Originally Posted by
EdNerd
Never hand quilted before. My wife has done some sewing, not much quilting. (I used to be a mechanic at a Wrangler jeans factory.) Not too worried about shifting as long as we go straight down and through and and up - but any kind of running or rocking stitch could be problematic, trying to squish down all the batting.
It's not so much anchoring the layers into place to avoid shifting as it is making sure we've got a smooth circle on the bottom. Thought maybe I should sit underneath so I can see where to poke the needle back up??
Ed
i hand quilt. have done some hand quilting years ago using the thick poly batt. i also thread baste all my quilts. with back issues i cannot sit at a frame, i use wooden hoop held in my lap. it's not easy to turn large quilt in lap hoop around & would be, i think, nearly impossible to turn over to check appearance of stitching on backside. arthr in my hands started while in my mid teens. i can do rocking stitch, but frequently resort to stab stitch. the best way to do stab stitch hand quilting & have the back look as nice as the front is to make sure that from top down you hold needle perpendicular to fabric then go straight down. when returning from back side of quilt ..this done same way. since you can't see to insure correct perpendicular approach from back side, use your fingers to feel needle stance, & poke up to check you are in right position before you pull thread though to top. ..it's easy after the first few hours/days & becomes habit. i hope the circles are large tho, cause this will be a lot of slow tedious stitching on such a large thick quilt.
.......and if you're just foolin' with us all ...then please just disregard all the above
