doesn't appeal to me. Spray basting might work. I think I'll have to try that. Maybe I'm basting are too long. I don't know. I think I will approach this tomorrow, after a good rest. grin

Karen, Queen of Squishies

Reply to
Karen, Queen of Squishies

My immediate response was also to suggest pin basting. My strategy is to try to dodge a pin. If that is not possible, I stop and take it out. It is going to have to come out at some point anyway. The plus of pinbasting over thread basting is that removing one pin has no impact on the rest of the basting.

There is a very satisfying sound when I throw the pin into its metal container...

Mary

Reply to
Mary in Rock Island IL

No thread basting....or take it out before you get to that area. That why pin basting came into fashion.

Reply to
KJ

Karen, about all you can do when the basting catches on the foot is to keep your little scissors handy and give the basting thread a quick snip. I don't like the foot that looks rather like a horse shoe - the front toes seem to want to hook into everything in sight. My all-time favorite is the one that's a little circle; much less inclined to be a trouble maker. Polly

"KJ" No thread basting....or take it out before you get to that area. That why

Reply to
Polly Esther

My little circle is the very trouble-maker we are talking about. LOL I just watched Sharon Schamber online. She said you never sew over the basting thread. Just snip the threads and pull them out from just the area you are sewing in. Sounds like an interesting approach. And when I baste my next batch (I have three ready to go) I'm going to use her basting stitch. I watched it too.

Karen, Queen of Squishies

Reply to
Karen, Queen of Squishies

Reply to
jennellh

Karen, I think I'm going to try her basting technique sometime; it really does look interesting, doesn't it? I usually pin baste, even for hand quilting.

My favorite foot for quilting is the open horseshoe-style one that Polly doesn't like. I really don't like the closed circle, because visibility isn't as good with that one. It's all just a matter of personal preference, after all. :) Some people prefer a big, flat plastic disk, and there are probably other feet I haven't ever heard of.

Reply to
Sandy

When I do FM, I stabilize the quilt first around blocks or main lines of the quilt with some regular quilting done in straight lines with the walking foot. Then when I'm ready to FM in the smaller areas, I remove all the pins from the area I'm working in, up to about an 8" or

10" circle. If you hand baste, you'll be spend>I have been learning how to do FM quilting this week. I keep getting into

Carole D. - Retired and loving it in the foothills of NW Georgia

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Reply to
Carole-Retired and Loving It

Same here...I'll take them out in the area I'm working on. I can't FM for that long of a stretch, so stoping to take the pins out is a good break and gives me a reason to stretch my neck! LOL

-Irene

Reply to
IMS

Common advice is to not thread baste! But as you say, pins are still going to get in the way, I think the thing with pins is they don't trick you into the belief that you might be able to sew over them and get away with it, so you know you are going to have to removed them, so you remove a few along the path you are going to take, stop and remove a few more...

Anne

Reply to
Anne Rogers

You've had lots of helpful answers - and I'm grateful to you for asking the question. I haven't thread-basted for years, (I usually use fusible batting) but had two lap quilts that I wanted to get 'done'. So I sent them to a quilter for basting. I was so relieved to get them done. They are next but one on my list for quilting, so I have now read the answers to your question with great interest, forestalling the problems I would have encountered!

I hope the rest of your sessions go well. . In message , "Karen, Queen of Squishies" writes

Reply to
Patti

Another problem with thread basting is that you can stitch right through a basting thread and that makes it hard to remove. You may be able to avoid the ones on the top because you can see them, but you can't see the ones on the bottom.

Karen Stone spoke at our guild last week and showed us a picture of the back of one of her quilts. She had marked the center of the backing with a safety pin, forgot to remove it, and sewed it down quite securely. She said she wondered why she was breaking needles when quilting that area :)

I've also learned the hard way that it is not a good idea to sew over the plastic basting tacks :(

Julia > >> I have been learning how to do FM quilting this week. I keep getting into

Reply to
Julia in MN

Baste with pins. Use lots. Then remove all the pins from the area (about 12" square) where you will be quilting.

If you plan your pins, you can often do an all-over grid (e.g. SITD along all the block seams) without having anything get in the way. Then, if you like, finish the borders and put on the binding. This gets rid of excess backing and batting. Then you can remove all the rest of the pins. The grid will keep it from shifting. And quilt all the fancy bits your heart desires. Roberta in D

"Karen, Queen of Squishies" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news:gEoWj.108514$TT4.77963@attbi_s22...

Reply to
Roberta Zollner

One quilting friend ALWAYS thread bastes when MQ and her work is exemplary....BUT when she bastes she takes a small stitch on top and a bigger stitch on bottom! Works well I have tried it.... When I saw her do this I was stunned ...such a simple solution.......you could also eliminate the thread removal problem by basting with water soluble thread. Mauvice in central Wi

Reply to
Mauvice in central WI

Her is a different solution. I got this from the John Flynn Site, IIRC. The suggestion was to roll the top, batt, back onto the JF Frame, then machine baste it with dissolvable thread in a large stipple pattern. Then you would take the well basted quilt out of the frame and MQ with out frame using normal thread. That seems like quilting it twice to me, so I have not done this. Besides, it is so humid here I think the stitches would dissolve before I got the thing finished. Just another concept! Pat in Virginia

Reply to
Pat in Virginia

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