Longarm Tip of the Day

This is the start of mounting a quilt on my longarm.  The backing is on the bottom, attached with my Red Snappers. Next is the batting layer, and on top is the quilt.  This is a fairly small quilt, but with only a couple inches on each side of the backing, I needed to attach my extensions for the side clamps.  Side clamps are really a necessary accessory.  There are many styles and configurations for these clamps, but I created my own version which started with a lap quilt frame using PVC pipe and bungee cord.  The frame I bought at Joann's and was for a 12" square.  I bought a longer piece of PVC and cut two 24" pieces to replace the 4 - 12" pieces from the package.  The PVC I bought is the one used for hot water (cream colored as opposed to white), as it is has a slightly bigger dimension, which helps the clip-on tubes hold a little tighter. The bungee cord attaches to the side of the frame with adjustable pinch slides, like you would find on a jacket.  I know I am not using the appropriate terminology for some of these parts, but I think you can figure out what I am talking about.

When the backing is not wide enough, I use extensions for the side of the backing which is made from about 5" off the bottom of a t-shirt.  One side is the hemmed edge.  The other side I cut 1/2" longer to allow for a hem.  The purpose of the hemmed edge is to prevent the clamp tubes from sliding off... unexpectedly sometimes. The edge that is pinned to the side of the backing is a raw cut edge... t-shirt material does not ravel.  I use hat pins, almost end to end, to secure the extension to the backing.  The side clamps only hold onto the backing and does not include the batting or the quilt top.

If my backing is wide enough, and extensions are not necessary... I keep a 2" wide strip of batting handy to lay on the backing fabric edge before attaching the clamp tubes, which keeps the clamp tubes from slipping off.

I sew the batting down across the top, creating a straight line to line up the top edge of the quilt top before stitching it down almost on the same line... I roll the take-up bar one or two clicks so the stitch line is about 1/4" from the edge. This is followed by stitching down the sides of the quilt.  This stitch line is not critical to be exactly 1/4"... in fact a little shy of 1/4" is ideal, but it is very important to stitch the sides down.  If I run off the fabric, I typically will stop and move the needle over. This side stitching is in the border area that will be covered by the binding, so if it varies in width... it will not show when the quilt is done. Having a stable surface to quilt on makes an enormous difference on your outcome. 

When I start my stitching I bring my thread up in the border, still on the quilt top, but outside the stitch line. It is not necessary to lock the stitches down on the edges at this point as they are outside the stitch line and they will be locked down when the binding is added.  An important tip though... all loose ends need to be locked down before your quilting is done.
 
 I think all quilting rules have exceptions, and many of my steps may not always be needed... but I do them because they work for me.  Shortcuts might get you done faster, but the end result is often compromised.

In summary... The backing needs to be taut and the quilt top needs to be secured to the quilt sandwich on all sides.

New Cupboard

I am not sure how many would choose to have a quilt in place of a cupboard door, but I am thinking I might not be in such a rush to get my cupboard doors replaced.







The two medicine cabinets in the bathroom were also missing their doors.  The bathroom quilts were much less work as it was a whole cloth that I started with, which only required cutting to size, then quilting and binding.  This image is actually only one with a mirror next to it, but the one on the other end of the sinks is almost identical.

Machine Applique for a cupboard?

One project for the kitchen in my new house is to replace the cupboard doors... a couple of them were missing and it is not easy to match cupboard doors.  As it is not a priority project, I was able to find some cupboard doors, kind of a good size and color, that would work in the interim at Habitat for Humanity.  I needed three doors and was only able to find two... the third cupboard is still needing a door.  I decided a small quilt might make a neat cover for that cupboard.  The flower part of this block came from a magazine, but my borders are appearing as I create them.  I have two narrow side borders to complete this before I bind and hang it over the cupboard opening in the corner.

I have a quilting buddy that has made some amazing quilts, including some impressive hand applique on a couple.  She has been on a hiatus from quilting due to some health issues and other commitments and needs to be motivated to get back into quilting.  I suggested that we look for a Block of the Month project that we could both commit to.  We would both benefit from having an accountability partner to get a new quilt done.  She found a really cool BOM... using machine applique.  It would be a beautiful option, but when I asked her if she had done any machine applique, she indicated she had not.  Hand applique and machine applique are quite different techniques. Either you really like it, or you find it to be a chore.  I think anyone can accomplish a quilt using machine applique, but if you are going to commit to a BOM, it would be good if you enjoyed doing the technique.  With this beautiful quilt that she found in mind, I started looking for a practice block or two that she could work on and decide if machine quilting was a technique she would enjoy.  I found this flower block in my search for that mini project.  I wasn't sure that she would like the block, but because it was more of a rectangle than a square, I started envisioning it hanging in my kitchen over my cupboard that has the missing door.

Mid week in Mid July...

 It is the time of year for the Tour de France.  I like to watch here and there while Ron is absorbing almost every moment.  The tour gives an amazing view of the French countryside and mountains and coastline.  Having never been to Europe I am continually amazed at how neat some of the towns and villages are clustered... and how green everything is. The architecture of some of the structures is totally amazing. Oh yes, and there are some amazing bike riders out there.

I am trying to start a new trend... fresh flowers for my countertop.  I think it is into the third week since my first bouquet on my new counter.  I have been buying my cut flowers from the floral department at the grocery store.  At $3.98 a bouquet, they are my little ray of sunshine for a minimal cost.  They last about a week and they make me smile.  I added the green ones today.  There were a couple of the yellow left from last time that are still looking pretty good.  It would be neat to be able to cut flowers from my own garden... one of these days.

A cool gift we recently received... Ron thought the mirror behind the counter would create an opportunity for a neat picture to show both sides of this cup.

Quilts hung and empty nest.

Official first quilt to be hung in the new house.  Now I have had a couple small quilts up already, but they were put there with tacks for temporary enjoyment.  This quilt is in the bedroom, my Baltimore Cousins quilt, and it fits perfectly above the bed between the two windows.  For the first time since I finished this quilt, it is in a location that allows all the blocks to be seen. 










This is the quilt room with a couple more quilts on display.  The lighting in here was a little lacking, so the light fixtures you see are all new.  They are LED and linked together.  They provide totally awesome lighting.  We installed a gridwall in the closet to accommodate my collection of thread cones and the smaller mini-cones are on racks behind the door.

 

The Mamma dove was having a hard time fitting in the nest with her two babies.  It was hard to see up there, so I am not sure exactly when these two hatched, but based on the size of the eggs, I am presuming these guys were up there much longer than I was aware.  This afternoon I went out with my selfie stick to prepare to take another closer look and the two of them flew off together right in front of me.  

Empty nest means we can now take this light fixture down and replace it with the new one we have been waiting to install when they flew the coop.