Quilting with stencils
 

I am making a quilt for my DGD. It is just a simple quilt, with alternating 6.5 inch block and 4 patch block. I want to FMQ a floral design into the 6.5 inch block. I can do FMQ meandering/stippling somewhat okay but have never tried a specific design. I found a stencil at Hancock Fabric that is a 5 inch floral design, very simple design. They had so many styles and sizes of stencils and it was so tempting!!!

So, just how hard is it to follow the marked lines? Am I setting myself up for failure? LOL!! I will be using a disappearing quilting marker. What are favorite ways of marking with stencils? I saw the chalk and pounce and it was kind of expensive, $18. And what about the quilting paper where you can make you own patterns? How do you use that?

Practice is the only thing that will tell you for sure. Draw a line on a practice sandwich and try to follow the line without using any thread at all.

I mark most of my quilts with a Frixion pen. The dark fabrics I use a chalk pencil. Cheap compared to the Pounce method. Plus you can either draw your own pattern or light box trace a pattern onto your quilt. Playing with the different designs is fun.

I bought a roll of tracing paper at the office supply store and use that for some of my designs also. I just don't like picking the paper off afterwards. Tracing paper is the same as the expensive quilter's paper and works great. Good luck and enjoy. Don't be afraid to try new methods.

If I were you, I'd have a go with a practice sandwich to see if it will work. I've never followed a drawn pattern, but I imagine it would be easier than trying to draw without a stencil (which I am terrible at!)
I took a workshop recently and the tutor recommended using watercolour pencils to mark patterns with. I haven't tried it yet, but it makes sense, and she said she'd tried all the different "quilting" markers and these were much better! Also frixion pens might work, as the marks disappear when ironed, but can be brought back with a little while in the freezer, they then apparently wash out completely, although I have not tested this either!
Good luck :-)

I use stencils a lot. Because of needing to fit the stencil into the space needed and also dealing with corners I use paper to draw at least part of the border or corner. If I need to lengthen it just a bit, I cut the paper pattern and pin in into the space with little spaces between the sections or I put very small pleats into the paper pattern and fit it in. Sometimes it is necessary to alter 2 or 3 motifs to fill the space or reduce it. I don't mind stripping away the paper. It is pretty easy unless you are not careful in stitching the backtrack areas. Frixion pens scare me!. The steam away markers are great. I guess I am saying I combine methods to suit the quilt situation I am dealing with. I would recommend a couple of practice tries before going to your quilt. It is well worth the effort. I sew slowly so that I am in control. Good luck and have fun.

If the fabric is dark enough, I use white chalk applied lightly. It usually brushes off after quilting but a damp facecloth will take off any residue. I sharpen my chalk for a nice fine drawn line or through a stencil. I have posted my chalk with sharpener before but I will post again.
The trick for FMQ a drawn design is to use a marking method that is removable so you don't have to follow the design exactly. [ATTACH=CONFIG]513044[/ATTACH]

I saw something the other day about a women using freezer paper to paint on her quilt, after cutting it out the stencil, she ironed the stencil onto the fabric then painted the fabric. I would use the chalk method because I have bought several pencils and nothing has really worked on my dark fabric. I bought a sewline pencil that did alright but lines went away fast it wasn't real dark. Now I'm using a water soluble marking (white) pencil that is working a little better but not as good as I would like for it too. I hope this helps.

I use stencils with the washable markers (crayola or craZart)....test first to ensure they wash out....have never had one that didn't, but I still test....it does take practice, but it is so much easier than the paper because I can see exactly where I have to sew next, with the paper backtracking can be difficult....the only tip for following the lines is keeping the needle going steady and moving the fabric sandwich at a consistent speed, just like stippling....try not to stop unless you are at a straight line or point as it is difficult to regain the movement/flow in the middle of a curve.

you might try continuous line stencils. no weird stops.

I'm working on a child's quilt and want to put a simple design in the inner border. Picked out one that looked very simple that I could do with a walking foot. Ha! the border is yellow and I was going to quilt the design in red thread (very colorful quilt). Practiced yesterday on a practice sandwich and found that I couldn't stay on the lines....so I guess quilting will be done with yellow or white thread! I'm going to try to add a pic of the design--it's the simple egg-shaped one on the right (if it loads right!). I'm feeling very time pressured and want to get this done but really need to practice more!

Just remember - once the line is gone no one will know that you weren't on it. Try it, get rid of the line and see how you like it. When I first got my long arm a friend of mine was over and I was trying to follow a panto, she kept telling me I wasn't on the line - I told her the line is a GUIDE. When we took it off it actually pretty good .

