I think it is a Beautiful Quilt and anyone would be proud
to get that as a gift I'm sure. I think they did a perfect
job on it, so don't bet yourself up , it's a top notch Quilt
you made..

Your quilt is very pretty! I don't see a thing wrong, the only thing I can think is you're so used to see hand quilting and maybe you wouldn't have quilted it that way, but I think it's wonderful.

Why not hand quilt inbetween the machine quilting? I think the big spaces may be what's seems off to you. It won't take that much time and with the middle being handquilted it will be perfect to add more. All the handquilters I know set very high standards for their quilting and I have heard them all say how disappointed they were with the look of machine quilting on the first one they send out.

Thank you all for your kind comments. As I said earlier, I don't blame the quilter at all, for what I don't like, and I will go back to her. The quilting is baptist fan and I was afraid to have her do them too small because I had heard about how stiff a quilt will get if it is machine quilted too close together, but with them so big, the design is kind of lost. I just wish I could have learned some of these things on a "not quite so special quilt". It means a lot to have a place to go, to vent about it, thanks.

I think it looks really beautiful. I think the piecing really takes center stage....and if people are not quilters they may not notice the quilting much at all. The problem with being a quilter is that we look at all the parts of quilt with a "judge's" eye. Other people don't do that, so we should learn to take it easy on ourselves.

your quilt is beautiful..i think sometimes we have a picture in our mind of what the quilt will look like finished and then when we see the quilt finished if it doesnt look like what we pictured we get disappointed. I think in time the quilt will grow on you....

Your quilt is very beautiful...the quilter has done a really lovely even job... just look at the pattern in the corners... your work is beautiful too... a gorgeous quilt... don't be so critical if I may say so. Well done all around... I am sure the recipients will be delighted.

yes- you have to let her know- I have been Long Arming for 10 years and my motto has been to please let me know if you have any issues- that will help me in the future and if I can I will fix it- like they say "Do a great job the piecer tells 1 or 2, do a bad job they tell hundreds...and that hurts....

I read your note and I could have written the same thing. I took a machine applique class recently and made a very large wall-hanging of a tree and 20 or so applique'ed animals for my new grandaughter. It really turned out beautifully. I spent weeks on it. I sent it to a dear friend who is a very talented longarm quilter and artist too. I got it back yesterday and when I opened the package I was just devastated. She really blew it! My lovely little animals are just about indistinguishable from the background because she used an all-over white thread and a very large stippling pattern which just makes the dark animals blend in and the light animals look like they aren't quilted. Some of their tails and bodies spill into the border and she did a free motion loopy feather stitch around them that isn't even and was done in bright variegated thread - yuck!

I feel your pain. This is the first time she hasn't done a specatcular job so I will just "grin and bear it". I can only hope we look at our quilts in the future and like them more.

thanks for the opportunity to vent.

Happy Holidays to all ot you.

Just put it away for awhile. We work on our quilts to be "just right," and don't realize how tired we really of the project. Just put it where you won't look at it for a few weeks. When you get it out, bet you will be proud of it and everything will be just right.
It would be wonderful if we had enough time and energy to hand quilt everything. I don't think we can plan on living that long! I thought everything had to be hand quilted, and quickly learned that to send it out to be machine quilted was a small price to pay for my mental health! I have a friend who does my machine quilting when I get to the point I need help!!
Good luck, and send us a picture when you get it back out!
marta
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