Alright so I am on to quilt #2 it is a quilt for kids and I have it all peiced and I am very happy with it. I want to try quilting a grid over the whole thing from corner to corner, but do most of you do this freely or do you draw it out, I did one line and accidently folded my backing corner over so had to rip that out, so I am getting ready to restart and wanted my lines to be a little straighter and wasnt sure how to go about this. Any help is much appreciated!

A lot of machines come with a "bar" type thing that hooks into the foot to help you follow a line that you have already quilted.
I tend to either use painters tape to get my straight lines or a ruler and chalk or other marking tool.

yes my machine did come with that, it is a quilt guide? I wasnt sure what exactly to use it for. Thanks for the help I am going to draw my lines out I need to get some painters tape too.

Be prepared with supplies to try several methods and find the best one for your quilt and your machine. My eyes have a hard time with following the blue tape line for long periods, but it works really well in positioning the lines correctly.

In the middle of my last quilt, I used both painter's tape and the walking foot guide for those long diagonal lines. I would alternate painter's tape, then the guide. Even with a slippery surface and extended table surface, I needed all the help I could get to keep the lines straight for the middle section. As I worked my way out to the edges, I was able to use the walking foot guide more often.

would masking tape work instead of painters tape? I have that and do you still start from the middle if you are doing grid lines or do you start in the corner?

Yes, still start in the middle of your quilt and go to one end. Go back to the middle and go to the other end.

I usually mark my grid with a wash out blue pen and a long ruler... :D

Masking tape will work, as long as you don't leave it on your quilt top for longer than it takes to sew and the room is not overly warm (like in summer, it may leave traces of the adhesive). You can reuse it several times, too :D:D:D

Once I get a straight line from the tape, I just follow the lines with my guide. Then I use the tape in the opposite direction and then only my guide after that.

I actually start in one corner, then go in the opposite direction on the next row, but always corner to corner, or edge to edge. The 1st row is always across the middle of the quilt, but it starts at the end, if that makes sense. Then there's no need to pull up the bobbin thread and tie and bury it(it's buried in the binding) nor worry about exactly matching the stitch in the middle.

Thanks so much for all of the help! I started out going corner to corner too, I thought I would make less of a mistake this way hehe.

Hi,

I did a search online and found this link, for us to enjoy.

http://www.ideas-for-quilting.com/cr...hquilting.html

Neat idea -- thanks for sharing :D

I use tape to get my lines straight

Thanks for sharing the site it has good info for the new quilter!

great idea.

yes lots of cool ideas on that site, I am still looking at it

That's the same way I do it and it has always turned out great. I usually mark with chalk.

That's what I did on my bow tie quilt. Since I'm a total beginner and it worked for me, it must be an easy method. :)

I have always used masking tape and it works fine for me.