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more quilt stuff
Mar. 16th, 2012 01:20 pm16 or 17 blocks quilted, I lost count.
I'm using a ton of thread. About one bobbin full per block, or a little more. I'm winding them four at a time; I'd do more but all my other bobbins are occupied. I've been replacing the bobbin blind, which is to say, I don't bother cutting the spool thread or moving the quilt when I switch to a full bobbin, I just drop it in and slide the thread through. I don't even pull it up through the needle plate. I just take the first few stitches very carefully to make sure the bobbin thread pulls up properly.
On stippling/meandering: It's difficult sometimes to fill a smaller shape than a larger one, but I am doing pretty well. I like to start in a random area of the shape and then bring the end of the stipple line back to the beginning, so I have one large, endless, non-overlapping circuit. Two things to remember are: 1.) always leave yourself an escape route, i.e. don't stitch yourself into a corner so you can't neatly stitch out, and 2.) stitch as close to the edges of the space as possible (without running outside) in order to really fill up the shape.
I"m not doing any ditch-stitching in this quilt, and I quite like the flatter look without it. Previously I stitched in the ditch in most of my quilts because I thought that's just what you do.
I'm keeping my stitch length pretty short, because that's just what I like. It means I either have to move the quilt very slow or keep the needle going pretty fast, or both. I'm probably keeping the needle going faster than I ought, but it's looking pretty even. Faster often keeps the curves smoother, for me.
I'm using a ton of thread. About one bobbin full per block, or a little more. I'm winding them four at a time; I'd do more but all my other bobbins are occupied. I've been replacing the bobbin blind, which is to say, I don't bother cutting the spool thread or moving the quilt when I switch to a full bobbin, I just drop it in and slide the thread through. I don't even pull it up through the needle plate. I just take the first few stitches very carefully to make sure the bobbin thread pulls up properly.
On stippling/meandering: It's difficult sometimes to fill a smaller shape than a larger one, but I am doing pretty well. I like to start in a random area of the shape and then bring the end of the stipple line back to the beginning, so I have one large, endless, non-overlapping circuit. Two things to remember are: 1.) always leave yourself an escape route, i.e. don't stitch yourself into a corner so you can't neatly stitch out, and 2.) stitch as close to the edges of the space as possible (without running outside) in order to really fill up the shape.
I"m not doing any ditch-stitching in this quilt, and I quite like the flatter look without it. Previously I stitched in the ditch in most of my quilts because I thought that's just what you do.
I'm keeping my stitch length pretty short, because that's just what I like. It means I either have to move the quilt very slow or keep the needle going pretty fast, or both. I'm probably keeping the needle going faster than I ought, but it's looking pretty even. Faster often keeps the curves smoother, for me.
