Follow-up on First Quilt & Lessons Learned
 

I was here about a year ago asking for advice on machine quilting my first quilt top - a baby quilt to be gifted to a dear friend. Just wanted to come back and share photos of the finished project!

I ended up using basting spray and machine quilted using a walking foot on my vintage New Home. I was pleasantly surprised to have no issues with bunching or puckering; everything was nice and smooth before it crinkled up in the wash! Mostly I just did SITD but I added a star-type motif in the open tan squares. That was the most challenging on my little machine due to pivoting in different directions.

A couple things I learned: (1) Square up half-square triangle blocks. I didn't do this and ended up with some not-so-perfect points. I did square up on my second quilt and it came together much better - though the squaring up process was pretty tedious. (2) Machine binding is easy and fun! I tend to be someone who gets projects 90% done and then they sit. I was dreading the whole binding process but I was under the gun to get the quilt done before Christmas. Turns out, I really enjoy machine binding (followed techniques in a couple online tutorials) and it went super quick. So nice to actually finish something completely and ship it off to a new home!

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you did a great job!

You did a great job.

really good!
thank you for taking the time to come back and show us your progress!!!

That is a really great baby quilt. You did a great job! I hope it gave you incentive to keep quilting!

Wonderful quilt. I love how your border fabric pulls all the colors together. I also like how your neutral background color wasn't white. Great job quilting too. I bet the expectant mom loved the quilt!! On to the next!

What a lively pattern and colors. Good job. I am impressed by your quilting, as that motif calls for a lot of turning !

Beautiful colors! My first quilt was also a baby quilt for my niece -- it's a great starter. Then I started making more for friends and relatives. My piece of advice -- don't wait ten years til you make something for yourself!

It's absolutely beautiful. You did a wonderful job!<button id="tw_schedule_btn" style="padding: 4px 6px; position: absolute; left: 141px; top: 840px; background-image: linear-gradient(rgb(255, 255, 255), rgb(240, 240, 240)); border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); color: rgb(95, 95, 95); cursor: pointer; font-weight: bold; text-shadow: rgb(255, 255, 255) 0px 1px; white-space: nowrap; border-top-left-radius: 3px; border-top-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-left-radius: 3px; font-size: 11px; z-index: 8675309; display: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Schedule</button>

beautiful quilt

Surely not your first quilt! Great job :)

Very nice!

Wowser, are you sure this is your first? It is very pleasing to the eye!

You did a wonderful job on the quilt! I also love the colors.

Great job! And thanks for sharing your progress with us.

Rob

You did a great for a 1st quilt

Very pretty

Very pretty. You are a natural. Just keep going.

I too thought the machine binding was going to be real difficult.
When I stopped trying to make it harder then it was, it got easier. They only way I put binding on now.

Your quilt is terrific! Even those of us who have quilted for years and years still learn new things! I even make the same mistakes again at times!

Nice quilt, and thanks for posting. Welcome back.

Welcome back!! You did a wonderful job on this quilt. It's lovely!

Great job , very pretty. We want to see lots more.

Awesome quilt and quilting! Thanks for the follow up photos of your lovely quilt. You did an amazing job!

Love your quilt!

Wonderful job and glad you came back to share your finished quilt.

Great little quilt! My first quilt didn't look nearly as nice.

First Quilt? Great Job! You have a good eye for color and balance. I am looking forward to seeing your next one.

What a pretty quilt! Love your color choices and the patterned border. You did a great job!

Looks great.

What kind of batting did you use? And did you prewash?

You did a super job. That pattern is complicated for a 1st quilt. My 1st was a 9 patch-- no triangles -- SITD. And it took me 5 years to finish! Now I can make a baby quilt in just a couple of days. Keep on quilting. It gets easier, faster, and a lot more fun with each new one.

Great job! Love your choice of fabrics,

Thanks for your kind words, everyone! For those curious about the next quilt... well, yeah, it's already done and gifted. :) I think I just had to get over the mental block of thinking it was going to be SO hard and take SO long. I finished my first in mid-December and then had the next done by the second week in January. I'll post it separately.

glassbird - I used Warm & Natural batting. And, yes, I did prewash. I was worried about the reds and purples - rightfully so. I ended up having to treat a few of them with Retayne since they were bleeding excessively. But zero issues when I washed the completed quilt.

Great job!