Our online May meeting featured hand and machine quilters talking about what they do and giving some quilting tips. It was very interesting.
Sharon M of the Manners Sutton Sewing Circle in Harvey shared how her group was started many, many years ago (before her time) and has been hand quilting quilts since. Hand quilting allows for a puffier looking quilt. She recommends that seams always be pressed to one side. Hand quilters typically quilt on the side without the seam allowances as it is more difficult to quilt through the extra layers. They quilt for others and Sharon can be contacted at 366-2087.
Gisele of Gisele Carr Quilting in Douglas and Andrea of The Quilting Shed in Hanwell are both machine quilters. Gisele has been at it less than a year but people are very pleased with her work. She does edge to edge quilting patterns. Andrea has been around awhile is now specializing in custom quilting where the quilting design changes throughout the quilt. Contact info can be found online.
Other tips from the three of them:
- when piecing, press after every seam
- using a wool pressing mat helps with the pressing
- when the quilt backing needs to be pieced, cut off the selvages before sewing pieces together and use a half inch seam allowance
- when piecing the backing it is better to not have one seam down the middle, but rather use two seams so there is solid section in the middle (it will lay better)
- trim your threads on the front of the quilt before taking it to your quilter. Quilting can fasten these to your quilt solidly so they are then hard to remove
- trim threads on the back if they are likely to show through the top, such as dark threads behind white fabric
No show and tell pictures were submitted ahead of the meeting. A few things were held up during the meeting but alas only a few pictures were captured. My apologies.
Gisele shows a block of the quilt she is currently piecing.
