Line Dancing

Fred & Ginger in Swing Time

"Ginger Rogers did everything that Fred Astaire did, and she did it backwards and in high heels!"

What a brilliant line! It makes me smile. It also brings to mind the second reason why I love machine quilting on a frame:

A machine quilting frame lets you draw with your needle.

I think, perhaps the coolest feature of a machine quilting frame is the carriage that rides on a set of tracks. Sit your sewing machine on this carriage and you can glide your sewing machine effortlessly every-which-way across the top of your perfectly tensioned quilt.This is the feature that you need to see to believe. No matter how much research you do ahead of time, this easy gliding of the sewing machine will astonish you. It's like magic. The carriage transforms your needle into a pen and anything you can draw, you can quilt.

Most people hate wrestling a quilt under the arm of a sewing machine, and then trying to tension the layers while drawing backwards. Trying to FMQ while sitting at the sewing machine is counter-intuitive because the needle is stationary and the quilt is moving. That's like trying to write or draw by holding the pencil still and moving the paper. No wonder so many of us find this difficult! It requires a whole new set of skills - some people seem to manage this but I never could. My stitches were jerky and uneven while my neck and shoulders just got more and more tense. Machine quilting sitting at the sewing machine was a pain in the neck!

Using a machine quilting frame changes all this. There is no wrestling the quilt under the arm of the machine. The frame perfectly tensions the layers of the quilt creating a still and steady 'canvas' for you to draw on. The easy movement of the carriage enables you to draw with your needle just the way you have been writing and doodling and drawing all your life. And since you're moving the 'pen' the way you always have, you're good at it right from the start.

I love to hear people comment when they try our frame for the first time;

"Wow! I can do this!" 

"Look at this beautiful line of stitching!"

"I just wrote my name! "

"This is so easy!" 

"I Could do this all day!"  

But don't take my word for it. Come visit us and try it for yourself. We offer free Demonstrations at our Lincolnshire studio or come and visit us at the 2017 Festival of Quilts we're at stand A46 with the JUKI guys. Some people say that free-motion-quilting is like taking a line for a walk. But with our machine quilting frame it's more like taking a line for a glide. That's why we call it 'Line Dancing!'

Perfectly Tensioned Layers

Reason Number 1: A machine quilting frame perfectly tensions the layers of your quilt so you NEVER have to baste, pin, glue or tack again. Ever! When I was machine quilting sitting at the sewing machine, I hated trying to get all the layers of the quilt sandwich to stay together, steady enough to machine quilt without shifting while I was stitching. No matter how many hours I spent on my hands and knees and no matter how many safety pins I used, it was never quite right. Despite my best efforts, there were always some rucks and wrinkles on the back.

Our Machine Quilting frames tension each layer of the quilt separately so that the quilt sandwich is perfectly tensioned without all that hassle. No more hours pinning or tacking, no clouds of asphyxiating spray glue, no money wasted on gadgets that punch price tag plastic through your quilt. No more hours of doing something I really hate! A machine quilting frame is worth every penny just for this!

Brit Flag Quilt on our frame with the JUKI TL98 straight stitch

Loading the quilt on the frame just takes 20 minutes and when I'm finished, I know the layers will be perfectly tensioned and the back of the quilt will look gorgeous when I take it off the frame, with no rucks or wrinkles - even the first time! I hated the pinning part. My Machine Quilter frame lets me skip it!  By taking care of the parts I hate, machine quilting frames let me focus on the parts that I love...that would be the quilting!



If you're still wondering just how a frame tensions the layers of a quilt sandwich have a look at these links.

• Pinning the purple pumpkin seed shows how to load 3 layers on a frame; a quilt top, the wadding or batting in the middle and the backing underneath

• This Loading Fleece tutorial featuring Rosie's Uni quilt shows how to load a quilt with 2 layers on a frame

Come see for yourself at the Festival of Quilts. Read all about us in the online Show Guide. You'll find Machine Quilter at STAND D17  right next to the Juki stand.



p.s. I just found this pie graph and I had to add it to the post. It's a response to an American quilter's survey. I'm happy to say that I'm in the blue on this one! Having a quilting frame is brilliant because I never have to baste or pin or glue. EVER! Get happy and join the blue team!

