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Wednesday, May 20, 2009

so far, so good


I started the line quilting on my square dance quilt, and so far, so good! I think it's the perfect quilting treatment for this one. Since I had so many questions about this technique, I thought I would run down a few answers. First off, it's done using a walking foot. My lines are between 1/4" and 1/2" apart. It's VERY easy to do and somewhat mindless, especially on this quilt, since I am using the squares as my guidelines. Early on in the quilting process, I crossed over the seam lines, and it looked really sloppy, so I ripped it out and decided to keep the stitching between the rows of blocks for a cleaner look. It does use a lot of thread and it is somewhat time consuming. I have about 1/3 of the twin sized quilt done which I did over a day and a half. So, not THAT bad. I started quilting about 1/3 of the way in and worked my way to the edge. Now just (ha!) 2/3 more to go!

Now, to answer the question, "so, what do you do with your mini quilts?"

We use them. :)
(it's very easy to get an action shot with a 3 year old.)

And...I posted a new tutorial on the Moda Bake Shop today.

55 comments:

  1. it's looking so good!! where did you start, at the top? in the middle? i'm definitely wanting to try this.

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  2. i started about 1/3 of the way in, quilting lines top to bottom. does that make sense?

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  3. Look at those sweet little hands playing with her doll!

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  4. i think that it's definitely a neat type of quilting.
    i saw somewhere that a gal was doing this but in v shapes.
    it looked really cool.
    and she did it on whole cloth quilts so the quilting really spoke for the quilt.

    we SO use our baby doll quilts too!!!

    for the 3rd time today {hahaha} i think your mbs bag is SUPER cute.

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  5. Jamie AZ10:41 AM

    I've got a bento box quilt I'm working on and I think this will be a great way to quilt it. Especially since I don't free motion quilt yet! Thanks for the details, Amanda Jean!

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  6. nice line work! I love that look. one day...
    ;-)

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  7. This quilting looks great! In fact, it's starting to make me rethink the quilting plan I had for the queen-sized quilt I am making for my guest room. Hmmm.....

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  8. amandajean, sorry, I don't get what you are saying with the crossing the seam lines thing? sure love the quilting and your daughter and the bag! You are the best!

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  9. I just did something very similar on a small project that I ended up turning into a pillow cover. It was tedious but I loved the result. I can't imagine doing it for a large quilt. You must have the patience of Job. I may have to try this on a baby size quilt.

    P.S. love your charm bag tutorial

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  10. Looks great! I've done some lines but with more space in between - the tight rows are cool looking :)

    I'm off to check out your tute!

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  11. Amanda Jean I saw your tutorial on Moda and i have the perfect charm pack for tha bag. I hope to make it soon.

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  12. I like the staight line quilting (probably because that's the only one I know how to do). Yours looks great. I'm on my way over to the Bake Shop to check out that pretty bag!

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  13. That quilting looks great!!! Your lines are so straight!

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  14. i love the line quilting!! i want to try it now. :)

    i love the mini quilts!! so far, i've used most of them to hang as art quilts, but my kiddos love using some of them too!! :)

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  15. I love the straight line quilting. It looks so my style. But every time I try it the top or bottom pulls in a weird way, even when I use the walking foot. Do you go from top to bottom, then bottom to top, or just from the same side the whole time? Maybe I'll try practicing on a mini quilt. Any tips on that would be lovely. Thanks!

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  16. Thank you so much for answering our questions and sharing your knowledge. Are you meandering or using a guide so your lines are fairly straight?? Love that the little quilts get used and YEAH on the Moda Bakeshop feature! :D

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  17. retired nana1:55 PM

    Question to anyone using this straight line method:

    Once finished and washed are these quilts as soft and cuddly as the quilts that are quilted using stippling or meandering? Just wondering if they are stiffer??? I'm asking because I 'stink' when it comes to stippling or meandering & thought maybe I could handle this.

    Thanks,

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  18. my favorite part of this whole post is those adorable little hands and how she's totally playing so cutely!

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  19. I love this. Will have to try it. Looks like it takes LOTS of patience. Love the tutorial.

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  20. retired nana,

    the quilt does have a different feel than a stippled quilt, for sure. if you want it softer, maybe try quilting the lines 3/4"-1" apart. it would be a faster process, too. :)

    aj

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  21. cj,

    i'm not really meandering or using a guide. my lines are fairly straight, but they are just eyeballed. nothing too precise. some parts are very straight, some are kinda wavy.

    aj

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  22. Anonymous3:11 PM

    Well I have been "lurking" for a while. I am new to quilting and have had so much fun following yours and a few other blogs. Well today I just had to stop and comment about the CUTE bag you have on Moda Bake Shop! LOVE IT!! I posted a comment there so I won't repeat it all. Anyway, you give lots of inspiration, love visiting your site!

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  23. d spack,

    i'm not sure how to explain it better....maybe i'll try sending you a sketch via email.

    aj

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  24. leigh,

    so far i've only gone top to bottom. about half way through, i plan to flip the quilt and then do all the lines top to bottom. hopefully it won't be noticible that i'm working in the opposite direction.
    i have noticed a bit of distorting in the quilting toward the edges, but nothing i can't deal with. hopefully after it's washed and dried it will be less noticable.
    hope that helps!

    aj

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  25. i admire your patience. i'm trying to get better but i'm definitely one of those get it done in a day when it comes to the quilting part. it does look really nice though. i can't wait to see it all!

