I have been quilting for almost eight years and for some reason I feel like I have been doing it all wrong. I hand quilt similar to if a person was hand sewing. I get like 5-6 stitches to a needle and they are all pretty and even and my quilts all look great I am told but I even bought a Roxanne thimble (I have tried many) and practiced but cant get the hang or just the feel of one. Does this make me a back quilter ? I do use those little thimble pads which feel awesome. I dont have a "quilter callus". I hold my needle between my thumb and the finger next too it.. I have been doing this wrong all these years??
I am self taught.

Lisa

You are not doing anything wrong at all. Whatever is comfortable for you is what is right for you and don't let anyone tell you that you are doing it the wrong way. That being said, always be open to new techniques and develop the ones you enjoy. :D

Here's my theory...WHATEVER WORKS FOR YOU!!!

I haven't had much sucess with thimbles either as I would much prefer to use the side of my middle finger than the tip, so I'm on the hunt for something that will allow me to do that comfortably. And when I do find a way that works for me, I'll stick with that regardless of the quilt police :lol: :lol:

I can't get the hang of it either. My fingers are small and evey one that I have tried falls off!!! A box of Bandaids is my best "friend". Don't even know if anyone else uses them for that or not. But, it works for me!
Mary

I can't use a thimble either - I use a pad on my right finger and I have a callous on my left! :D

http://www.quiltingboard.com/posts/list/30/17276.page

K x

I can't use metal thimbles either! They go flying across the room ! I use a leather one with a metal insert in side and end of it. They hard to find, but come in all sizes. The one I'm using now has been super glued twice. I have others, but the old one feels the best. I have callous on two fingers on left hand, the ones under quilt. If I quilt a lot, 6 or 8 hours strait when getting Christmas gifts done, I have to use emery board and sand down callous! :lol: :lol: So just do what feels best for you! Ninnie in NC

k3n- those are the ones I use!! yeah.. Okay I do feel better now. When I am in a room of quilters I am always like a shrinking flower. I feel so inferior. Sometimes I am my own worst quilting enemy.

lisa

I know what you mean Lisa - the ladies at my quilt group - who are very nice BTW!- said to me only on Friday 'where's your thimble'? I showed them my sticky pad and there was a kind of eerie silence, tumbleweeds rolling across the room, etc!

I just smiled serenely and carried on with my piecing! :D

K x

I don't hand quilt, but I can't use a thimble when I sew. They just don't work for me. I say, if your quilt looks good and you are enjoying what you do it isn't wrong. Just unique, and we are all unique. Nothing wrong with that.

If you are sewing in that position, you probably don't need a thimble. A thimble is necessary for the "regular" handquilting technique, where the needle is pushed through the fabric by the tip of the middle finger and you don't hold onto the needle except to insert it and pull it out.