Boxy Stars Wall Hanging

Recently I was asked by a potential customer what I could do on the following wall hanging:

I quickly sketched out a few ideas on my phone and emailed them to my client. She liked my ideas and decided to have me quilt it for her. She really wanted lots of feathers so she picked the design at the top right.

I used tiny micro stippling to really pack down and add texture to the negative space. I did this on manual mode and at about 80% speed. It gave me quite the workout because you are constantly moving your arms!

First I stitched around the blocks, then I did the micro stippling, last I did the feathers in the blocks. I really liked how nice and puffy the blocks looked before the feathers. I even second guessed myself once I started on the feathers! It would have looked nice both ways but I really love the end result!

I used two layers of a poly batting that the client supplied (I believe it may have been dream poly) and So Fine #50 #401.

I really wouldn't recommend this much quilting on an everyday quilt, but this was going to be a wall hanging. For an everyday, use on the bed, keep me warm kind of quilt you want a much looser quilting. A quilt keeps you warm by keeping warm air trapped in the poofy spaces between the layers of the quilt. Quilting is necessary to keep the layers from shifting. Too much quilting will result in a less warm quilt because there are no air pockets to keep you warm! Keep that in mind when you are deciding what type of quilting to choose.

Thank you for letting me quilt this for you Iaci! I had so much fun doing it.

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Modern Quilt

This charity quilt reminds me of math symbols. I quilted the geometric meander design all over it.

Jelly Roll Race

I recently got to quilt up this lovely charity quilt. I'm pretty sure this pattern is one of the "Jelly Roll Race" versions. I was doodling recently and realized that one of my other flower designs could be modified to look like butterflies by only making 4 "petals" instead of 5-6. Only making 4 petals makes it look like butterfly wings. I combined the motif with some loops so it looks like there are butterflies fluttering across the quilt.

Sun Bonnet Sue

A few weeks ago I received this customer quilt. It was very badly pieced (and she knew it), but it is still a quilt worthy of being finished. I explained to her that the only thing I felt comfortable doing was an all over meander and that I couldn't guarantee that there wouldn't be any puckers or pleats. She understood my terms and her only request was that I not put any stitches on the dolls.

I want to make sure that my customers know that every quilt is worthy of being finished! It doesn't matter your skill level, what matters is that you finish something that you started and made with your two hands. Don't be afraid to send me a less than perfect quilt (just don't expect custom quilting!)

This quilt has a story (doesn't every quilt?) A grandmother recently passed away. She had made graduation quilts for each of her grand daughters. These blocks were for the grand daughter graduating in a few weeks. The grandmother passed away before she could completely assemble the quilt top (hand stitched!) So one of the daughters, a non quilter, finished putting it together so that the grand daughter could have her graduation quilt. Once the top was pieced they contacted me to get it quilted.

 There was a lot of fullness but I was able to avid pleats and puckers. Well I did have to add some strategically placed pleats, but I added those right along the sashing so you can't even tell that they are there!

Tigerlily Quilt

Last month I was able to quilt another quilt for Amy Sinibaldi of Nana Company. This sweet Tigerlily quilt got the Ribbon Meander treatment.

Thanks for trusting me with another one of your quilts Amy!

T-shirt Quilt

In March I pieced and quilted this quilt for my son's 11th birthday. I had been saving his t-shirts for a few years but I had to raid his closet for a few more. 

A lot of the shirts are technical shirts (uniforms and running shirts.) I did not have any trouble quilting any of them. I backed each shirt with the lightest fusible interfacing I could find prior to cutting down to size. I used a cotton batting and and a minky/cuddle fabric for the back. It was my first time using the minky and I did not have any trouble using it. I did notice that minky has a definite stretch in one direction. I quilted this with a geometric meander.

Neptune Quilt

In February I challenged myself to pull out another UFO (un-finished object.) This quilt was one I started to quilt when I first purchased my longarm machine. I usually bite off more than I can chew and started custom quilting this quilt without really knowing what I was doing. I was just learning, so I don't know what I was thinking! The tension on this quilt is really bad and that is why it got shoved into a box for a few years.

When I pulled it out I thought I would unpick all of my quilting. This was a very daunting task and rather than do that, I decided to just finish it and let this become a learning opportunity and the quilt will become a play quilt once I put the binding on. Actually it doesn't look horrible from the front so I could hang it on the wall, which I may do once my sewing room is complete.

Sweet Star Quilt

In early February I had the opportunity to quilt this lovely star quilt for Amy Sinibaldi of Nana Company. I was over the moon to quilt this quilt for someone whose blog I had followed for years. I just love Amy's sweet style and I'm excited to see she has caught the quilting bug.

Amy picked one of my favorite designs, meaander ribbons. The design really complements Amy's sweet style.

Thanks for letting me quilt this for you Amy!

Recipe for Friendship

In January I had a lull in customer quilts so I pulled out one of my own UFO's (un-finished objects.) This is a quilt I made for my daughter before I got my long arm. In fact it was already spray basted together. I used my domestic machine to quilt around the applique (using a straight stitch) and mono-poly thread from Superior Threads.

It took a little creativity to load an already basted and partially quilted quilt, but I managed to do it and didn't have any problems.

I custom quilted this one. I added double feathers in the patchwork blocks, continuous curves in the border around the little girl, and traditional feathers in the background behind the little girl.

This was really fun to quit for my little girl. Currently (May) it is hanging in her room awaiting binding! Maybe I will get it done for her birthday in a few weeks.

December Quilts

 The next three quilts were done by my customer Mare (pronounced Mary.) I quilted loops and stars on the two Christmas quilts and a stipple/meander on the table runner. Isn't the snowman quilt adorable?

 

 

This quilt was made by my customer Nanette. She requested an all over meander. She has plans to add applique in the border.

Irish Chain

This quilt was pieced by my guild sister Emily. She embroidered the paisleys and had backed them with batting so it gave it a faux trapunto look. I quilted a freehand swirly feather design all over, taking care to avoid the paisleys. (November 2014)

I used So Fine #492 which is a soft yellow but reads more like an ivory. Doesn't this quilt look great on my bed? I think I need one!

 

If you look closely at the following picture you can see that I managed to sew my hopping foot down! I'm not exactly sure how this happened since it happened so quickly. This is a spot where the seam was not sewn properly (there was a gap in the piecing) and my hopping foot just happened to flip it up and somehow tangled itself up! I was able to cut it free without damaging the quilt top. I just pointed the spot out to my customer so that she could tack it down by hand.

Lightning

In November 2014 I quilted these two Lightning McQueen charity quilts with an all over meander.

There was a bit of extra space on one quilt so I loaded a strip of junk fabric and let my 8 year old daughter take a spin on my machine.

Christmas Quilt

I realize that I have been horrible about updating the blog with pictures of quits I have quilted. This one was quilted last year as a charity quilt for our guild. I quilted an all over holly and loops design.

What is a charity quilt? It is a quilt that will be donated to charity. When i quilt these quilts, I do not receive any type of payment. I do it as a way to give service to my community and as a way to practice :)