I have been handquilting for 40 years. I was involved in a quilt documentation project in the 80s where we hired curators from the DAR musuem in Washington DC to look at the quilts. The first thing I learned from them is to count the stitches on the top and the back. At that rate I average between ten and twelve per inch. Even if your stitches are bigger being even and consistant is the most important part. A lot depends on the density of the fabric and the thickness and density of the batting.