I've been quiltling less than a year and I find hand quilting to be very relaxing. I can pick it up at any time and sew as much or as little as time allows. I do a lot in the evening when watching TV. Sometimes during the day there's a movie I want to watch, so I quilt while I'm watching the movie. Makes me feel less guilty. I also find hand quilting or piecing is very relaxing. Don't have to worry about the bobbin running out of thread, the thread breaking or my machine turning on me and bunching thread on the underside. Also, it's much easier to take the piece apart if it's hand sewn. Hope this helps you.

Ask at your local quilt shop if there is a guild in your area. There's probably someone in the guild with multiple sewing machine who would be willing to loan you one to try.

Both methods inspire but you need to do machine stitching as well as hand work so the investment in a good machine that sews straight stitches is wise. You want to make something quickly and a machine will do that for you. In the long run, you will need a sewing machine even if you do hand piecing. Seams a yard or more long will not hold up when you put the pieces together if you do them by hand. Start with a small project and your curiousity will take you to the outer limits. There is a need in quilting for both hand and machine sewing, the quilting world awaits you.

Go for it and good luck, be ready to learn and be open to help when offered.

Carol J.

Sew by hand. It is the best way of learning the craft and after all that is how it started. Paper piecing is also good, especially if you are using fiddly or very small bits but if you start with simple shapes just hand sewing is fine.

I taught the hand method some years ago and if you want any help, please do not hesitate to PM me.

The look of a hand sewn and quilted quilt is different from a machine one and it takes considerably longer, but if output is not important the hand sewing imparts a kind of serenity to life. Something we often miss in our hurry, hurry and bustle world.

When I first started, I did everything by hand. I learned a ton doing it. If you do it that way, you will be able to decide if you really like quilting or not. I'd hate to see you invest in a machine, then decide you don't like it...but then again..whats not to like? And every home should have a sewing machine anyway.

Have fun!

Me personally? I NEED a machine. I doubt I will ever try to piece by hand, though I do plan to give hand quilting a whirl, eventually.

Check with your local quilt shop and see if they have a beginners quilting class. My first quilt was hand pieced and I loved the experience. Also, if you want to machine piece your don't have to buy a machine that costs thousands of dollars. Good luck, your in for some wonderful hours of creativity.

i don't do hand piecing but i do love hand applique and i have a friend that goes to classes and she does all her quilts by hand. they're really pretty AND she's fast. i have another friend who has recently become the recipient of several of her grandmothers HAND pieced quilts. it's amazing how accurate the seams are.

I am new to quilting and have chosen hand quilting for 2 reasons..............gives me something to do with my hands when I am watching mindless TV or in the car and I am find it easier to be more accurate. Try hand quilting and if you like to quilt you might want to invest in a machine later on. But then, you might decide hand quilting is the only way. I do not find it that slow like some do...............I think it goes pretty fast once you get started.

My first quilt was cut out with scissors (made cardboard templates to draw both sewing and cutting lines), hand pieced, and hand quilted. I learned a lot doing that quilt!

If a machine is in your budget then it will go faster, but there's no reason you can't make a quilt without one.