It seems like I never get anything finished, just keep going from one project to another and not finishing what I've started. I do have a few quilt tops finished, but as far as quilting them - yeah right. I've started hand quilting one of the tops I finished, but just keep going from one thing to another. I search this site and others on the internet for new projects, it's like a never ending cycle for me. As far as quilting on the machine, I have so much trouble out of that, I have finished small quilts and they turn out just fine, but when it comes to a larger one, well I just have so much trouble out of that. Does anyone have any suggestions at all for me? Thanks.

FMQ on your machine is hard with large quilts. Maybe you could quilt them stitch in the ditch or echo and then you could use a walking foot. Much easier. Good luck.

UFOs, unfinished objects, are a symbol of a quilter, some have more than others but every quilter has at least one, or more :twisted:

I have just found out about "Big Stitch" quilting, http://sewprimitive.blogspot.com/200...-examples.html using #8 Perle cotton and an ordinary needle I did 3 small UFOs in just a couple of days. My really big quilt that was giving me problems on my machine is now half finished and looks lovely.

Threadart has a sale on at present and I have bought a load of the lovely Perle cottons for it: http://www.threadart.com/shop/category.aspx?catid=283 their colours are so lovely I feel like eating them :lol:

Sure, do what I do: send them to a long arm quilter! There are lots of talented ladies on this board who do LAQing, at great prices. I realized long ago that I HATE quilting, but I like the piecing, and that life is way too short to wrestle a big quilt through the throat of a small machine, or to quilt by hand. So go for it!!

Have you thought about local churches, I know alot of the churches around here have ladies that will quilt your quilt for you. Usually a waiting list but its cheaper than a longarm service, and your tops are just laying waiting anyway, you could get on the waiting list. Our local quilt shop has longarm services but they are very high priced. If a quilt shope doesnt have a longarm service they usually can tell you who in the area does longarm. Joanns and hancocks also has a bullentin board at the front of the store where people post quilting services. I've seen longarmers here on this site that do beautiful work, very reasonable compared to what we have locally. I personally have never sent mine out, but I have inquired because I have some quilts that I want to be better than what I can do. You could also tie your quilts instead of quilting, thats what my grannie used to do.

I have at least 12 different ones all the time. Don't worry, we all feel you pain :-) I love making the quilt tops but after that I am bored. So I usually end up leaving them until I need to get rid of them or give them away and then I finish them. No worries :-)

What a different look! I have lots of Perle cotton from when I used to do a lot of needlework, this would be a great way to use it up.

i can not afford to send my quilts out to be quilted or rent a long arm for a day so i took me husbands chalk line tool and had my daughter help me and i put straight lines starting from one corner stretched it to oppisite side diagonally and marked it every 4 inches from that line then sewed that with straight stitch then marked oppisite dirrection and sewed when finished it was a 4 inch diamond all over quilt i did 5 that way for christmas

i tried doing free motion but with my little sewing machine it to hard to do large quilt and someone said i need to get the little clear plastic washers to put behind my bobbin and i have not manage to find them in my area all 5 quilts was queen size and one was a blue jeans material quilt

Hmmm..... not sure what your problem is other than being a creative artist!! lol
I also have too many ideas and projects for the amount of time and hands needed.
Sorry I'm no help! :D:D

http://www.clotilde.com/detail.html?...le&code=145025 Most quilting suppliers stock them, hope they help.

Sounds like we could be sisters. I love to make tops but handquilting is so slow for me..... pain in my right hand gets too much after awhile...... I don't have much luck with machine sewing those large quilts either. But, having a few tops folded and waiting to be quilted is not so bad. They look beautiful on a shelf or hanging beside a bed on a drying rack. If I let it worry me too much, they'd have to put me in a hospital..... so don't worry...... be happy!!

I try to quilt a little bit each day. You will be surprised how much progress you will make even working just 15min a day.

what are the little plastic washers for? I hadnt heard about them before.

www.keepsakequilting.com sells them. I was just looking in one of their catalogs and saw those and wondered what they were for.$9.99 for a set of twelve. They are called "Little Genie Magic Bobbin Washers." Here is their toll free number too 1-800-865-9458.

Try quilting in sections to get your tops done. I did that on all my large quilts before I got a longarm, and it really works. Marti Michell has a book that explains a number of ways to divide up the bulk of the quilt so it will fit in your machine. Some of the methods even work if you've already pieced your entire top.

Or... pick your prettiest top and send it to a LA quilter. When you get it back you may be so pleased to have it DONE that you will be ready to tackle the other tops.

You are probably a “creative process” person rather than a “completed project” person. These people, like me, often have more fun in the design, color pulling, piecing, and how-does-it-all-work-together process than we do in having the completed quilt.

I have UFOs nicely packed away that are over 25 years old. Some of these are nothing but a roll of the fabric pull for a quilt-to-be! Every once in a rare while, I come across a started one and get creative with it all over again by figuring how to enlarge it or add borders --- now that the fabric for it is mostly unavailable.

But long ago I was told that even though Michelangelo, and Beethoven, and other great artists, left work undone, no one denies *their* genius. It’s been my greatest guilt release ever.

Gotta leave *some* inheritance to the kids!

