wow- what a rude statement- i can not imagine why someone would think of stitch in the ditch as a 'cop-out' it takes practice, patience, and time- some people consider it one of the most difficult machine quilting techniques- it's alot easier to just meander along- doing loop-d-loops & what ever than it is to follow a straight line! the person who said that too you must think she holds the (quilt police sheriff badge?)
just tell yourself- you have the right to use any techniques you want and like- no one should tell you it's a cop out- that ranks right up there with the folks who believe using a beautiful panal in a quilt is some sort of cheating...just ignore negativity & carry on, with a smile- some of the most beautiful quilts i've ever seen were stitched in the ditch---right along with some of the most spectacular quilts with panals in them.

I don't think it's a cop out. I find it just as difficult to do a good job with SID as FMQ. It's your quilt to finish as you please. Don't let anyone intimidate you or berate your quilt.

Well if it's a cop out then I have copped out on a lot of quilts, NOT!! I quilted in the ditch every one inch on some of my log cabin quilts that were queen and full size. Have "them" tell my fingers that! It's our quilts and we can quilt them any way we want to, either by hand or by machine. And by the by machine quilting is NOT new not even in 1989 when Carol Beyer Fallet (sp) won best of show for Arora, (I think it was) and it was machine quilted, well the hub bub that arose from that was unbeliveable! My friend in Oregon, her mother and grams both hand pieced their quilt tops, and sent them to a lady in TX who had a treadle sewing machine to machine quilt them for them. So contrary to some of the quilt police machine quilting in NOT new! Who are these experts who can say these dumb things aout the work we put into our quilts?? you can bet they are not on my list to gift a quilt I have made!!

Agree with other comments. I SID charity quilts & put binding on by machine. Have never had any returned (lol) Also have a wave stitch on old Singer that is very nice.

I hope you didn't believe that crazy creep! Anything made by hand can be done any way the maker wants to do it. Personally, I have stitched in the ditch, stitched using patterns and I have sent some to the LAQ. I prefer hand quilted quilts...love, love, love the softness of that look. I use LAQ when I make one for a grandchild because I want that little one to drag it to death and they really do hold together better when they have to be washed so often. Do it your way and if you will take a lesson from me you will never let anyone hurt your feelings like that again. In fact, I would tell that person to go "fly a kite"!

I say, whatever works for you is what truly matters.

SID is not a copy-out. I love the geometric pattern it can create on the back. Besides, it is hard to STAY in the ditch. I personally don't like giant meanders all over a quilt. As for sending it out - that is a talent too, to be good at it.

I'd use a rather popular and nasty word. It's your quilt, you are the designer, do what you please. I combine all the techniques STID, geometric quilting like squares, lines, etc, and throw in some FMQ on an area that needs it. I use a template and follow it. That won't suit a lot of people, but TOO BAD!

I agree exactly...not every quilt is suited to all over quilting. I've done a few with stitch in the ditch, not because it's easier but because it felt like the right way to quilt those particular quilts.

Staying in the ditch is not as easy as the quilt police might think. And some quilts just call for it - anything else would detract from the design. As for sending out the quilt to a LAQ, that's helping the economy - something we should all be doing anyway.