Joe Ayres

I’m new to quilting. I’m a machine guy. I read most threads under “antique and vintage sewing machines.” I got started by fixing sewing machines, and then made masks for the pandemic, and had some cloth left over and decided to try making a quilt. So I started by making a “beginners quilt” and did “stitch in the ditch” along the straight lines. I did NOT wash the batting first, it said I didn’t have to… I haven’t washed it yet. Will the batting do something to it when I wash it?

Now I have made a big quilt out of mask fabric and it is too big to easily stitch in the center on my home machines. I did the borders and pillars using my hand crank. I borrowed tables at the senior center, took my hand crank there.

The squares are 13 inches. Again I didn’t wash the batting. (I did wash the fabric.) Reading some threads on this board, I am now worried about what will happen when I wash it if I don’t quilt the whole thing.

The big borders are 8 and 10 inches. I haven’t tried quilting in them yet, but I did make some test blocks and try quilting in those. Yikes! I tried free motion, bought some ruler templates, tried tracing a template and my stitches are all over the place. The ruler templates don’t work well on uneven surfaces, and get caught on the pressure feet. I got a darning or hopping foot, and tried that. I now know what is meant by juggling the machine speed with hand motion! With all the extra fabric rolled up in the machine, I am not sure I could get anything to look half way okay except doing “meander” like I did on my practice square. I’m afraid to start, thinking if I start and it doesn’t work out, then what…?

What will happen if I don’t quilt in the larger areas of cloth? I guess I need moral support….

See pictures in this link:
https://www.quiltingboard.com/member...bums20558.html

dunster

Your patting package should tell you how close the quilting lines need to be. If your quilting is not close enough (and that means in all directions), the batting can bunch up or even separate and you can have a mess. You will have much better luck puddling your quilt, rather than rolling it, but it can be done on a home machine, even with a large quilt. You might find that straight or slightly curved line quilting with the walking foot is easier than free motion.

I've never washed batting. Most quilters don't. If your batting is all poly, it won't shrink. If there's a cotton content, it will shrink some, and there will be some change in the quilt's appearance, but most quilters like the crinkly look.

Good luck!

Peckish

You do not want to wash batting before it's quilted. You will end up with a huge, unusable mess.

Dunster is correct - check the batting package for quilting recommendations. Another thought is maybe tie the quilt? Or if you have decorative stitches on your machine, you can use one or two "stitches" as a tie.

Quiltwoman44

I used to be able to free motion quilt better than I can now. Getting old I guess. so now i am thinking of doing more quilt as you go designs. I have made quilts in three or four sections. that works too.
free motion shows better stitches on the front if you go a tad slower than the foot pedal speed. Just easy and smooth. try some scrap pieces or blocks and get the hang of it a bit more. the more you do, the easier it will get.
I have never washed my batting but never have used wool batting. My smaller quilts i display on my sofa, i don't wash until I must. I too like that smooth look but my quilts used on beds i like the crinkled look. "more like a quilt".
Watch some videos on youtube of free motion quilting. that should help.

Gay

I agree with all the above, and will add to search youtube for videos of 'quilting as you go'. You can begin with the center, quilt , add blocks around and quilt them, till the required size is reached. Or you can quilt row by row.

newbee3

there should not be a problem when you wash your quilt. I wash mine and dry not on the hottest setting for either. The free motion takes time and practice just remember to enjoy

LI_diva

Angela Walters always says that a finished quilt is better than a perfect quilt top.

You may not have show-worthy quilts just yet, but keep at it, and as with everything in life, practice makes progress.

Also know that you are your biggest critic. You see every wobble as the quilt passes under the needle under a bright light, but when it’s a completed quilt, the viewer only sees the overall texture. In garment sewing, I’ve seen it called the 3-foot rule. If nobody will notice the error from three feet away, you need not fix it.

So keep going, and years from now, when you have many quilts under your belt, this will be a reminder of where you started and how far you’ve come.

(And just making sure you’re using a ruler foot when quilting with rulers, yes?)

sewingpup

Joe! Oh My! You are trying to learn so many different things all on this quilt! Most of us tackle one thing at a time. It takes practice to piece the quilt together, then to quilt it it together. Some of us just use the walking foot to do straight line quilting, some use free motion, some do ruler work, some tack it together with decorative stitches. Each of these techniques has a learning curve to it. It is easier to make some smaller table toppers or small throw quilts to learn each of these techniques on. You kind of jump in here! anyway, great job on starting on this quilting journey. It really is fun, take some classes, watch you tubes, join a quilt guild. Good luck and have fun!

Joe Ayres

Thank you all very much for your support and suggestions. I love the 3 foot rule!

I have made some test squares, and tried different methods of quilting with them. Next I am going to throw them in the laundry and see what happens. They are all made from left-over scraps of the quilt materials. I tried free motion using the Singer 15-91 with a darning foot, and then realized I can’t move that machine to the Senior Center where I can use the big tables to support the work. I used "invisible thread" on this square (with orange blocks in the corners), but I'm not so sure I like the results. I'll look at it again after I wash them. So I tried different methods using portable machines.

The Singer 66 doesn’t have a way to lower the feed dogs, but a plate is available that covers the feed dogs. This doesn’t work with the ruler templates though because it raises the templates due to the hump over the cover makes.

I finally found how to lower the feed dogs with the Singer 301. They hide that info in the very back of the manual under darning! That machine works pretty well for stitching in the ditch using a walking foot, and it’s throat is as big as the 66 or 15-91. I think I am going to try sewing the big quilt on the diagonals using this machine. It’s easy to carry too. Interestingly it’s this machine that brought me to quilting and this website. I heard that quilters love them, and now I know why!

Thank you all for your comments and moral support! I’ll come back and let you know how it went.

Joe

Karamarie

I wouldn't wash the batting. I learned that the hard way by washing it and had a big mess in my washer machine.