After reading threads here that are both pro and con hand quilting, I just started wondering if any of you still teach the hand piecing and quilting techniques or know of someone who does. It seems more common to see machine quilting. :) :) :)

Jinny Byer (sp?) has a wonderful book on hand quilting. I have wanted it for some time, but I can't afford it right now.
YouTube has lots of videos on a wide variety of subjects. Maybe they have something on hand quilting too? Good luck! Let us know what you find out. I saw a recent Fons and Porter show that featured hand quilting with perle cotton thread. That was interesting to me. One of the tips on the show was to not pull the fabric too tight in the hoop. I have found this to be true. It's much easier to quilt if the fabric is a little loose. I like hand quilting because it's portable. I can do it anywhere. I also have more control over the fabric so I don't get puckers, tucks, and folds in the backing. I am trying to get better at machine quilting though.

I teach both when asked but fewer people want to learn. I also teach needleturn applique. In doing hand work, it is the process you must enjoy as much as the finished product.

My local LQS gives a basic quilting course of 8 lessons. I took it two years ago and as far as I know it hasn't changed since. The first lesson was hand piecing with templates, the next 5 lessons were also hand piecing, but rotary cutting, the 7th lesson was log cabin as paper piecing on the machine and the last lesson was borders and sashing, hand quilting and binding. So really, all techniques were there, but the emphasis was on hand piecing and quilting.

IMHO it's better to at least learn it by hand first, before doing it on the machine. Even if you never do anything by hand after learning how to machine piece and quilt, I think it really helps to have done it by hand, because it helps you understand the process better. Of course, I only use the machine sparingly, because I like hand piecing and quilting so much more, so I might be biased.

Yes, I teach hand quilting - but only here in Germany. There are still people who are interested.

Fabulous to know. I am teaching myself from books and on line info and of course tips from fellow board memebers. :thumbup:

When I learned to quilt, I took a class that was totally hand pieceing from templates and hand quilting. Not long after that the rotary cutter was available and changed the cutting process! I still have those templates, made from cardboard with fine sandpaper glued on the back. Now, of course, you can buy templates made of acrylic, around which you can rotary cut. We used to trace around each template, mark the seam lines, and then cut with scissors. Oh, how far we've come!
It is nice to have a project I'm doing by hand because, as said before, it's portable. I also find it's just a totally different experience. It feels like I have a stronger relationship with a hand-pieced and -quilted project than I do with machine projects. But, of course, machines are much, much faster!

What she said