Jan in VA

I am so thrilled at everyone's response. I too cannot afford a long arm quilter, which I have two very close friends of mine that own one and one has offered to do a couple of mine for "FREE", but cannot seem to take advantage of this. Feeling guilty I guess. I admit I too am soooooo slow at quilting, picked up one that I've been working on this morning and have started with the long stitches and I'm actually liking it, but still it's too slow for me. Think I will stop worrying so much about it all now and be happy with the "tops" finished. Thanks to everyone who came to my "rescue". I feel so much better now.

i also have quite a collection of ufo

How about doing some SID and then add some hand quilting too? No rules saying you can do both. Maybe handquilt while watching tv? :D:D:D

UFO's are a problem? I always set half finished projects aside because I get bored with them. I start something else, and something else, and something else... when all of a sudden that old project calls my name and I frantically sew and sew on it. Sooner or later I get them all finished, usually years later!

I have 4 or 5 quilt tops waiting to be finished. And I am moving on to piecing a new quilt top.

I figure after this quilt top I will have to get into the finishing mode and finish all of them, before starting a new project. Yeah, we'll see if that happens. I'll keep you posted.

I was wondering the same thing, so I checked the link someone posted. It seems ot help the bobbin flow better so you dont' get backlash and birds nests underneath.

This sounds "Just like me".

Thank you so much for I was beginning to think I was just making messes everywhere and never going to finish anything, some things I do finish though, it's just I do get bored, then start something new, get bored with it and so on, then go back to them eventually. I have a small section of a cathedral window quilt my mom had taught me how to make when I was 19 and now I'm 52 and yep, it's still not finished and I truly love this quilt, she'd made one and finished it in no time - all by hand. Thanks again.

I have problems doing the large quilts to. My machine arm is short making it very awkward, and I prefer to hand quilt smaller projects.
I was shown different methods of "quilt-as-you-go" and this is wonderful!!

Try making yourself finish 1 or 2 projects, then as you realise what else you have you will get excited and finish UFO's once in a while and start to catch up (I do)

:roll:

Heather
in Australia

I too was wondering about the washers, and this is what the web site said
"Eliminate backlash and bird's nests on the underside of free-motion quilting, embroidery or thread painting by slipping one of these slippery Teflon washers into your bobbin case. Fits longarm and domestic machines. 12/pkg.
"

I also like diagonally cross-hatching. I use a long straight edge and mark corner to corner both ways. Once that is stitched, I mark lines the width of my 5" or 6" ruler. Then I start from that center line and stitch each line going toward the outer corners. Does that make sense?

Too cool! I went to the site and the large stitching is pretty :0) Some how I thought it might look amaturish(? spelling) but not so. And the Perle cotton is a great price! Thanks, Sarah

Yeah! I got several started and plans for others haha. I think QuiltingAddict has a good suggestion. I'm going to read through some more as I need the help too! lol Have a good one, Sarah

I quilt al my quilts by hand but lately my hands don't like it and won't cooperate sometimes. The arthritis makes it hard for me to hold the needle anymore, so this Big Stitch looks pretty easy to do and I think I just might try my hand at it...thanks for the info

I am a longarm quilter and I have to chim in here. There is longarm quilting and there is longarm quilting. Ask your friends how much they charge for a simple, open, all-over pattern. For a queen size quilt, and a large pattern, I might charge as little as $70, or even less to just make straight lines or outline blocks.
Also, as a friend, you might pay them half price if you are not comfortable with letting them do it for free. However, they probably offered to do it for free because it is great practice for them.

Maybe you need a bit of encouragement to finish something. There's a topic on this board about that. It's a challenge to finish one UFO a month all year. January's almost over - you better get busy and if not this month - there's Feb.

Maybe you need a bit of encouragement to finish something. There's a topic on this board about that. "UFO Challenge of the Month". It's a challenge to finish one UFO a month all year. January's almost over - you better get busy and if not this month - there's Feb.

I love big stitch quilting too! I have completed a few quilts this way. It has to be the right pattern to look good. People who see these quilts always remark at how beautiful they look

Not a suggestion here, just an idea:
I heard once that the average quilter has about 8 (yep, eight) unfinished projects at any one time.
So my question was/is: If a quilter has more quilts does that mean she/he is over average or under? ROFL
I say don't sweat the small stuff honey--just have fun!

Maybe work a deal with a long arm quilter for a quilt top or something? Trading has worked with my machine repairman.

Have you found a long arm quilter? Before I became a long arm quilter, I took several large quilts to my local quilter and the joy of having the quilt completed was well worth the price. Being a long arm quilter, my joy comes from the expression on my client's face when they see their quilt for the first time. There are many ads in quilting magazines that will do simple meandering or an all over pantograph inexpensive. I have seen some of their work and it's wonderful. Also check with your local long arm quilter for her prices.

I have made a list of my UFO's on a bookmark and keep it in an engagement calendar (a quilt one) and write down what I am doing in quilting. I feel successful when I can cross off a UFO.
I can work on new projects if I put a completion approximation down and work on a UFO during the project.
Diane/Wyomig

I couldn't have said it better. Either that or tie them, which is the other way to finish them, and it takes cost out of it for the most part.