I just tell people that I machine piece and hand quilt and the design of the quilts are 100% mine using a variety of patterns I've collected from quilting magazines and books over the past 46 year years. Thus far, the work is totally mine but if I ever complete a top that I'm not willing to quilt for some reason, I won't think twice about hiring a professional to quilt it for me but I hope that day never comes but at my age, one never knows. A year ago I had a very serious surgery and even made arrangements with two of my quilting friends to see to it that if I couldn't complete my next to the youngest granddaughter's quilt, would they please see to it that it was completed so she'd have it. It was over half way quilted and I even gave them permission to finish it by machine quilting it even though I was hand quilting. The main thing was to see to it she got her last Grammy quilt but luckily I was able to complete it and give it to her. Now I'm finishing up a quilt for my youngest granddaughter and then all will have gotten their twin quilts from me.
Originally Posted by aileenlenzi
Originally Posted by katiebear1
What do you think? I was in my lqs the other day and one of the ladies that works there was binding a quilt . It was really beautiful. I asked her how she got her fmq so even and all. She said she used the quilting machine and led me over to a large machine that was just happily quilting away all on its own. I am a new quilter (about 7 months) and I do it all by machine, and I consider that still being hand made After all we don't cook over an open fire. But somehow programing a machine and turning it on seems like cheating.
It is a matter of semantics, when someone asks me the question "Is it handmade" I clarify it with, "I sewed it on the sewing machine or it was all hand sewn, but yes it is handmade by me" vs being purchased in a store or from someone else.