ruby2shoes

I have been reading a lot of posts lately both on this forum and others that talk about stabilizing your quilt with SITD before you start your quilting. Is this always necessary to do? Is it just for fmq? Would you use wash away thread so it isn't permanent and interferring with your quilting pattern? If yoy use wash away thread do you have to adjust your tension etc like you do with monofilament for example?

coffeecozy

after doing cindy needhams craftsy class where she shows the difference between blocks that were ditched first and ones that were just quilted i have made an effort to do as she says - every stinking seam. sometimes i get lazy and do almost every seam :-) .
i use a fine (50 or 60 weight) thread in a closely matched colour.
here is a link to her comments about it on her blog. http://blog.cindyneedham.com/2012/09...room-time.html

ckcowl

It depends on the project-- I always baste along the top, then down the sides ( on the longarm) I don't that often SITD unless it is the quilting I plan to do. If using a domestic machine I would think that basting well before quilting is key to success. If you don't baste well before quilting SITD may be more necessary. I've never heard of anyone using wash away thread for SITD-- SITD is generally part of the intended quilting. I've only heard of wash away thread being used for trapunto

cjsews

If I am stitching a design in a block I will stabilize by stitching along the sashing. Then go back to stitch the block. Otherwise I don't bother with that. I think it helps if u have to do a lot of twisting and turning. I don't do much FMQ. Just use my walking foot for most of my work

feline fanatic

If at all possible, I would highly recommend you get your hands on the book "Heirloom Machine Quilting" by Harriett Hargrave and or "Guide to Machine Quilting" by Diane Gaudynski. Not sure how easy they will be to find in Australia.

Both explain everything so well and have loads of pictures and Harriet's book has some continuous line designs in the back of the book you can utilize for ideas and inspiration. Like CKcowl, I quilt on a longarm so the quilt is pretty well stabilized because it is loaded on the rack. Ditching isn't necessary but I will do it on 90% of custom quilts. I do it because it really gives definition to the piecing and, to me, just looks nicer. If you ever plan on showing a quilt in a quilt show, judges want to see things ditched. But on a domestic, ditching is a chore and can quickly suck the joy out of quilting for you.
Quilting on a domestic requires the quilt be stabilized so you don't get shifting, tucks or pleats worked into the quilting. Many DM quilters use glue or spray basting to help stabilize. Others use safety pins, LOTS of safety pins. Harriet discusses this in her book as well. So does Diane Gaudynski in her book "Guide to Machine Quilting" another excellent resource. Both are advocates of ditching prior to machine quilting. That said, they do specifically say it isn't necessary to ditch ever single pieced seam of a block.
I think that if you baste well and the quilt is a utility quilt as opposed to a show quilt you don't have to ditch. Especially if you plan on doing an all over design.

toverly

It depends on the contrast and the seams to me. I am working on a DWR and I stitched in the ditch around the circles and melons just to stabilize. Then I feel free t switch up the stitching in the different areas. If I am doing an overall design on blocks without sashing, I won't STID. If it has sashing, I will just to make the sashing pop.

cindyb

Ahhhh This is very interesting. I see how this improves the over all quilting. I have a mid-arm, question is - SITD on the domestic then load all 3 layers together onto the mid-arm?

ManiacQuilter2

There is a thread that is washable that I used in my bobbin for when I did trapunto. I usually SITD and then marked my quilts with stencils for my FMQ. I have preferred the look of SITD over just plain meandering. It just depends on the look of what you want your quilt to have. There is no law stating that you have to ditch your quilt, just do what you think looks best for your quilt. And enjoy the process.

I also would highly recommend you get your hands on the book "Heirloom Machine Quilting" by Harriett Hargrave. I learn my skills from taking a class with her. I was so lucky to have won some top awards with my quilting.

Thats_It_I_Quilt

I use the stich-in-the ditch foot AND a simple decorative stitch to stabilize the quilt, I find it softens the stitching line and if you don't hit the ditch right it does not matter so much... I will try to post a picture

Tartan

If the quilt has sashing I do SITD first so my sashing stays straight. No sashing I usually start quilting in the center but usually FMQ SITD using a ruler if the block has straight edges like Ohio Star and then continue with the FMQing.