I have seen some intensely overquilted pieces. My first question to myself is, why bother putting in batting.....that sort of quilting definitely does not make the "bed quilt" warm, it has lost its purpose........I really think handquilting cannot be overdone...because the stitch itself is not as confining as a machine stitch...if you see handquilted tight meandering and the same by machine, there is a significant difference. I love to handquilt, but because I want to finish in my lifetime, I do machine quilt, but I really try to keep the same rule of thumb....the piecing makes the quilt and the quilting enhances it, not the other way around. Of course, in show pieces, the opposite is sometimes the rule of thumb, but like everything else in hobbies......to each his own.....