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  26. I saw you tutorial on the bag over at Moda Bake Shop - I really need to get my "rear" in gear and get some quilting done....

    I really appreciate the inspiration that you give me....

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  27. I really, really like the way that quilting looks. I definitely want to try it!

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  28. So cute! I need to find some more days with some more time...!!!

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  29. amandajean...I love your quilting on the square dance quilt! You have such patience to try that but it looks so worth the while. I will have to try it on something small! I am going right over to the bakeshop!

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  30. Anonymous6:58 PM

    This might be a good alternative to stippling for me too! I just can't get the hang of that technique. Was it on your site that I read about using painters tape to help mark where the straight lines should go? I think I am going to try that for my 9 patch quilt.

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  31. I will be trying this quilting method - you are just FANTASTIC!

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  32. love the quilting, it's very striking. Thanks for the tips on how you do it.

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  33. What a fantastic and effective way of quilting! Love it.

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  34. Lovely quilting! My e-bay Bernina came with a walking foot that isn't working. Needle catches the plate every time! Today I saw walking feet for 9.99 AND 139.99 in a Bernina store! I can only imagine which works better! I find the greatest blogs by clicking on your commenters! Interested in doing a quilting retreat in CO in October? Keynote Speaker: YOU! I bet we'd fill it up in a nanosecond!!

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  35. Looks great - I will definitely bookmark that to try someday!

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  36. oh, i love the picture of your little girl playing. so sweet.

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  37. Hi AmandaJean. Thanks for all of your help with this quilting technique. I found a tutorial quite some time back for wavy line quilting & just never tried it. Going to pull out my printed instructions for that (to give props) and try it on a square in a square quilt I have to be finished. It was similar to what you are doing but the lines were farther apart. Thanks again, always love your inspiration!

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  38. Congrats on the bake shop post. I didn't quite understand what you meant by crossing over the lines, but the way you're quilting it now sure looks great!

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  39. Does your walking foot have a guide bar? Strangely, mine does not have a place to insert a guide bar, so I'm at a loss as to how to do things like this without drawing a million lines with a fabric marker.

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  40. I love how quilting, makes the quilt.
    I hang my mini quilts with clothespins.

    Debbie

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  41. Hi,
    LOVE the look of the line quilting...but I am ditto on the question you received from d spack...that is...I am not sure what you mean regarding crossing over the seams ??? I would like to try this method..
    Cheers,
    PJ.

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  42. very nice tutorial, love how you showed how to box the corners, and do the lining! I have lots of charm packs so I might use one of them up to make this :)

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  43. I am so itching to get my machine out and get a quilt going. Or maybe put out a top that I made years ago and quilt it finally. When things settle down in my life I will definitely get back to quilting. For now I knit, it's perfect for something to stuff in the purse to work on anywhere. Thanks for all of the inspiration!

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  44. thimbleanna and millymollymandy loves to quilt,

    when i mentioned that i was crossing over the seams, i meant the vertical seams. now i am just echoing the vertical seams instead of crossing over them. does that make more sense?

    aj

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  45. robyn,

    no, my walking foot does not have a guide bar. i sure wish it did, though. my cheapy sewing machine before this one did and i rarely used it. now i think i would! isn't that the way it always works?

    aj

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  46. Anonymous8:46 AM

    LOVE this bag! Definitely on my gonna make soon list! Thanks so very much! You are always so creative and inspiring. Because of you, I am now knitting (saw something you had knit and knit one too, and it just went on from there) and getting quite obsessive about it too! You brighten and enrich my life!

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  47. Thankyou Amandajean..I do understand now...
    I have got my doll quilt top ready to start quilting with lines like yours tomorrow morning .

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  48. what an adorable doll quilt! love it!

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  49. Nice bag!:) I thought I was going crazy seeing it on your post.:)

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  50. Those little hands, that baby doll, that tiny quilt - so sweet! I love that the doll quilts get used - and as intended!

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  51. Thanks for the tutorial. I stared a bag like yours months ago after you posted a photo, but I got literally stuck making the bottom! Now I can finish it!

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  52. I so wish I had the patience to do the line quilting, I get so excited that I just want it done and speed through easier quilting...I must reevaluate and try this because the results are awesome. Lovely little quilt :o)

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  53. angie8:12 PM

    could you tell me where to buy the fabric for this quilt?

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  54. I hae a question.... since you have been so kind as to answer most of them :)

    when you are quilting it.. from top to bottom or elsewise.. do you turn it around while you are quilting or do you cut the thread and go back to the top?

    ok.. you sew a line, and then when your at the bottom, o you reverse or cut it and start at the top again to do the next line...?

    you might have answered that, btu i didnt see it, and im usually good about trying to find the answer before i do. but i have been so distracted, all of your posts are so great and your creativity is well.. it puts me to shame!!!! I lOVE your style, adn your willingness to try new things. i dont know how to stiple really, i ahve just done wavy lines, tied, and in the sitch. i will try this def.

    do you have any ideas for a 4 patch that is about 16in squares? its a mod floral print and solid. just if you have time get back to me, i know you are a busy gal! thanks for stickin around!

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