Originally Posted by anita211
Sashiko quilting (Japanese) uses something like a #5 perle cotton to make big stitches. It looks lovely especially done in the clamshell design on blue denim. They use almost a crewel needle for that type of quilting.
As to quilting stitches showing: I handquilt a whole lot of my stuff. I WANT the stitching to show. The Amish use black thread regardless of the color of the quilt so that the exquisite quilting shows. I am trying to get as good as they are... but it isn't working. I can get maybe 8 stitches to an inch, not the 12 in a wall hanging I have made by some Amish sisters which is white and is quilted with white. It is truly beautiful.
I decided long ago that if I wanted to do something big (bed sized) I would tie it. I handquilt most of my wall hangings. It is relaxing and I get kudos for the quilting, not just the pattern, color arrangement, etc. And as I make a lot of Amish style quilts, my quilting shows nicely.
I am presently machine quilting a wall hanging that has about a zillion seams and I wanted that quilting to show also to add to the beautiful colors. Besides, handquilting over seams is NOT much fun. I chose a wavy decorative stitch that shows up on the strips. However, machine quilting is not my style. I have a Flynn frame, and several other things that would make machine quilting fairly easy, I would think, but I prefer sitting down in the evening with a quilt in my lap.It helps to unwind me after a long day at work.
Okay, lunch is over... back to work!
Anita
Ya know what my fingers say?
Crewel, crewel needles.
After reading my earlier posts... I use size 75 quilting needles for 50/3 thread. I use size 90 needles for 40/3 thread. The size 12 thread I have run through was also done with the size 90 needle on the mighty Bernina 830 with no problems. Now anything larger than that will probably have to be used in the bobbin. The thought of messin with the tension on the bobbin case gives me the willies.
tim in san jose