Hand quilting bonus
 

Maybe it is just me, but one of the best parts of hand quilting is being able to sit in my chair, watch TV, cover my legs with the quilt and getting warm on a cold winter evening while I'm working on the actual quilt. With machine quilting, there isn't that coziness factor - sweat factor trying to manipulate the quilt, maybe, but not coziness. Yep, snuggling under the quilt while quilting on it is definitely a good thing! :)

I feel the same way when crocheting a baby afghan - only do it in the wintertime.

Crocheting afghans is also comforting and cozy.

Yes,I agree Crocheting afgans is wonderful in the winter! And I love to sew the binding to the back of the quilt in the winter!

That's why I like to hand bind my quilts.

I'm with you on that Ranchwife - nothing better than being creative whilst sat in comfort - I do all my quilting by hand, it may take much much longer than on the machine but it gives me much more satisfaction

Ladies, instead of quilting the quilt in one go. Divide it up into sections. I like quarters for a double, king or queen sizes.
Split and treat as you would for quilt as you go with or with out sashing. The back seam I always so by hand ie nice and warm.
Again I love working under a cozy quilt as I sew, and this method does allow for it.

that's what i love about binding too...having the quilt draped over my lap, enjoying the final step to a finished project enjoying the coziness & beauty of it one last time before it goes where ever it is going. ranks right up there with knitting/crocheting in your favorite chair. :)

I spend countless hours handquilting while watching TV or sharing time with friends etc. etc. It is a lot easier for me than dragging a quilt around under my sewing machine having to constantly fold or roll all of that weight to get it in the right place etc. I would be willing to bet that I have completed and quilted more quilts than most other women using a machine. The steps that lead up to getting the quilt on my hoop or frame are the most stressful for me. I have seen fantastic quilting done on a longarm but to me it would be like sewing in a factory.

That is one of the things that attracted me to quilting in the first place. I mostly machine piece and hand quilt. I love doing handwork and I love sewing. This marries the two nicely for me. I can piece while DH is out of my hair and not distracting me and can quilt while he and I are spending time together in the evenings. A win-win for me.

I agree! It's my favorite part of making a quilt! But also why I don't quilt in the summer!

I agree! Last night I sat in front of the fireplace, hand sewing on a quilt binding and thinking how nice it was to be cozy and warm under that quilt as I stitched. I have another quilt to bind tonight. Yea!

I feel the same way. I save a lot of my handquilting projects for the winter time just for that reason.

Agree with above. I enjoy "Ralph", my furry quilt inspector sitting under the quilt while I sew. Yes,I wash quilts before I give them away!

I'm even guilty of hand quilting/crocheting in the summer. We live in the middle of a cattle pasture, and evenings get quite cool in the middle of summer when the winds blow down from the mountains and the ground gets cool. That's when I love curling up with my projects.

I feel the same about hand quilting. Plus, it give you a chance to revisit your fabric choices. For me, at least, having the quilt on my lap, I see every detail in the printed fabric that I may have missed in the previous quilt processes. I love the way the quilt takes on dimension as your add in "hills and valleys" with your very own hands. Guess it's like everything else, you either love it or hate doing it.

And let's face it, the quilting process, whether it be by hand or machine, is really the first time we get to work on the right side of the fabric. Everything else is done with the wrong side facing us.