I spent the entire day wrestling with a twin bed quilt. I have never been so tired or miserable. Come on quilters... is it always this bad? It's not like I was doing some fancy FMQ... it was simple quilt in the ditch. I read every tut I could find, I have been sewing all my life, I got sewing gloves (which I love) I covered my sewing machine and area with plexiglass (which I love)Yes my sewing area is large, yes I went out and got a walking foot. Yes I used good quality thread, and yes it was cotton, and yes I spray basted it.
I had quilt in my lap, quilt on the floor, over my shoulder, I felt like I had a big bear in my lap that had a mind of it's own and wanted to go anywhere other than under my machine needle. Tell the truth. Will I ever be comfortable doing quilts, or is it ALWAYS like this? If this is what I have to look forward too... I think I will go back to doll clothes. I hope and pray this is just due to my lack of experience. The only quilts I have made in the past were rag quilts and little pieces are SOOOOO much easyier to sew. I am sending a pic from my phone... I need to put on the sashing, and it is done and boy am I glad! Here I was going to FMQ a few little mice around the cats in the white areas... well forget that... Unless someone can honestly tell me it will get better, this is my first and last real quilt~

It will get better. Patience and practice, practice, practice will over come these frustrations. The quilt is beautiful; thank you for sharing.

Oh honey! I feel for you! It is very hard to wrestle all of that fabric and batting around -- I agree.

But don't give up! There is still quilting in your future! Read up on 'quilt as you go' and think about breaking a quilt down into sections to complete. One hand quilter on this Board says that even she does that.

Please post a large picture when you're all done and we'll all admire it.

Every time I see someone say, "It's just stitch in the ditch," I think, "There's no "just" about it - stitching in the ditch is HARD!!!!"

I'd rather take a beating than try to stitch in the ditch - I only do it when I absolutely have to. With all that quilt pulling and tugging against you, your stitching wanders around all over in the vicinity of the ditch. Keeping it straight is insanity.

Yes, you'll feel like you're wrestling a grizzly for a while. And dealing with a large quilt on a domestic machine might never become a walk in the park, exactly, but it does get easier. Instead of trying to sew straight lines, use a serpentine or rippling stitch to wander back and forth across the seam - that's what it wants to do anyway, so make it look intentional. ;)

The only time you can't get away with that is when you really need that straight line - to stabilize borders before FMQ, for instance. Then, you just have to bite the bullet and sweat it out.

Good luck - I feel for you!

It look wonderful and when you have finished the struggling memory will probably disappear. But you did great. So you have no need to give up. Start smaller if you have to next so you can keep the inspiration going. I hand stich in a ditch to avoid the wrestling . :)

LOL! Yes, it's always like that. Quilt over shoulder, in lap, puddling on floor. But, it's like birthing a baby. While you're in labor you swear you'll never do it again, but after the trauma and you admire your lovely baby, you can't wait to get started on another one!

That is so pretty! You can always sent your next one out to be long arm quilted. Thats what I am going to do with the one I am working on now, its a King size!

It's a huge adjustment, going from fiddly little pieces for doll clothes, to yards and yards of fabric you have to wrestle like an alligator.

It DOES get better, though. You get used to it, the way you got used to the tiny work you have to do for doll clothes. The size of the quilt becomes part of the experience, part of the challenge and the triumph when it's finally finished.

Beautiful quilt! Just keep on keeping on :)

THANK YOU ALL SOOOO MUCH !!!! I feel better. I wondered how in the world a woman could possibly do a quilt if it was so hard... if nothing else it gave me a deep respect for my 85 year old grandmother that made quilts for everyone in the family... LORD I HAD NO CLUE how hard it was. I WILL look into making smaller pieces and quilt as you go, and not doing the next one with stitch in the ditch. And yes, because of you, when this one is done, there will be another. You are all so great! Thank you

Doesn't it feel good to have wrestled and won! To calm that beast into something so pretty?