Perfectly Tensioned Layers

Reason Number 1: A machine quilting frame perfectly tensions the layers of your quilt so you NEVER have to baste, pin, glue or tack again. Ever! When I was machine quilting sitting at the sewing machine, I hated trying to get all the layers of the quilt sandwich to stay together, steady enough to machine quilt without shifting while I was stitching. No matter how many hours I spent on my hands and knees and no matter how many safety pins I used, it was never quite right. Despite my best efforts, there were always some rucks and wrinkles on the back.

Our Machine Quilting frames tension each layer of the quilt separately so that the quilt sandwich is perfectly tensioned without all that hassle. No more hours pinning or tacking, no clouds of asphyxiating spray glue, no money wasted on gadgets that punch price tag plastic through your quilt. No more hours of doing something I really hate! A machine quilting frame is worth every penny just for this!

Brit Flag Quilt on our frame with the JUKI TL98 straight stitch

Loading the quilt on the frame just takes 20 minutes and when I'm finished, I know the layers will be perfectly tensioned and the back of the quilt will look gorgeous when I take it off the frame, with no rucks or wrinkles - even the first time! I hated the pinning part. My Machine Quilter frame lets me skip it!  By taking care of the parts I hate, machine quilting frames let me focus on the parts that I love...that would be the quilting!



If you're still wondering just how a frame tensions the layers of a quilt sandwich have a look at these links.

• Pinning the purple pumpkin seed shows how to load 3 layers on a frame; a quilt top, the wadding or batting in the middle and the backing underneath

• This Loading Fleece tutorial featuring Rosie's Uni quilt shows how to load a quilt with 2 layers on a frame

Come see for yourself at the Festival of Quilts.It all makes sense in person. We're with the JUKI sewing machine guys at Stand A46.



p.s. I just found this pie graph and I had to add it to the post. It's a response to an American quilter's survey. I'm happy to say that I'm in the blue on this one! Having a quilting frame is brilliant because I never have to baste or pin or glue. EVER! Get happy and join the blue team!

March Petwood Retreat

Jackie, Cathy and Diane looking at Juliet's quilt top

One of my favourite parts of our Machine Quilting Retreats are the afternoon sessions when we audition threads on the various quilt tops that the participants bring. It is inspiring for everyone to see the quilts.  It's fun to try out lots of different threads and to collaborate about how to quilt it .

Juliet with her Kaffe quilt

As you can see from the photos below
everyone learns from everyone else!

Cathy watching Jackie doodle a new design

Diane considering which thread and pattern to use

Cathy showing Juliet just how she arranged the blocks

Joy mastered a new line design!

Juliet making butterflies

a 'peicing detail' on Juliet's granddaughter's quilt

We all fell in love with this pieced pattern. I want to do a version where I add machine quilted details on the faces and clothes.

Inspired by Angela Walters

Angela Walters ~ long arm quilter

Angela Walters inspires me! I love her whimsical free-motion quilting techniques and although she's using a long arm, I can apply the same techniques on our smaller table top machine quilting frames.

Emily and I had the good luck to stumble upon Angela when we were visiting the Tula Pink booth at Quilt Market back in 2010. We were in awe of this Parisville Quilt created to showcase Tula's new fabric line.

Tula Pink's Parisville Quilt detail quilted by Angela Walters

 Angela noticed our Superior Threads name tags and told us that she loves Superior Threads!  So Fine #50 is her favourite thread. 

So Fine #50 from Super Threads available here in the UK from Machine Quilter

We smiled because we think that So Fine #50 is the most trouble free thread for machine quilting. We give a 3,280 yd. cone of So Fine away FREE with every New English Quilter frame because we want our customers to get off to a good start. So Fine #50 and all the other thread ranges from Superior Threads are available here in the UK from our new Machine Quilter shop.Our next order will be sent Monday March 3rd. So let me know any new orders over the weekend. You can order from the shop or phone or email Martha directly.

01526 378057
martha@tiscali.co.uk 

LineDancing Goes Live

Christmas Mini-Series film shoot November 2012

We focus on the frames! That's what makes us unique. There is lots of information on machine quilting if you're sitting at your sewing machine. There's lots of information for long arm quilters too. But it's very hard to find any help for people using the more basic machine quilting frames.

