dottiemae

How many of you buy stencils to use for quilting the top of your quilt? Are there better ones than others? Are there certain shapes/designs to stay away from?

How many of you use the quilting designs your computerized sewing machine offers? Does it work well?

How many of you draw your own design and templates?

Do any of you know of a good reference for showing how to do : you are suppose to quilt from center out ( anyway that is what is recommended from my research) so how do you start and stop your stitching ( ex. you have a plain block in the middle of a quilt and you put a design of your choice there. How do you start and stop stitching and how do you tie in those pesky ends?)

Not ready to try much of what I am asking, but I figure you can't answer the curiosity if you don't ask those who are long time quilters

Becky's Crafts

I've only been quilting since 2010, but I've come a long way in that time & now am trying to improve upon my actual quilting skills. It's all muscle memory! I don't have time to practice much except on the quilts I continue to make, so I have to practice on those! I have purchased some stencils & they work nicely to mark your quilt tops. More often I go to my library of quilting designs. (4 books so far). I can't draw for beans, so I have to photocopy designs I like & then I pin them in the proper areas & quilt right over the paper; after which I tear it off like doing paper piecing! By all means, get the Quilting Dot to Dot book by Cheryl Barnes & the 501 & 502 Quilting Motifs by Quiltmaker Magazine. They are well worth the price!! I just do a lock stitch at start & stop, but some use the quilter's knot & bury it in the batting. I've taught myself, so prefer the lock stitch & have had no complaints to date! :-) By all means, just jump right into it because it's a lot of fun!!! Don't start on a special project though, just use a large muslin quilt sandwich and try it out. My knees were knocking so loudly the 1st time, I'm sure they could hear them in the next county!! LOL! It came out beautifully though!

RST

I'm assuming that you are asking about free motion designs on a machine? Stencil choice is a personal preference thing for sure. I hardly ever use a stencil anymore, but if you are a beginner, look for shapes that are not too tight and where you will not have to backtrack much -- you might like something like a vine.

I don't use my machine's computer-driven designs for anything other than very small items -- just playing around on a hotpad, for example. I don't like them.

I free hand. I usually use landmarks from my block design to orient and then "doodle" my general design with occasional variations. I plan my quilting by taking a photograph of the entire quilt, printing it gray scale full sheet, and then playing around with a variety of potential quilt designs on paper before I begin.

The rule about starting in the center is more of a general guideline than a hard and fast rule. It's a good practice, and usually is the best option, but sometimes it makes more sense to start elsewhere. If you quilt is layered carefully and basted well (pin or glue or stitchng) then you aren't likely to have trouble even starting off-center.

I start the motif with a couple of stitches in place to secure the end. When I come to the end of a line of quilting, depending on a few different factors, I may use my machine's knot feature, I may leave the ends long and pull through and finish with a quilter's knot, or I may just snip.

I am very much of the "give it a try and see what works for you" school of quilting. Others may give you other approaches, but what it all boils down to is finding a balance of what you enjoy doing and what works well aesthetically.

popover

I hand quilt, so pretty much any template In like the looks of, as well as drawing some of my own.

Tartan

I love Angela Walters book Shape by Shape for quilting designs for shapes. I quilt using the block as guidelines sometimes. Example-square shaped blocks are perfect for Orange Peel designs FMQ. If I need to mark, I use white chalk registration marks and FMQ.

mjpEncinitas

I use Cindy Needham's ultimate stencil for any middle or corner stencils I need. One stencil and I can create many, many different options. https://www.cindyneedham.com/products/ultimate-stencils

suern3

I learned by following Leah Day's methods. Her website is Leahday.com and she has everything you need to know from beginning to end. She has many free videos on youtube and now has CDs, etc. for sale. Highly recommend her. At first I tried using templates but in the end it was easier for me to do free motion rather than following outlines.

117becca

I hand quilt, so I use stencils and mark the quilt. I do think of the border stencils and then I make my borders that size.

sherian

Good information thanks!

Quilt30

I am confused by the original post. Are you talking about quilting on the domestic machine or longarm