Originally Posted by raedar63
I absolutly love to look at all the quilts that are posted on here and all over the internet for that matter. The thing is, I find myself getting so discouraged about making quilts because I do not have a long arm. I hear it roughly a 150 dollars and more to have one longarmed and that is for stippling.I have almost came to the conclusion to find a diffrent hobby and try to sell all of the tops and stash I have accumutated.Am I the only one that feels this way. I guess I am, and have been in a funk feeling like I am wasteing so much money buying nice fabrics to make quilts.
Don't be disheartened...... use other methods to finish your quilts such as QAYG, tying or buttons or make tops that do not need major quilting: make string quilts on fabric, not paper, that can be lined & tacked. The crazy quilts of the past weren't quilted. Sometimes speed is emphasized so much at the expense of the pleasure of
leisurely quilting. Many of us on the QB are not as well-off as others but we are not inferior because we cannot stack up thousands of dollars in stash and spend thousands on equipment. That is one reason I tend to enjoy older quilts--not just the art quilts made by the upper classes of the time--the quilts of the everyday woman made of what she could afford and the skill of her hands and imagination.
With today's wonderful batts and the possibilities of non-conventional fillers like older blankets you can put together quilts with minimum quilting. You can put completed quilt squares together on a blanket, for example, like piecing a log cabin. Put two squares face-to-face in the middle of the blanket and sew along one edge. Press open the seam and place 2 squares sewn together face down on the first squares and stitch them down one side. Open and press. Do 2 more squares on the next side, then 3. If I'm counting correctly there are now nine squares sewn to the blanket in a 3x3 configuration. You can stop now and add additional stitching to the nine blocks or continue adding strips of blocks/sashing/border.
You can also sew strips of blocks in vertical strips. Beginning in the center of your blanket or other filler, stitch two strips together as for normal joining, open and press. Continue adding strips, alternating sides to reduce bulk. You can include setting strips, cornerstones, etc. with the blocks as usual.
These types of top works well with the 'birthing' method of lining.