tuckyquilter

I will be taking my En Provence to the LA quilter 2-15-2018. It's been finished for some time, but just could not find a backing I cared that much for. It will grace my bed at different times during the year as I rotate my bed quilts to suit my fancy. Now back to finishing other UFO's before I start anything new.

charmednmissouri

audsgirl , I do not have a longarm, just my domestic machine. Every quilt I have quilted has been on it. I started quilting almost 3 years ago, and have been trying to teach myself, along with a few online courses, how to do just that. Even though they are large quilts, I just don't give up until they are quilted. I retire in 2 years, and have considered purchasing a sit-down midarm machine, but probably won't. That is money I can use for all that beautiful fabric I want, LOL! I will admit, sometimes my early quilts could have been better, but from the start, I knew I had to practice, practice, practice, as they say. But I tried on plain, unquilted fabric and was bored silly. So I prefer to practice on a real quilt. En Provence and ORL are the two quilts I have put back until this summer to quilt, as I really didn't think my ability to quilt EN Provence was strong enough. But I have quilted another 6 quilts since I made En Provence, and I think I can do it. So this summer, I will attempt it, along with ORL. I actually love the quilting part as much as the piecing part of this wonderful hobby I have stumbled upon!

JeanieG

Charmed - I also quilt all my quilts myself on my Brother PQ1500S. It only has a 9" throat, but works fine for me. I am like you, I would rather spend money on fabrics instead of a sit down, which I really don't have room for. I have a Baby Lock also that I piece on. Both are in cabinets, so are flush with the tops. That really helps a lot!

To make it easier to machine quilt your quilts, when you get them all set up and ready to sandwich, cut JUST the batting off in thirds. Secure (I use Elmer's Glue) your quilt and quilt just the center first - leave an inch on the sides not quilted. Re-attach one side with batting tape, or I use 1" of fusible interfacing, or whip stitch or zigzag machine stitch the batting together. Again secure your 3 layers, then quilt that side, and do the same for the 3rd side. I find this work real well, at least for me with my machine.

I hope that makes sense!

audsgirl

Thanks for your answer, Charmed. I, too, quilt all my quilts on my regular sewing machine. It only has a 7.5" throat space, so it can get pretty squashed in there! I have En Provence quilted, but I have to put the binding on it. I still haven't finished ORL yet, but I am thinking I'm going to do an all-over pattern on it, since it's so busy. On En Provence, I used 4 different colors of thread and at least that many different quilting patterns.

Leslie

charmednmissouri

I have an awesome little Janome I purchased brand new last summer, after the one my aunt had for 25 years and gave to me, bit the dust. I also have an older Singer 237 in great shape and very powerful. I didn't think you could quilt with it since you couldn't drop the feed dogs, but have since learned that I CAN FMQ on it and have. My Janome too has a small throat space, but I have a LARGE teacher's desk I purchased at a school auction (it's 3 feet deep and 5 feet long) and with a 2x3 foot table on my left side, and an EZ adjustable sewing extension fitted for my machine, it works pretty well. JeanieG, I have tried that method a time or two, but wasn't liking the result on the back, so I got stubborn and determined I would figure out how to quilt the whole thing. But I admit, I am scared to quilt my BH MQ's, as there are soooo many pieces to it, and I think I will have to plan the quilting for those a little more carefully. I have an offer to purchase ORL from a family member, but am not sure I want to sell it (although it would be the first time I have sold a quilt). I REALLY like it, I must say. Decisions, decisions!

retiredteacher09

2018 UFO Challenge of the Month.

Here are my finishes. Post 964

kristakz

I finally finished my En Provence! This one is mine - the other 1/3 of the blocks were made into a donation quilt which got finished and donated last summer.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]599036[/ATTACH]

JeanieG

That is gorgeous Krista!

joe'smom

Very beautiful, Krista!

NZquilter

I love how fresh and crisp your colors are, Krista. Congratulations on finishing!

I'm actually thinking of making another En Provence soon, this time in blue.