Monday, August 27, 2012

School Days-Learn to Quilt Class #1

   Why should the kids be the only ones going back to school?  Join me each day this week for a brief lesson on how to quilt.  I will provide you with as many tips as I can and your input would be greatly appreciate.  Go grab a cup of coffee and lets begin.
Tools of the Trade.  I cannot quilt on my home machine without these items.  #1 A new needle for every large project.  This prevents thread breakage and improves the look of your stitches.  #2 Quilting Foot.  Most of the new machines come with this foot, mine did not and I had to purchase one.  #3 Oil.  Every time you replace the bobbin you must put in a drop of oil.  #4 Teflon disks for inside bobbin case.  #5  505 spray adhesive.  This is what I use to baste my quilts and keep them in place while I manipulate the fabric.
Thread, each machine is different you will have to practice with different threads and see what works best with your machine.  I use 100% cotton 40, 50 or 60 weight.  I use the same thread weight in the bobbin and try very hard to use the same color in both.  To choose the color for your quilt lay out a length of thread across your quilt until you find the one that blends the best with all the colors of the quilt.
Know your machine.  Get that hand book out and teach yourself how to A-put on a quilting foot, B-thread tension settings for quilting and C-how to lower your feed dogs.  This is my Baby lock machine and since it is made specifically for quilting right on the front is this diagram and lever for lowering the feed dogs.
 If your machine has this feature, make sure that you use Needle Down.  As shown below.  When you are quilting there will be starting and stopping.  Without the needle down it is highly likely that you will get a large uneven stitch when you stop.
Machine Throat Space.  As stated I began quilting when I purchased my Babylock expanded throat machine.  It does not have stitch regulator but the opening between needle and machine is a few inches larger than most home machines.  This allows me to quilt much larger surface areas at a time.
So your homework is to gather these items, familiarize yourself with your machine and the parts that you will be using.  Tomorrow come back with pen and paper for your first quilting stitches practice.  Laural

1 comment:

Laurene said...

I'm excited! Great idea, Lori :-)