Thanks so much for the tips!! I have a practice piece with several designs marked on it. I will use thread that will blend in and not stand out too much.

I use stencils all the time. I either use powder white chalk or a purple be gone. When I need to alter the stencil size, I draw it out, scan it, make the size change and the print it out on thinnest copy paper. Then I cut tracing paper and put that behind the copy. Take thread and bobbin out and stitch on the line as accurate as possible. Then I take the punched tracing paper pinning it in place where I want to quilt and use that as my template quilting as I go. Then gently remove the tracing paper and it is done.

I have followed a drawn design without free motion and find it quite easy to do on a small quilt so a runner.

I use disappearing ink markers but you do have to quilt it the day you mark it.
Also use chalk powder and stencils sometimes. I like both ways.

What kind of machine do you have? Some machines have built in quilting designs that you stitch out one block at a time. If there aren't any built in, there is the alternative of using a program/card too. Just an alternative to think about.

I have used the frixon to place continuous designs on with a stencil. But, sometimes it actually bleaches out the darker fabric after ironing. Just remember to use a very simple design to begin with. It is like learning to color, we could not do it immediately remember? It take time to learn to stay in the lines. Be good to yourself while learning. It won't take as long as you would think, but there is a learning curve. And practice, practice ...

Also check out utube. It has many quilting videos on fmq'ing.

I mark my quilts lightly with a mechanical pencil and just take my time with it. Don't try to quilt it 90 mph, and you should be fine. The graphite washes out and no one even knows it was there! If you're still nervous, make a small sample & try it out first, just to see how it feels to you.

I use stencils. Trace design onto parchment paper or tissue, pin to quilt and quilt away. I then tear off the paper after doing 2 or 3 designs. It is simple and works. If you use paper, wet with a Qtip before tearing as it softens the paper and makes it easier to remove - read that tip here on the QB.

I'm a big fan of using cheap, a roll of paper that is used on doctor's exam tables, trace the pattern and sew through the lines. The paper is so thin that it comes off like a dream. FMQ is like anything else, well a little more, and it requires practice and the more you do it the more comfortable you become doing it. I love the way my latest patterns turned out.

I am going to print a copy of my design, and use the "needle and no thread" method (I might be able to put a stencil on the platen, then cover the stencil ( to make it show up) it with some medium colored fabric, and just print the copies I need, (but the other way lets my hands and brain get used to the design by practicing)to make as many as I need, pin them down, then free motion stitch on the lines. When I am done, I will just tear the paper away from it. Note-I say I plan to, not have, if this method does not work for me, I will come back to this thread and try some of the wonderful suggestions. Remember to shorten your stitches a bit when sewing on any kind of paper to make removal easier.

Remember to shorten your stitches a bit when sewing on any kind of paper to make removal easier. - from madamekelly

That is so true. Shorter stitches make paper removal so much easier and less paper gets caught under the thread. I am lucky that my younger daughter likes to hunt for the elusive pieces of paper that I sometimes just don't see.

A great alternative to using the pounce is to use cornstarch with a dry small paint brush. Much cheaper!

I am doing the FMQ with my Singer 301A. I have finished all the pinwheel/flower designs and just doing some FMQ in the borders. If you don't look at my flowers closely (Squint and be about 5 feet or more away), they look pretty good. LOL!!! I am quite proud of my first time using stencils and will keep on using them. I may try the chalk pounce next time. I used the purple disappearing marker to mark my pattern. So far, they have all faded away. I used a puffy polyester batting and it was kind of a pain to mark the stencil but I think if I use cotton batting, I will like it better next time.

I found some excellent tutorials on YouTube by Lynn Witzenburg, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r6Jte-wxYw She has tutorials on FMQ and stencils and they really are easy and informative. Watching the videos has given my the courage to keep on trying with stencils.
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I wouldn't worry about the line as long as you are close. It doesn't have to be spot on to look great when you erase the lines. The more practice over time you will get better with the lines.

Exactly! I haven't done a lot of free motion but have found that when the quilt is finished it is hard to find the areas that I thought weren't up to snuff. Go for it. I think you will be pleased with the results!

I bought some water color pencils to mark quilts with. Tested it out on a piece of fabric and could not get them to wash out. They just spread out over the fabric. So be sure to test them first if you buy any.

Do the Frixion pen marks really disappear when you iron over them?

I used the frixion pen to mark my stencil and it came out with ironing ..it was a gift for my DIL and I mailed it to her in Cleveland where the temp was -2 and I worried that the lines would come back in transit.....they didn't