Free motion borders before or after
 

Oh My I think I have bit off more than I can chew....I made a attempt to free motion a quilt for the first time..it is just simple, I free motioned on the sashing and part of the blocks...how much free motion do you do....and do I put the binding on first before I do the borders?

Oh, my, you probably should have practiced on some scrap sandwiches before starting on a 'real' quilt. It's an acquired skill. As far as 'how much free motion' it's like any quilting question: read your batting package. That will tell you how far apart your quilting can be and still secure the layers. As far as the binding is concerned, most people will bind after. sometimes quilting will distort the quilt and you may need to square it up a bit.
I'm sure that it will be lovely. Post a picture when you're done.

I did practice some...but then got impatient and went for it....as for the batting I don't have the package...[ATTACH=CONFIG]378705[/ATTACH]

Its a great start!

Not a bad start at all! Don't think I could do any better at this point!! About all I can do freehand is meander. I think of puzzle pieces and try to replicate. It does take patience and finding your own speed on the sewing machine, but it won't take long & your muscle memory will take over. Don't give up & keep practicing!!

Do you mean quilt the borders before adding the binding? Typically the binding is the LAST thing to be done, but I have sometimes added a BIT of quilting after the binding went on, just because it seemed like more was needed. The reason to do the binding last is that the quilting will often pull on the layers of the quilt sandwich at different rates. If the binding is already sewn in place, the quilting may cause distortion. If the quilting is done first, you can trim it and even the edges all up before putting the binding on.

I'm finishing a quilt now that I started in April. In my haste I put the binding on before FMQ but it's turning out fine. This is my second FMQ!

You are doing real good. I have not done a quilt yet!!! I am still practicing. I am real scared to try. Keep going!!!! Yea!!!

You are off to a very good start, I do a large stipple and just do as I like. I love doing it and I love the way it looks.

I'm impressed. I have not done any FMQ yet, just outline stitch in the ditch.

Thank you all so much for the encouraging words....I have wanted to throw in the towel on quilting lately.....I know I am expecting perfection when I have only made a few quilts and they were mostly rag...I am still using flannel....I will be glad when I have used most of it up and then will try to start making regular quilts.....It is my sanity right now.....Blessings

quilting amount is dependant on the batting being used- some batts need to be quilted every 2" some allow up to 10" between quilting lines- you need to read your package & quilt the recommended amount.
you quilt your borders before binding- binding is the final step after all quilting is completed & the quilt is squared up...the quilting process distorts the quilt a little & there should be excess backing/batting to be trimmed after the quilting is completed- after that a label & the binding is attached...and Voila---it is done!

You have a great start to FMQ ! I sew borders on my quilt, sandwich it, then machine quilt the quilt. I leave the quilting on the borders until last. After quilting the borders, I then square it up and sew the binding on.

I do a large stipple on the main part of the quilt,stitch in the ditch along the border, then a slightly smaller stipple on the border. I find that quilting the border takes up any waviness that may have accurred when attaching the border, and makes attaching the binding easier.