I NeedleFabric.com
  • Home
  • About Me
    • Being Creative
  • Quilting Blog
  • Tutorials
    • Quick Tips
  • Eye Candy
    • Customers' Quilts
    • Quilts I've Created
    • Fabric Creations
  • Create: Cards

quilts and creativity


We are driven to create at this deep wordless level of the soul
because we are all fashioned in the image of God, who is an Artist

~ Author Unknown

Quilting For Christmas

1/17/2018

0 Comments

 
Here's a beautiful throw size quilt I made for my MIL for Christmas.
Picture
My local quilt store was selling the kit. I loved the fabric and thought it would be perfect for my MIL.  The center is a pre-printed panel and the striped inner border is actually a flange.
I finally felt confident enough to quilt it with a scrollwork design. It reminds me of snow flurries and is perfect for this Christmas quilt.
Picture
The scrollwork design can be tricky because it's hard to quilt over the same line you just quilted, but I am getting better. Yay!
Picture
If you follow my instagram, I gave a sneaky peak of it in process back in November.
Picture
Picture
0 Comments

Crayon Blox Quilt - Lessons Learned

8/3/2017

0 Comments

 
Crayon Blox Quilt
Crayon Blox Quilt
Just got the quilt off the longarm and attached the binding.

Here's the full quilt after binding:
block of the month quilt
This was a block of the month quilt project at my local quilt store. Here you can see when I was deciding how to set the blocks and an image of the top before the quilting was started.

I used solid fabrics on the back so the quilting really shows - eek!
pieced quilt back
But I love how the back turned out!
Longarm Quilting
Which leads to Lesson One:
I think the quilting is too much for the front; it "fights" with the piecing.
Picture
Picture
And Lesson Two:
The thread is the wrong color. It just looks dirty on the light colored batik fabrics. I used King Tut thread in Riverbank on the top and So Fine in Clay for the bobbin.  Maybe a light gray or off white would have been better and then black thread in the solid black areas and in the outer border.
Picture
 But the back is fun ;)
Picture
So, it's not perfect; but the quilt is done, I learned some useful stuff and I have more quilting experience.  It's not about perfection, it's about the journey.

I was pleasantly surprised with the back - maybe I should hang it like this!
Picture
0 Comments

Jelly Roll Race Quilt - Batik Garden

3/12/2017

0 Comments

 
Batik Garden Quilt
Batik Garden Quilt

Batik Garden Jelly Roll Race Quilt

Here's the 3rd quilt I've finished using the jelly roll race pattern.  There are lots of free tutorials and videos on the web showing how to make this easy quilt.  If you're just getting started quilting, this is a good pattern to start with because it doesn't involve much cutting.  Jenny at Missouri Star Quilt Company has tons of great video tutorials including 3 variations of the jelly roll race.
freemotion quilting on the longarm
Batik Garden on the longarm
Here you can see the quilting progress while it's on the longarm.
freemotion quiltng
Freemotion roses, leaves and feathers

Quilting Info

I used Omni thread in light sage on the top and So Fine thread in marco in the bobbin. I was inspired by the allover feathered rose design by Judy Woodworth in her book Freemotion Quilting.  A lot of the prints in the jelly roll were floral so the quilted roses and leaves were a perfect match for my Batik Garden quilt.
Jelly Roll Race Quilt

Quilting on Busy Fabric

I love how it looks on my new sofa.  Note that the quilting doesn't show much because of the busy fabrics, but it adds great texture.  Practicing a new quilting design on busy fabric is a great way to try something new.  If you bobble, it won't show much and you'll still have a lovely finished quilt!
Freemotion quilting
Picture
0 Comments

Longarm Quilting a Paper Pieced Cats Quilt

2/2/2017

0 Comments

 

