Straight line Machine quilting
 

Oh Boy... I am a new quilter, as in I am attempting to finish my first one. I am having such a hard time with quilting my quilt sandwich together though. I have a walking foot and it works fabulously on a scrap when I test it. When I try and quilt my quilt (about 36"x 42" off the top of my head) it has such a hard time pulling it through. When I try and help it, my stitches come out all wonky: smaller or bigger than I want! Is this me, the machine or my walking foot? How in the world can I get even stitches? BTW I have an older Kenmore 158.1941. Thanks for any input!

Kate,

Make sure the entire quilt is supported, front, back and left side. If there is any drag on it, that could affect your stitches.

Welcome Kate from outside of St. Louis, MO. You shouldn't have to help move the quilt under the presser foot. Maybe you need longer stitch length.

Did you keep your feed dogs up? If you lowered them, then your machine won't pull your fabric through. When using your walking foot, you need your feed dogs up so they grab the fabric and pull it tnru, like usual.

Welcome Kate to the quilting board. I am in Arizona.

I also lengthen my stitches to 3.0 which would probably be about 9 or 10 on an older machine.

Are you using a high loft batting, maybe the Kenmore doesn't have the power to pull it through. Maybe a little more pressure on the foot? Longer stitches should help and reducing any drag is all that comes to mind. I set up two ironing boards beside my table the machine is on. One for the side and one for the front. Helps to support the weight of the quilt. Don't get discouraged, these are all learning curves and at one time or another we've all had some problems.

Welcome Kate! You should not be struggling that much with your walking foot on this Kenmore machine. Set your stitch length on the dial to #6, that's the longest stitch and then release some of pressure off of the presser foot and see if that works better for you. Also make sure the feed dogs are in the up position. Your Kenmore is a very good machine. Hope this helps.

You have to have the foot down too. Don't forget that. You'll get it going. Don't worry.

Thanks everyone! I have the feed dog control up but the foot down. The stitch is at 6 (longest stitch on ye ol' machine). I will check the batting... I just grabbed some that was on sale. If that is the problem, boy I will never do that again. I did have the quilt supported in back but it was weighing heavy on the side and from my lap. I did find when I held it up some and fed it, it worked great. Does anyone else do this? It's like I need four arms for this "hobby" haha.

Welcome from Texas

When I do straight line quilting, I roll up (or fold) the quilt from both sides and then work from the middle out. I throw the end that is not in the machine over my shoulder so that the entire quilt is supported, and then just keep feeding the machine. I call it quilt wrangling, and it takes a little time to get the hang of it.

I move a small hamper and a chair next to my sewing table and spread the quilt over them to support the left side of the quilt to eliminate drag, and I bunch up the front of the quilt in my lap. Some folks have said they move their ironing board next to the sewing table and adjust the height to the height of the table for support. Others move a small table to the left of the sewing table. Anything that you can spread the left side of the quilt on will help.

You also need to remember that you should stop any time you feel you're losing control. Keep the needle down and readjust the spreading of the quilt until you feel comfortable and then start up again. At first I thought that once I started quilting a line I couldn't stop until it was finished. As you proceed, you'll work out a system that works for you and your sewing space.

And finally, get a pair of machingers quilting gloves (or the gardening gloves with the rubber dots on the fingertips). This helps you guide the quilt through the machine also.

Good luck...and keep going. Quilting is now one of my favorite parts of making a quilt and I use a small machine and a walking foot.

It is more difficult to quilt on a DSM with high loft batting. I would recommend Hobbs or Warm & Natural, they are thinner with the weight and loft of what most quilters use. Any pulling on your quilt will make the stitches uneven. Maminstl gives great advice on keeping the quilt supported. I had extra tables around my machine (two folding ones) that I would put up to quilt before I got a longarm. Good luck, welcome, and come back with questions anytime.

If you haven't tried an ironing board to your left to help support the quilt, give it a try. I know it saved me. Others have suggested it here, but, really, try it. And adjust the ironing board down to the same height as your sewing machine table. It just helps a lot! Good luck, you can conquer this.

Dina

When you get your feed going smoothly, get this book: [h=1]One Line at a Time: 24 Geometric Machine-Quilting Designs Made Easy[/h] It is all quilting using a walking foot.

A scrap is one piece of fabric. A quilt is three -- backing, batting and top. Make your stitches longer. Turn your stitch length up to at least a three.

Can you adjust the pressure on you presser foot? Usually a thumb screw on the very top of the machine. Maybe there is too much pressure to allow your walking a foot to do its job.
Is it the correct walking foot for your machine? If your feed dogs are narrow and the walking foot is wide it will have problems pulling through. You shouldn't need to "help" it at all. That is a good way to break a needle. Ask me how I know...
Welcome to the board and let us know what you figure out.

