![]() |
Not Perfect, But Not Hideous, Either. I Like It! |
![]() |
Extra Wide Margins of Excess Batting and Backing for Tension Testing |
I have approximately 9 1/2" of excess batting and backing on both sides of my quilt top. That gives me plenty of room for these little warmup/test stitching scraps on both sides of the quilt, and there's one additional bonus. Having that much extra batting and backing on both sides means my side clamps are well out of the way of my ruler base, so I don't need curtain rods, yard sticks, pool noodles, or any other contraptions to lift the clamps out of the way of the machine.
![]() |
Hobbs Tuscany Wool Batting, My Tabby Mountain Disco Kitties Quilt |
But I digress... Back to the quilt at hand. This is one of my DIY 24 pound vellum paper stencils, traced with ultra fine Sharpie marker and perforated along the drawn lines by sewing with an unthreaded domestic sewing machine. I've tried multiple different brands and colors of chalk powder for transferring the stencils and none of them would work if my design was super intricate or required a great degree of accuracy, but the regular white Pounce Chalk with the pounce pad is working best on most of my colored triangles, and on the fabrics that were too light for the white chalk to be visible, I used the Pounce Chalk in blue that is supposed to need to be washed out of the quilt. Ha, ha, HA! I WISH it stayed on my quilt long enough to need washing out, instead of bouncing right off the quilt surface immediately. Your mileage may vary, though (especially if you're not a starch fiend like I am), so please do your own testing before using colored chalk on your quilts.
![]() |
DIY Vellum Stencil, Ready for Pounce Chalk Transfer |
![]() |
Ta Da! Even Though the Orange Ones Look Like Snakes... |
![]() |
HandiQuilter VersaTool (with Pink Glo Tape Added) |
![]() |
HandiQuilter VersaTool with Glow Line Tape |
The two donut-looking clear stickers at the top of the ruler are TrueGrip non-slip ruler grips. They work well for preventing rulers from slipping, but they are pricey and they are a little on the thick side. The long, clear, textured piece of tape along the left straight edge of the ruler is 3M's Nexcare Flexible Clear Tape, a super cheap solution for slipping rulers that you can find in the first aid section of your local pharmacy. It tears easily, sticks to the back of your ruler, and prevents unintentional sliding of the ruler without giving it a death grip, making it perfect for a ruler like this one that you may need to slide on purpose to stitch a longer line. It's also thin and transparent, so it doesn't obstruct my view of what I'm quilting like some of the other nonslip products do.
![]() |
Pink Glo Tape Makes Etched Ruler Line Easier to See |
![]() |
My VersaTool Works Even Better Now |
![]() |
Feathery Swirls Look Better From a Distance |
Aside from that little boomerang detail, the only other ruler I need for this design is my 2 1/2" x 6" Quilter's Groove ProMini. I don't need to worry about eyeballing the quarter inch because the Quilter's Groove Pro rulers have clearly visible white markings that I can line up with seam lines, stitched lines, or drawn lines on the quilt surface to ensure the ruler is properly positioned to put my stitches where I want them to go. You can tell these were designed by a long arm quilter, because when I want to quilt a straight line on a quilt, there is almost always a reference line etched into Lisa's rulers that matches up with some kind of reference line on my quilt.
![]() |
The One Ruler I Can't Live Without: 6 inch Pro Mini from Quilter's Groove |
![]() |
Design Stitched Over Blue Marked Lines |
![]() |
It Looks So Much Better After the Lines Disappear! |
Last but not least, I have to show you guys the View from Underneath the Quilt Frame!
![]() |
I Crawled On the Floor to Take This Picture For You |
![]() |
Birthday Goodies! They Know Me So Well! |
My sons bought me a Henry VIII coffee mug that has all six of his wives on it -- but they disappear when you fill it with hot liquid, and then it tells you how each one died. Love it!
