Friday, March 27, 2009

Quilting Secrets of A One Woman Show

How does one woman load a King Size quilt onto her quilt frame in a garage all by herself when the floor is dirty? I did sweep and vacuum it, but there is still an unbelievable amount of dust. I know, because I clogged the filters in 4 vacuum cleaner bags.

Well, first you set up the quilter, then you lay a king size flat sheet on the floor and put bricks on each corner.Then you get your backing fabric and lay it over the middle roller good side facing down, and let the backing fall onto your sheet, instead of the dirty garage floor.Pin it, and roll it up.Then get your batting and quilt top stretched across your rollers, adjusted for proper length and width on top of the roller with your backing, then let it fall onto the sheet on the floor.Then roll it up and pin it in place.I was really disappointed last night when I realized I might not have enough varigated green top thread. I didn't have any green for the back in The Bottom Line thread either, that I usually use. 'I CAN'T WAIT TIL NEXT WEEKEND! I'VE WAITED LONG ENOUGH! I WANT TO GET THIS QUILTED THIS WEEKEND!' (Whew, yes, I almost did have a little tantrum!) So I started looking at the thread that I had, and decided I would have to make something else do. 'Ahhh....yes. I should try this Magna-Glide Fil-Tec bobbin thread I bought. What the heck!' I found matching thread for the top, although, it really wouldn't have mattered, but as I said, I had no green that would work, and I had no black. I really didn't want to use black anyway.So the directions say to remove the little tension spring from the bottom of the bobbin holder. Ok, I can do that. (Michelle, make a mental note which way the spring was in there! Check!)See those little plastic thingies on my wrist magnet? Those are the core of each bobbin. Of course, you cannot reuse these bobbin centers yourself, but I saw online where some places are taking them back and giving your credit for them. Smart idea. I think I'll hang onto mine. Maybe I can repurpose them into something else, or save them til I have a bunch. The black part is a magnet, and you put the magnet towards the bottom. It replaces the spring, and it keeps the tension consistent, like it resists free movement, keeping the tension taut. Can I just say I LOVE MAGNA-GLIDE bobbins!!!!!!!!!The tension was PERFECT the whole time. I did not have ANY trouble with the bobbin thread, and it looked tight and consistent the whole way through. There are no thread glitches towards the end with these bobbins. When you run out, you run out. That's it. Renea and Kate! If you haven't used your Magna Glide bobbins yet, try them! You will love them! I used Signature Mercerized Cotton on the top. I made NO adjustments to the bobbin case WHATSOEVER! The next picture is a rare specimen, and 'sightings' are seldom and rare. Catch a glimpse while you can! (DARN that Louie!) It took me about 7 1/2 hours from setting up the frame to cutting the quilt off the frame. I used 4 1/2 bobbins. Had I used regular quilting thread in my bobbins on a quilt this size, I could have easily used close to 20 bobbins. Here is the quilt right after I cut it from all the excess. After all that, I took a break. The big white blotch on the left hand lower corner is sunshine coming in under the curtain on the window. (Time: 3:45pm)
Well, you know me! I didn't take too long of a break. The binding is on the quilt, and the quilt is on the bed. (Roughly 9:30pm)Thanks for letting me share my pictures.

Be blessed!
Michelle

14 comments:

  1. I loved reading your step by step explanantion of quilting your quilt. The quilting looks great! Did you draw that design on it? I thought maybe you had from one of the pictures.

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  2. Oh! You are one smart lady! Great idea with the sheet on the floor! I will have to do that when I start using my frame. It will be set up in the new house but lots of dust and sawdust on the floors. No matter how much you sweep you can't get it all up!

    Love how you showed step-by-step doing this! I also love the quilting that you did, very nice! And I just love how you put your names on the quilt! Makes it extra special!
    Kristie

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  3. Michelle,

    The quilting of hearts, swirls and the words look wonderful on this quilt.

    I suppose the garage has some kind of heating...or you would have gotten too cold.


    Enjoy the weekend!

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  4. You did a beautiful job on the quilt. You sure did that in record time. It would take me longer than that and I got my machine already set up.

    Thank You, Louie, for the picture.

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  5. You never cease to amaze me! Only you, Michelle! You are WOMAN!!! Beautiful quilt and I love the personal touches you added in your stitching.

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  6. Wow how pretty!! You are so talents Michelle.

    Hugz,
    Julie

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  7. Thanks for sharing this. I need to learn more about quilting machines as someday I would like to get my own. Right now I take it to the quilter and wallah I pick it up quilted but really have no idea how it all works.

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  8. Great job and I loved the step by step on how you did it. I also loved the quilting, those hearts are great and putting your names on the quilt is a wonderful idea.

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  9. Wow!! What a huge task and it looks great. Very clever way to get it loaded...and you cleaned the garage too! I love the fact that you signed the quilt in the quilting. I think that is a really nice touch.

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  10. It is wonderful, and I can't believe you got it all loaded yourself and done so quickly. You are "WOMAN".

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  11. I loved seeing this Michelle. Sometimes I wish I had a long arm but since I have absolutely no place that's big enough for one I know that's not going to happen. blessings, marlene

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  12. Oh Michelle,
    Your quilt turned out gorgeous! It looks so perfect on your bed. I loved where you quilted your names into it. Very good job!
    Winona

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  13. You never seem to stop LOL If there's a way to get it done you'll fine it .Good for you I also like the added touch of the names ,it looks great on the bed .

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  14. All I can say is AWESOME! You've got some mad skills, girlfriend. Gotta love a quilter! ♥

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