Check the feed dogs, they have to be up when using the even feed foot. Also if it is an old machine it could be that the feed dogs are worn and don't pull it through as nicely as it should. If you are using a heavy/puffy batting that would make a difference. Check the size of your stitches, they shouldn't be so small that it takes forever to get it quilted. Can you adjust the pressure of your foot? If so it maybe should be looser. Bunch your quilt so that there is no pull on the quilt at all. That will help the machine to pull it through.I hope some of these suggestions will help.

Welcome to the Quilting Board. It is the source of lots of information for almost anything. There have been lots of good advice already given but I would add one other idea. When making a sample sandwich to use to test before working on your quilt be sure to make it large enough to be sure it acts just like your quilt. I like to make mine out of good quality muslin on the front and back and the batting you plan to use in the quilt in the middle. Make it at least a foot square. Be sure you use the thread you plan to quilt with and be sure you have the proper size needle. When you try different settings be sure to use a sharpie pen and write on your test sample just what you have done. Keep these test samples for future use. When using a walking foot you should not have to 'help' it along. Doing so can damage the walking foot and your machine. I recommend a Craftsy class-several are offered that will be helpful. There are lots of YouTube demonstrations also.

Make sure u have attached it properly

My friend was struggling with quilting a quilt she is making for her daughter because of using fat polyester batting. Most quilters use quality cotton batting such as Hobbs, W&N (found @ JAF) or Dream cotton. You just need support on your left side and behind the DSM if you are going to quilt anything bigger than a lap quilt. I pull out a drawer from my Singer sewing desk (had it for over 40 years) and place a temporary piece of wood on it and the bookcase behind me. Use anything around the house or garage: saw horses, ironing board, TV tray. Look at the old pictures of what was suggested for quilting in the early 80's: flip it onto your left shoulder !! :)

That's what i was thinking. I have a pfaff, so I don't need an even feed foot, but when I was teaching classes, students would sometimes not get the little arm on correctly and as a result the foot would not move back and forth and feed correctly - it just ended up being a bulky regular foot. You might want to check the directions with the foot to be sure how it goes on your machine. Good luck! Once you figure this out, you'll love it!

did you baste the quilt sandwich at all before you took it to the machine?
we all hate to baste, but sometimes a quilt just demands that we do.

The walking food should help pull the fabric under it; but make sure that you have the quilt supported on the sides and back. My sewing table, such as it is, is against a wall, then I support the quilt on the side as well. Sometimes I have used my cutting mat over my small pressing board, which makes the fabric slide easier. When the quilt is supported, it does make it easier. Hang in there, you will find the right combination to make it work. Congratulations on entering the wide, wide world of quilting, this is a great board to ask questions and get help when problems arise. Welcome aboard.

lots of tips here, don't think I can add anything ... good luck to you, frustration is the pits

I am no help to tell you what to do but I just did my first machine stitching, actually it was just stitching 2 rows around the border. I had hand quilted the quilt part. This is a king size so I thought I would do a fancy stitch around the border. Great idea but I sure learned a lot about drag. I had the machine sitting on top of my table, didn't work so well so next thing I lowered the machine in the cabinet and made a solid area around the machine. This did help, then I grabed my gloves, more help them I kept my quilt very loose so it would feed through. This was a great learning experience for me. Like you I had made a sample block and it looked perfect but the quilt its self was much different. Good luck and welcome to the board. It will be your best friend.

Welcome to the board, Kate! I am in Kansas, and want to tell you I hope your quilt does well on your straight line quilting.
Hope you have as much fun as I have and make as many good friends as I have! Know you will!
Mariah.

I have a brother sew machine and I have not had any success with a walking foot. I just don't adjust anything to do straightline stitching and even some curves and it works for me.
So, I can't give you any advice, but glad you like quilting. I love the quilting board and have gained so much from its members.

I think I have a polyester batting; I threw away the packaging but it sure feels like it. I have the tension down to 2, (0 is the lowest on my machine) but ended my struggle with the quilt for the night before trying even less tension. I will try that tomorrow. I found supporting it does help so maybe tension is the key...

I can sympathize. Recently, someone here on the board showed her solution to balancing her quilt on all sides. She bought a piece of foam the height of her sewing machine bed and cut out the rectangle for her machine. She then covered the foam with slick plastic and had a smooth bed to support her quilt on all sides. Maybe you can find the post and look at her pictures.

I understand your frustration. I find that a break is necessary just to clear your head and get a new prospective. I also find that half a glass of wine helps tremendously. Just don't have it near your quilt or you'll have to search "wine stain removal". A thirty minute break with a glass of wine and checking the latest quilting board posts can make it a whole new experience.

I agree that you should look to your presser foot pressure. Sounds like it is too tight and go with a longer stitch length. JMHO.