Quilting Plans
08-26-2014, 07:16 AM
#11
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this is not the clear shower door stuff. This is plain white paneling, like you would put on the wall in the bathroom or shower stall. It basically looks like a really big white board for using dry erase markers on. When I made my table, I used an old Kitchen table and used the foam board insulation to build up around my machine, then put a piece of this paneling on the top to make it slick !
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08-26-2014, 08:21 AM
#13
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I suggest that you use the clear vinyl that is sold by the yard (at Joannes maybe even walmart) it is used to cover chairs or bar stools to protect the fabric from spills. ( I remember when I was a child, a neighbor covered all her furniture with it, yuck.)you the can draw and erase with a dry erase marker until you are happy with your design. It was used at the long arm quilting group I was in. They had a meeting where you could bring in a quilt top and could get suggestions from the "pros" in the group and they used it and you could then take it with you so you could remember their suggestions. It was one of the best meetings they had at least for me when I was first starting out. In fact I would love to do that again.
08-26-2014, 08:56 AM
#15
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I suggest that you use the clear vinyl that is sold by the yard (at Joannes maybe even walmart) it is used to cover chairs or bar stools to protect the fabric from spills. ( I remember when I was a child, a neighbor covered all her furniture with it, yuck.)you the can draw and erase with a dry erase marker until you are happy with your design. It was used at the long arm quilting group I was in. They had a meeting where you could bring in a quilt top and could get suggestions from the "pros" in the group and they used it and you could then take it with you so you could remember their suggestions. It was one of the best meetings they had at least for me when I was first starting out. In fact I would love to do that again.
This is what I do too. I put it over the quilt, my vinyl has green painter's tape around the edges to remind me of where not to go past - dry erase doesn't come off fabric well - if at all.
Once I come up with a design I like, I pin the vinyl on the wall behind the frame so I have it as reference with just a glance.
I love the idea of the shower panel for practice though... a person could even haul a sheet of that around the house to play on when watching TV.
08-26-2014, 10:09 AM
#16
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Thinking Inside The Block - FMQ Tip !
I recently posted in the picture section about my former fear of feathers. Free Motion Feathers to be more specific. These things terrified me ! I have taken numerous classes, watched a million and one videos and still, just could NOT make feathers that looked anything remotely like what the teacher was telling me they should be looking like !
I had finally just chalked it up to the fact that I was just not going to be a feather quilter. I was okay with that for a while. I am aware there are things that are just beyond my abilities, and I just focus on those things that I do well.
Then I started working on my Hole in the Wall quilt, and I WANTED feathers on it. I knew it would look awesome with some feathers. The trouble was, I SUCKED at feathers ! One night out of pure frustration, I sat down with my big white board ( see post Quilting Plans ) and tried to sketch out my idea. Let me tell you, I was about in total shock, because there before me, on my table, were feathers ! Now I could not draw feathers any better than I could FMQ them before, and yet there they were. Feathers that LOOKED like feathers. They were not perfect feathers, but they sure did look like feathers !
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So I grabbed my blocks and went to the machine, and sure enough, feathers appeared, this time in thread ! They still may not be perfect, but they sure do look nice. They are MY feathers.
So I grabbed my blocks and went to the machine, and sure enough, feathers appeared, this time in thread ! They still may not be perfect, but they sure do look nice. They are MY feathers.
As I sat there at my machine, I was trying to figure out how all of a sudden feathers just ” clicked ” in my brain, and made my hands move in the right way to form them. It was then that I realized something that nearly blew me away.
I was thinking INSIDE the block !
How many times have you sat down at your machine with a practice sandwich that looked similar to this ?
Nice big empty slate right ? Lots of room to practice and try things out ? That was me too. I always have practice sandwiches ready to go so when the mood hits me to play around, I can just grab one and go at it. This is also I think the greatest downfall of my learning !
When we teach our children to write their names, do we just sit them in front of a big blank piece of paper and hand them a marker ? No, we give them something that usually resembles this.
Yep, that’s right. We give them BOUNDARIES ! We teach them how to make the shapes ( letters ) INSIDE the box ( lines ) !
Well by George ! Why don’t we do that with quilting ? !
Instead of sitting down with a big empty space. Try sketching out some guidelines to work with. It could be smaller squares, or you could sketch out an entire quilt block to work with.
By giving yourself boundaries, you can better grasp how large of a scale you need to make things, or how far over your feathers need to go, or how your going to work yourself out of a corner.
So if you are having trouble getting your free motion to look ” right ” try giving yourself some boundaries, and think INSIDE the block, and not out into empty space !
PS. I make all of my practice sandwiches with left over batting and cut up sheets from the thrift store / tag sales. They are super cheap, and come in solids !
Last edited by SlightlyOffQuilter; 08-26-2014 at 10:14 AM. Reason: fixed pictures
08-26-2014, 10:18 AM
#17
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Most hardware stores that sell paneling ( home depot and the like ) can usually cut it for you as well ! You could ask them to cut it into say 24 inch squares ? Then they are portable and easy to handle ! Plus they are GREAT for keeping kids / grandkids busy !!
08-26-2014, 11:12 AM
#20
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Location: Ohio
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This is a fabulous idea! Although I am not to that stage yet in my quilting, ( I am afraid to leave the stitch in a ditch) I will get there at some point and I will remember this... especially since I am a teacher :-) Thank you so so much for letting us into your box of beautiful feathers.
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