![]() |
If This Had Been From My Husband, It Might Have Made Me Nervous... |
Well, one more "quick blog post" that ran on longer than I intended it to! I hardly know what day it is anymore. If today is Thursday, then tomorrow my oldest is headed to Hilton Head Island for the summer. He will be working at the grocery store and working on his independent living/adulting skills by balancing fun time at the beach with having to get up and get to work on time, and hopefully he'll save up some money for when he goes back to college in the Fall. My younger son has his last full week of his high school junior year before we can all take a break from this hell that is "online learning."
Stay safe, y'all, and happy stitching!
I'm linking up today's overly long post with the following linky parties:
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
· Off the Wall Friday at Nina Marie Sayre
17 comments:
happy belated birthday! it sounds like you are finally having fun with the long arm and I'm happy for you for that I know it has been a struggle at times. wonderful gifts that you got and that mug sounds so neat. And I think the quilting looks great! you should give yourself a pat on your back
Happy Birthday, Rebecca Grace! If I ever get a long arm, (and it's on my wish list!), I'm going to come back and read your posts again. You give the best information for quilting with one. Keep moving forward... your quilting is looking great!
Happy Birthday!! I'll be having the same kind of day next week;) Although there won't be presents as we have stopped doing that. Glad to hear you are having a better week with quilting. Curious as to whose book that is with the Straight line quilting designs?
Happy Birthday!!! Yes, that mug coming from your hubby would have been worrisome. LOL Love the quilting!!
A very Happy Birthday to you, dearest Rebecca!!! Here is wishing you peak level of cheekiness in 2020 and beyond. Being the perfectionist that you are (of course I noticed), and a source of inspiration to many of us who are more "get er dun" kind, do take the time to relax. Allow yourself to be pampered. You have earned it. Lots of Love and Big Squishy Hugs.
Happy birthday! Lovely presents, great books, and your mug is so much fun ;)) Lovely quilting too, this ruler looks interesting.
Belated Happy Birthday. I'm glad you are settling in a bit on the quilting, having more fun and less stress. Have a good weekend. Our temps are dropping from the high 80's to the low 60's, so I think I'll be getting some quilting down and maybe a little annual planting.
Pat
Hi Rebecca, it sounds like you had a lovely birthday! It sounds like you are going to become an avid FMQuilter. I'm so glad that it's going well. Thanks so much for the tips. I'm going to take out that clear tape that I know is in my bathroom and try it out! Thanks so much for linking up to Free Motion Mavericks. Your FMQ is great and will keep getting better - so keep having fun and take care.
Happy birthday! What a fun mug! Great news about making progress. I have the same opinion regarding chalk. A guide sure helps builds confidence! Your project is looking great!
I admire the effort you have put into making friends with your machine. Clearly it is paying off, as tension tantrums are no longer a regular occurrence.
Happy birthday, Rebecca! I am in awe of your "practice" quilting!!!
My hat goes off to you for persevering Rebecca - it looks like you are making this work. I thought that you idea of placing scrap blocks in the 'margins' to practice on was brilliant - practice makes perfect! It is coming along beautifully. Happy belated birthday!
Happy belated birthday! Looks like your family knows you well. Beautiful quilting on your newest project. Hope you can get in more stitching time this week. Good luck to older son on his practice with adulting (my now senior in college tells me she still needs more practice at adulting, hence graduate school is next so she can continue learning to be an adult).
Happy Birthday to you!! and Happy Free motion quilting!! The designs you are choosing look magnificent on that quilt.
The quilting is looking great! You'll be a real expert when this quilt is finished. Happy birthday! Glad you had a lovely day.
A belated Happy Birthday to a fellow Gemini! It sounds like you had a day that allowed you to truly enjoy a day just for you. The quilting is really going good -- you have been busy! Although I quilt on a domestic machine, I have used rulers and had considered getting the Versatool for the variety of edges. Glowline tape is a staple in my quilt space too and QD Select is my favorite batting for its "heft". FMQ is another aspect of quilting that really utilizes the gadgets which can help get the kind of beautiful stitching like what you've done here!
Happy belated birthday! I think your quilting looks great. Nothing to be down on yourself over AT ALL. I liked reading about your process. We've probably all learned the hard way to always test tension after each bobbin.
Post a Comment