abbieb

Thank you so much for the detailed explanation and the pictures! I've never seen a frame in person and I guess I never thought much about how they worked before today So far the only hand-quilted projects I have done were baby quilts and fairly easy to manage on my lap, but now I'm starting to think I need a frame too!

Ninnie

http://www.all-about-quilts.com/quil...g-history.html

jeanharville

Thanks for all the info and links above. I followed all of them today and it was a joy to read about the history of quilts including how the earliest batting was made, the history form ancient Egypt to now. Again thanks for posting.

Nammie to 7

A friend purchased a quilt frame at an auction and gave it to me -- don't have a clue how to put it together but it doesn't have any cogs like yours. It is stashed in one of the buildings out here. Wish I lived close to you -- I would love to learn how to hand quilt on a frame! Your quilt is beautiful!

nanna-up-north

Ninnie, that's a great link. Thank you.

I wish you lived closer to me, too, Nammie. There isn't anybody around me that quilts. The quilting buddy I used to have isn't coming up to her cabin this year because of health reasons..... I'm quilting by myself.

The hardest part of quilting on a frame is that you have to figure out how to quilt away from you and to the right. When you use a hoop you can just turn the hoop around. But, when you quilt on a frame you have to quilt in different directions. I have a thimble for my thumb for quilting away and to the right. I'm right handed and can quilt toward me and to the left normally.

I'm not sure how your quilt frame needs to be put together but if you posted a picture I might have an idea. If not, I'll tell you that, too. I had another frame without cogs but the one I posted is my favorite.

I'm unwound

Google joe the quilter. He has a video to make an old fashion frame with 4 boards, c clamps, & even demonstrates how to make 4 corner posts to hold the frame so you dont have to rest it on the backs of chairs!

Sewnoma

I love finding old quilting books at thrift shops, and one of them talked about how to make your own basting frame, using 2x4's, clamps, and heavy fabric (like canvas).

The technique they used was first they wrap the fabric around the boards and tack it down so that there are a sort of "leader" left free; that fabric stays on the boards indefinitely. Clamp the four boards to each other in the proper size for the quilt backing, then pin the backing to the leaders all the way around all 4 sides, keeping the backing taut. So you're left with your backing fabric stretched between boards. Then they put that up on sawhorses, layered batting and the top, and then thread-basted. This was prep for machine quilting.

I think that's actually a pretty neat method, and the cool thing is that when you're done it all comes apart and you just have to store 4 long boards and some clamps somewhere.

cad_queen_2000

This is the frame that our group uses to quilt (ours is really old fashioned). 4 long boards covered with fabric and held together with "C" clamps. The backing is pinned to the fabric on the boards, batting added, and then the top is pinned on.

Once we have quilted as far as we can reach, the sides are rolled up, and we continue to quilt. No puckers. Up to 10 ladies can work on a quilt at the same time. Or, if we have 2 quilts to do, we can set up 2 frames at the same time.

We used to rest the frame on the backs of chairs as we quilted, but then we found the four stands on Kijiji for $20.00. They were too short for some of us, so we got a couple of 1.0" dowels at the hardware store, sawed them to length and screwed them to the bottom of the stands. Problem solved!

The group has used this frame for years, and it is still going strong.
This is how i baste all of my quilts because I like using a hoop to hand quilt.

bjrusty

Oh wow, I'am 70 and I remember my aunt had one. I was just 4 or5 And I loved to look at her quilts on it. She would tell me to look don't touch. Barb