Advice on quilting my first...
 

feather border.

It is spray basted really well, but I wonder if I should go around the whole thing with an 1/8th" stitch first?

Also, I am just doing very gentle curves all the way around. Will it look weird if I just join them at the corners? I don't think I'm up to going around a corner yet.

Watson

Hi Watson!

I don't know if you're quilting on a longarm or a domestic. I did a quilt with feathers in the border, but I put the binding on first. This was on a domestic Juki. I found it easier to "center" my design.

For the corners, take some time and do some sketching on paper. From your work that I've seen, you're a creative lady and I'm sure you'll come up with something for your corners.

Looking forward to seeing photo.

What works for me is to draw the feathers on with chalk.
Of course, that is, if your background is not white! I do not like using coloured chalks.

No, I don't FMQ exactly on the drawn lines, but it does give me a guide and sense of what I am doing.
Especially around corners.

Another hint ... draw a chalk line set in far enough from your binding line, so that your FMQing, feathers or otherwise does not extend into binding.

The chalk ... mostly comes off as I work on the quilt.
At the end ... I just use a clothes whisk to brush away the rest.

Here are some links of quilts I have done that might give you some ideas.
On this quilt I put a motif in the corner https://www.quiltingboard.com/pictur...a-t254463.html

ON this quilt, scroll to the 3rd and 4th pic. I sprayed out in the corners and had the feathers circle back on themselves in the centers of the borders https://www.quiltingboard.com/pictur...c-t244193.html

On this quilt I did turn the corner but still had the feathers meet in the center because the plumes changed directions (2nd pic shows the turning the corner) https://www.quiltingboard.com/pictur...c-t212181.html

This one I did the same thing: https://www.quiltingboard.com/pictur...t-t195439.html

I always mark my spines and I drew a lot of feathers and experimented on paper with what worked best for me.

went to a machine quilters guild meeting last month and the program is using domestic or sit-down machines to quilt. The instructor said if you get foam core from Home Depot, etc it substitutes well for Pinmoors--she preferred using straight pins to baste as easier to move as you quilt.
I only draw the curved spines and not the feather part--but you need to really think about having all the feather starts heading the same direction--that is what sometimes messes up. Regarding corners--if I'm not wanting to turn a corner, I will often put swirls in the corners and then start again on the side. But like Feline, I often will turn the corner and end in the middle of the border and then come from the other direction and meet in the middle.

I spray baste, but then do use an 1/8 inch stitch all the way around. I keeps everything nice and straight while working so close to the edge. Turning corners is not much different than the gentle curves you are planning on in the borders. Draw out the spines, as recommended in above comments. I use a plexi glass sheet to lay over my quilts so I can practice the quilting designs with a dry erase marker. ...