Like I said in my previous post, I had a really productive weekend! One of the things I got done was basting my pinwheels quilt.
My thoughts on basting:
1. It’s not fun
2. It’s my least favorite part of the quilting process
3. I am determined to invent an easier way to baste a quilt! 😉 ( I know there is basting spray out there, and I really would like to try it out, but I’m apprehensive on trying it out on a quilt. I’m thinking I’ll try it out on something smaller like a table runner or something)
I really should have done twice as many pins on this quilt, but I ran out of pins! I really need to stock up on some more basting pins…
On this quilt I knew I wanted to do straight line quilting. I didn’t want the quilting to take away from the pretty pinwheels. I also think the straight lines will add to the geometric design of the pinwheels.
So yesterday when I was quilting this baby up, I asked my husband to take a picture of me tackling this quilt. He was over enthusiastic and took about 20 pictures, and they all were dark and a little blurry because it was on my iphone, and the lighting is weird since my lamp was on….anyways like I was saying he was a little enthusiastic:
Another:
Another:
And finally my face that says: “would you quit taking pictures now!” 🙂
Some things I have learned about straight line quilting so far:
1. Stitch length is everything. At first my stitch length was way too small. I really wanted the stitches to be larger so it had an almost hand quilted appearance to it. So it took a few tries, but I finally managed to get it on a setting that I liked.
2. Basting is key. I should of basted that thing to death..I mean I should have pinned that baby every three inches or less.
3. I really like the look of straight line quilting. It has a very clean and modern look.
4. NEVER look away from the quilt. My lines are not completely straight. If you just happen to glance up, you risk your stitches wiggling one way or the other. This quilt by no means is perfect and the lines are not stick straight. That is something I really need to work on. Practice, practice, practice!
Like I have mentioned before, I am a beginner at this and I am learning something new every day!