I'm practicing quilting, until now, the only designs I've used on quilt tops have been unmarked, other than circles. I would say I'm far from being an expert, but I'm not too bad, the stitch length varies but not dramatically and I can do a wide range of designs, from small to big - the big ones I will sometimes mark guidelines to space them right across a border for example.
I'm now trying to practice marked designs and I'm frustratingly hopeless, I don't think it's a case of not having a good grip, or not being able to slide the fabric smoothly, as if I switch to an unmarked design, it's reasonable. I try to look ahead a tiny bit, rather than looking straight at the needle, but the results are still really disappointing. I've played with the speed as some sources say that going too slow makes things difficult and I think I'm about the right speed.
I know I need to practice a whole lot more, but this is really demoralising, there are a lot of designs that it's really difficult to do without marking, such as a ring of feathers. Does anyone have any tips? The few times I've tried machine applique it's not been this bad, yet it would seem to be a similar skill, just closely following the edge of the applique rather than a marked design.
I changed the subject line because I thought others might benefit from my long ramble. :)
Two tips.
First off, a ring of feathers is *easy* to do without (much) marking. Mark a circle for the spine, mark a larger circle for the edge of the outer feathers, and a smaller circle for the edge of the inner feathers. When you quilt, concentrate on nice, smooth feathers, and just worry about getting close to the marks. Once the marking is removed, no one will know if you were 1/8" off anyways.
The second tip is practice, practice, practice. I know, we all want instant results. But it ain't gonna happen (unless you're one of the very few lucky people who are naturally gifted at it, in which case I hate you. *big grin*) One of my early "aha!" moments was talking to an amazing FM quilter. I realized she had put in lots of hard work and had lots of talent. So if I put in the same amount of hard work, I could easily be half as good, even if I didn't have the natural talent. :)
One practice tip is don't start out trying to make the pretty designs. When you learned to drive, you didn't start out driving the Indy 500, you started out slowly in a parking lot (or the driveway or a country road, but you get my drift). Same with quilting. Take a 20" x 20" quilt sandwich on plain muslin (in the American sense) and some contrasting thread. Mark a 1/2" grid on the whole thing and FM quilt every line on that grid. The next day, take that same square, and now FM quilt all the diagonals, without marking the lines but just by looking ahead to the next intersection.
For your next lesson, take a new quilt sandwich and write your name in big, cursive letters on it. Now quilt that line you just marked. (Why your name? Because it's something you "draw" all the time, so your brain already knows the ins and outs. All you have to worry about is the quilting itself. Yes, it really DOES work.) Do this a few more times, even quilting right over the lines you just quilted. The next day, take that same quilt square, but do a
1/4" outline around your previous quilting. And do 1/4" outside of that. Repeat until you've filled the square. Then do a microscopic stipple in between two of your 1/4" lines. (or circles, or scribbled lines, or any fill pattern that strikes your fancy.)
Repeat these lessons until you feel really *comfortable* doing these things. Don't stop just because you're itching to move on. (If you get bored, I can give you lots more assignments! *grin*) Only then will you be ready to practice harder things like feathers, flowers, etc. By doing the other lessons first, you are teaching your muscles how to control the fabric and the machine, as well as teaching your brain how to look ahead. Once you get those down, when you move to "designs", all you have to worry about is the mechanics of the design, not control.
I haven't any tips, Anne; but I thought I would just share with you that I have totally given up trying free-motion on marked designs. I just cannot do it at all. I get a better result with free-motion feathers (with no marking) than trying to follow a feather drawn - and that's saying something. I have completely abandoned any marking of quilts. If I need a marked design I draw it on Golden Threads paper (or other similar, or Press 'n' Seal), sew with the feed dogs up and tear away when finished. The patience required to do the paper removal is far less than required for me to try to follow a line marked on the fabric >g<
YMWPV
The machine appliqué is probably made easier by having the feed dogs up. . In message , Anne Rogers writes
Unthread your machine, put in an old needle and practice following designs on a piece of paper. You can hold it up and immediately see the how even the perforations are and how evenly spaced the stitches. Perhaps too simple a solution.....but it works.
Thank you very much Kathy. I have printed this reply and it will go in my reference file. Will it convert me to marking? Perhaps! But, there are lots of helpful things anyway. I've got the last tutorial you kindly set out for us. It is really marvellous to get this amount of help. Quilt University on our doorstep. Very much appreciated. (I like the analogy with driving - very apt). . In message , Kathy Applebaum writes
I just watched a DVD of Karen McTavish quilting a marked design on her longarm. Karen is no slouch, her work is gorgeous. Did she follow the lines exactly? No! And once the blue stuff washes out, nobody will know. So as long as your work looks smooth and even, who cares if it isn't exactly on the lines! And something else, whenever I trace off a design onto the fabric, there are "irregularites" in my drawing, to put it mildly. My stitching line tends to be much smoother, so it corrects whatever is wrong with the drawn line. Roberta in D
"Anne Rogers" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news:J-6dncpWT9m-9cHanZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com...
Most people hope to eventually not have to follow a marked quilting pattern when machine quilting. There are ways to do a ring of feathers without marking, or with very minimal marking. I don't care for feathers, so I can't tell you how, but I have seen the process explained somewhere.
With machine applique you do have to follow the edge of the applique piece, but making an applique block with feed dogs up and an applique foot is a lot different from moving a sandwiched quilt with a free motion foot on the machine while trying to get a decent stitch length. Try just following lines on paper for a while to get accustomed to following lines, or make muslin sandwiches and draw a lot of lines and curves on it and practice following those lines. Debra in VA See my quilts at
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