Dedicated to providing
inspiration, instruction, and encouragement in the art of quilting throughout
the State of Wisconsin.
Tips
I
recently attended a lecture by Ann Fahl. Her talk was interesting,
but the best idea that came out of it wasn't about threads or needles!
Ann suggests that the last thing you do when you leave your sewing area
is to leave yourself a note stating what you were going to sew or do
next. You'll save time and energy. It works for me.
Maribeth Schmit
I have been using Superior's new Bottom Line thread for two quilts (www.superiorthreads.com). Love it for the bobbin and don't need to change my tension on my Viking Designer 2. However, when I needed to use it also on the top so it would blend with the fabric, I had to put the spool on the upright holder and not the horizontal one. It kept breaking every two inches on the horizontal one and once I put it vertically, I sewed slow, fast, free-form, applied binding, and it never broke once. Barbara Vallone
Drafting
tape (from an art supply store) works great for marking straight lines
when hand quilting. It comes in many widths, and has less "sticky"
than regular masking tape, making it kinder to your fabric and less likely
to promote bearding when you remove it. Karen Hendrickson
I
enjoy taking workshops on a regular basis to expand my quilting knowledge,
but I usually leave the class with a new "UFO" to finish.
I have purchased two sets of all my favorite quilting tools such as
rotary cutters, seam rippers, markers, large head pins, etc. I keep
them in large ziplock bags in a tote bag (my "class bag")
and I don't get them out for home use. That way I always have what I
need ready to go to the next workshop. JoAnn Jacobi
Keep
a Swiffer dusting sheet at the side of your machine. Every time you clean
and oil the bobbin area, dust the outside of the machine and the area
around it with the Swiffer. It's astonishing what you will pick up with
that, and this keeps all those grungy little bits from finding their way
onto your quilt. Penny Gerds
If
you're looking for a way to store your fabric and/or supplies, check out
"Closet Maid" storage components. Home Depot sells Closet Maid
products in their "storage" aisle. There are various racks and
wire or solid-sided baskets to fit in these racks. I have a number of
these units in my sewing room and I love them. The price varies depending
on rack/basket sizes and how you decide to configure them. All parts are
priced individually. I would advise purchasing the lockable casters as
well. I rearrange my sewing room from time to time, and it's nice to be
able to just roll the units from one place to another! Suzanne
Myers Otto
A
design wall is so helpful when making decisions about your blocks.
Just pin a flannel sheet to your wall. I use the backside of a flannel
backed picnic table cloth. It's amazing how different a project
can look! Maribeth Schmit
There
are several good ways to "lock in" the beginning and ending
stitches of machine quilting. I usually pull the bobbin thread to the
top, hold both threads securely but gently, then take six or seven very
closely spaced stitches but not on top of one another. Then gradually
the stitch length is increased to the desired size and the thread tails
are clipped right at the quilt. These stitches don't come out! Sue Nickels
and other machine quilters leave a tail of threads at the end, then go
back and thread them on a self-threading needle, and "bury"
them in the quilt, securing the line of stitches. It's a clean look, but
takes more time. You have to be sure and knot the thread and bury it securely
too. Diane Gaudynski
It's
so easy to expand your circle of quilting fellowship ~ at the WQI meetings,
talk to everyone you know, but, at lunchtime, seat yourself at a table
with quilters you don't know. This is a wonderful way to make new
friends, pick up quilting tips, and learn about shops in other parts of
the state. Penny Gerds
Spray
starch the fabric that you will use for applique pieces. It becomes easier
to turn the seam under for needle turn applique. Nora
Rader
Here's
a great tip I heard on a recent "Quilt Shop Hop": Be sure to
put the name of a loved one on each of the unfinished projects in your
quilting closet(s). That way, if the quilt remains unfinished when you
die, your children and friends will think you were making it for them,
and remember you fondly rather than complain about how you never finished
anything. Karen Hendrickson
To follow up on Karen Hendrickson's tip, "Use your quilts!" How will your family and friends ever know how important quilts are to you if you never use them. Quilters need to develop a "relationship" between the quilt, the maker and the maker's loved ones while they are living. People need to relate the quilt with the maker. Maribeth Schmit
When
sewing two pieces of a block together and one is a bias edge and one is
a straight edge, place the bias one on the bottom so it won't stretch
while sewing the pieces together. The action of the feed dogs actually
helps "ease in" the bottom stretchy piece.
Marge Morgan
Make
the first thing you see when you enter your sewing area a quilt in
progress. Maribeth Schmit