Fran's Paper Pieced Cats Quilt

Picture
This is Fran's absolutely amazing paper pieced cats quilt. She designed the layout of the quilt and had a wonderful idea for the quilting motif - an allover loop-de-loop with yarn balls.
Picture
The paw print blocks in the border are a really fun touch and I love the way she incorporated the cute pictures from a pre-printed panel in alternating blocks.
Picture
Fran also included the printed cats along the sides and bottom so the quilt ended up the correct size - 110" x 115".  This is a big quilt and I was excited and a little nervous about quilting it, but I think it turned out wonderful.
Picture
Here you can see the quilt on my longarm and a closeup of the loop-de-loops and yarn balls. What a perfect quilting idea!
Picture
Picture
Before and after quilting shots of the blue cat. He looks so cute with the runaway yarn all around him. The quilting helps tell the story of the quilt without overwhelming the top.
Picture
On the longarm. You can see the quilted and unquilted areas.
Picture
The completely quilted top with a peak at the back.

Quilting Summary

  • Allover loop-de-loop with yarn balls
  • Superior King Tut thread in Caravan for the top
  • Superior So Fine thread in Ginger for the bottom
  • 10 1/2 bobbins
  • 80/20 batting
Picture


Fran did an amazing job on this quilt
and I'm sure the lucky recipient will love it!

0 Comments

Tulips Tossed - Longarm Quilting with Rulers

1/29/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
 
This is the 4-patch posey quilt that I made in class at Quilter's Market a long time ago.  I wanted to wait to do the quilting until I felt more comfortable with my longarm machine.  I really like this top and didn't want to mess it up, lol. 

After looking through my books for some quilting motif ideas, Sally Terry's Terry Twist seemed like a fun way to do something special with the blocks.  I have some of Sally's books and have taken a few classes from her, but I didn't have her special ruler.  Instead, I used Ronda Beyer's Double S ruler and I think it worked pretty well.  Here's Ronda's ruler lined up along the curve that I just quilted.
 
Picture
All the swirly, feathery bits in the blocks and borders were done freehand and it was great practice. Because the fabric is so busy, you can't really see the quilting unless you get close or look at the back.  
I was pleasantly surprised when I turned the quilt over - isn't that awesome!
Picture
The quilting motif is much easier to see here on the back:
Picture

Here's a closeup of the freehand feather/swirl quilting: 
Picture

On the right side you can see the star shape that I quilted with the ruler and it's ready to have the freehand feather/swirl design quilted around it:

Picture
Below is a closeup of the piano key border with the freehand swirl design.
Picture

Quilting Summary

  • Custom quilting motifs with rulers and freehand quilting
  • Superior King Tut thread in Wild Rose for the top
  • Superior So Fine thread in Rose Petal for the bottom
  • Two layers of 80/20 batting

I'm glad I waited to finished this until I felt more comfortable quilting with my longarm. But don't wait too long to finish your quilts so they can be loved! This one definitely has some boo boos, but that's okay. I had fun and learned a lot.
Picture
0 Comments

    To You:

    My favorite way to express my creativity is with fabric.  Join me as I share my journey with you. I hope you'll be inspired to create something too!

    Archives

    February 2018
    January 2018
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017

    Categories

    All
    Baby Quilt
    Beginner Quilt
    Charm Pack
    Customer's Quilt
    Custom Quilting
    Double Wedding Ring Quilt
    Feminine Quilting Designs
    Home Dec
    Jelly Roll Quilt
    Longarm Quilting
    Masculine Quilting Designs
    Paper Pieced Quilt
    Peppered Cottons
    Quilting Motifs
    Quilting With Rulers
    Quilt Pattern
    Quilts
    Quilt Tutorial
    Ribbon Quilting
    Sewing
    Sewing Machines
    Tablerunner Pattern

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Home
  • About Me
    • Being Creative
  • Quilting Blog
  • Tutorials
    • Quick Tips
  • Eye Candy
    • Customers' Quilts
    • Quilts I've Created
    • Fabric Creations
  • Create: Cards