I don't know why everyone shys away from handquilting. True I have been doing it for 40 years and am probably very fast compared to most. I love to watch TV and handquilting is something I can do at the same time. It is certainly less expensive than having it done by a longarmer. I have at least 1/2 dozen friends who are longarmers and they do beautiful work. The satisfaction I get from handquilting is very relaxing and I have heard is good for my bloodpressure. I do simple machine quilting on the chairity quilts I make for the Linus project. I also machine quilt any quilts I make for those I know who will not care for them properly. Of all the parts of quilting the things I like best are collecting the fabrics and doing the handquilting. The other parts are like housework. I do them because they have to be done. As a child I hated doing the dishes. I don't own a dishwasher and never have. To me it is less trouble to do them, mindlessly by hand than to scrape, and or rinse off and then load and unload a dishwasher. Since my family only consists of myself and my husband for the last 10 years or so even that chore is minor. If I entertain a larger group I usually use disposable plates, cups and glasses etc.

If the idea of quilting on your regular sewing machine seems intimidating, another option is to get a machine quilting frame -- you can sometimes find them used on craigslist for less than $500, and it would theoretically pay for itself within a few quilts (i.e. compared to sending it to someone else to quilt). And there are many frames that would work with a regular sewing machine (although the kinds of patterns you could make would be somewhat limited). I love using a frame -- there's no tugging and rolling to fit the quilt underneath the machine throat, as it's all handled by the frame. It does take some practice and getting used to, though.

Funny - the image I get from when you say "sofa throw" - it stays nicely folded up and never gets dirty and always looks nice

- the image I get when I say "couch quilt" - it's in the room where the TV is and more often than not is rumpled and gets used a lot - more of a utility quilt than a show quilt

- sofa, chesterfield, couch, davenport, divan, settee, daybed -

Is it comfortable and is it long enough to stretch out on?

Back to the question of cost: Yes, the cost of long-arm quilting does hold me back from making really large quilts.

I made the mistake of offering to make a quilt for someone - and in my mind it was "couch quilt" size, but she wanted a king-sized one for their bed. Those beds are like football fields!

Now I've learned to be a lot more specific!

I have a friend who owns a mid arm quilting machine and all she ever makes is tops never does finish them. I think this is a waste. That mid-arm takes up a lot of room in her room.

Maybe you could suggest that she could give it to you so it's out of her way!!!

I quilt all of my own quilts. I have made over a hundred and some odd. Some of them are "in the ditch" some are quilted diagonally, some are an all over stipple or meander. I simply could not afford to send out all my quilts to have done. I do have one or two that I may have quilted by a "professional" they are queen size, for my bed and I want them to look really really nice, but other than those. I must "do them myself"

I see now where it would be good to start out small and try it all out. I really thought you had to have a special machine to do anything of any size. Hmmmmmm..... will I have to buy a bit more fabric to make a table topper that I could play with??? ;)

[quote=mpspeedy]I don't know why everyone shys away from handquilting. ...[quote]
I think you might be surprised at how many of us hand quilt. It doesn't seem as popular as having it done by machine or long arm, but there are still lots of us out there who enjoy hand quilting while watching tv or visiting with friends. :-D

I have machine quilted a king sized quilt on my sewing machine. Was it a pain in the butt - YES! But I would much rather do it that way then send it out and spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars (which I don't have) to have it done by a long-armer. I simply cannot afford that. I prefer to hand quilt but gave in and started machine quilting because I can get more things done that way. Now I just save the hand quilting for my special quilts. I probably have enough quilts to hand quilt for the next few years. :oops: Machine quilting may sound a bit scary but if you start by using a walking foot and doing simple lines (stitch-in-ditch or gridwork) it is actually very easy and it is amazing how quickly it goes. If you are really uncertain, I would definitely recommend taking a class if you can. They can be invaluable and you meet the best people there.

Yes, the cost of quilting can be a bit overwhelming. I started quilting because I needed a wedding gift and didn't have a lot of money and thought a quilt would be cheap and fast. Ha Ha hahahahahahaha!!!!! Okay, 18 years later I know better and the cost can be a bit rediculous. Still, I love to quilt and can't imagine my life without it.

And so many people have no idea of the dollar cost and time involved in making a quilt.

No thanks to those ads that say "Any size hand appliqued and handquilted quilt for $39.95."

I do love finding good deals on ebay and the online shops. And even JoAnn's, especially when the batting is half-off. So if I could figure out how to do the quilting myself, even if it's not fancy, that would make it much more reasonable.

I will check out all the suggestions - and I think trying a very small project first might help. Now to figure out what to do for that!

A crib quilt or lap quilt (about 45 x 60) is big enough to be "worth the effort" and small enough to be manageable.

Or a small quilt (36 x 36) with thin battting for a little tiny one. That would probably be fairly manageable.