bkay

I made my first quilt at 65 or so, so you're not alone. I've used invisible thread to quilt with a walking foot. I used Gutermann that I purchased at JoAnn's as the top thread and matched my backing with the bobbin thread. (I used regular polyester thread there. The quilt was an I spy quilt, so had lots of colors.) I had to adjust my top thread tension a little, but that was the only problem. It worked out fine. I would suggest that whatever you do, do it in long, long strips. By that I mean, don't do a lot of starts and stops where you have to tie and bury the thread ends. That thread is wiry and hard to tie. So, plan your pattern so that it goes from one side all the way to the other side if you can.

You'll have to do some quilting inside the block or it won't hold up to washing. I might go with your pattern of the two lines in the sashing, but go all the way across with no stops and starts. Then, depending on the space I had to cover, I'd do a set of two lines across the blocks or two sets of two lines.

If you use painters tape to mark your lines, don't sew over it. It's a bear to get off after you sew over it. Sew beside it.

I'm trying to make sense, here: I'd start in one corner and go all the way across the quilt. Then I'd come back going in the opposite direction. Make sure your pressure on the presser foot is reduced, too. You don't want it to "push" the quilt top. I use about 7 or 8 stitches per inch, so that's a pretty long stitch. Make a small quilt sandwich with anything you have, as long as it's cotton, to double check everything is correct before you start on the real thing.

Think of it this way: With invisible thread, the quilting won't stand out. Your blocks will be the "star of the show".

bkay