Mini series Episode 3 Poinsettia Projects detail

We've been working hard to fill that gap. Over the years we've  created Machine Quilting Handbooks and DVD's, Websites and Blogs. We've hosted Demo's and Workshops and Retreats. All  focused on how to help people to get the most out of their machine quilting frames. Now we're pulling all these resources together in one place, our brand NEW Line Dancing membership site.

Line Dancing is designed to help any machine quilter using any sewing machine on any frame to become fluent at free-motion quilting. It offers instant access to classes, workshops and bite-sized-chunks of our video material. There's downloadable patterns and templates too. Best of all we'll be adding new content every month so that we'll be able to offer on-going inspiration and support for machine quilters everywhere. We've been preparing for months and now we're ready    LineDancing is going live today!

Poinsettia Projects detail from the Line Dancing Christmas Mini-series

Nine Ladies Dancing

One of the great things about the holidays is that they come around again giving me another chance to finish my projects. I call this quilt, Nine Ladies Dancing because of the gorgeous retro fabric. You can read the back story in the link to the previous post. I posted about this quilt last Christmas! So I'm not post early for this Christmas just late from last year! I got stuck on the design part and didn't get un-stuck until a couple weeks ago. So I am very chuffed to be finishing it. My daughter Rosie, filmed  a short video clip of the quilting. I'm quilting a heart design on a chevron stripe in the fabric.I think Rosie did a fantastic job with the filming and the editing, she's 16!  I'll post more tomorrow.

Doing Demo's

I love doing demo's! Lots of our customers who purchase our New English Quilter and Art Quilter frames are opting to come and collect them instead of arranging for shipping. We're offering free tutorials - so new owners can get off to a good start. I really enjoy the tutorials. They provide an opportunity to get better acquainted with our customers. There's plenty of time to go over any questions. We take the frame apart and set it up again. We discuss loading options so that new owners are clear about how to load a quilt on the frame. We go though sewing machines and tensioning and basic trouble shooting. We look at lots of quilts and and try various threads. Finally, we spend a bit of time with pen and paper showing how to create bold and flowing line designs. We pack a lot of information into a few hours! People leave happy and confident with lots of ideas. They come as customers but leave as friends.

Lynda's mussel shell background. 

 I'm so glad to get photos of projects. Lynda has created some lovely texture to go behind the embroidery on these pillows. In the beginning lots of little projects are the best.

Stephanie used fleece to back this little crib quilt

 Loops are one of the best line designs to start out with. They help you to gain fluency as you circle every which way around your quilt top. Stephanie has been doing lots of little projects. It's the perfect way to make good progress. I'm always thrilled to get photos! A big thank you to Lynda and Stephanie!

Stephanie used loops as an all over pattern

Cuddly Quilt Tips

it doesn't get better than this!

 Someone posted a question on Leah Day's blog about density. Cheri was concerned that her quilt's were too stiff and cardboard-like. She wanted to be able to create something more cuddly. I posted a comment but there's only so much you can say in a tiny comment box. So I'm going to expand my comments here and go into a little more depth on how to achieve cuddly quilts. 

Materials and Methods for cuddly quilts:

1. Use fleece! I'm a bit of a last minute person. I don't have the time to spend years of washing to get a quilt soft and supple. When I make a quilt for someone I usually needed it 'yesterday' not next year. So here's tip #1: if you want a cuddly quilt begin by choosing soft and cuddly materials - like fleece or even minky. You need good quality non pill fleece. This costs a bit more than the cheap stuff but it's worth every penny. Good quality anti pil fleece washes beautifully. It also shows off your stitching.  Fleece is very economical, because it serves as backing AND wadding. That's two jobs for the price of one. 

a fleece backed quilt on the 6 foot Art Quilter frame

Here in the UK I can get lovely fleece from the haberdashery department of Boyes. Another fantastic source is fabric-online they offer a huge selection of 49 colours for £5.95 per meter! Do the math and you'll see this is a much more affordable option than the cost of backing fabric and wadding/batting combined.

click to see the quilting and notice how the fleece shows up the quilting pattern

The first time I ever saw fleece used in a quilt, was at a local quilt exhibition.  A woman had made this teddy bear themed quilt for her grandson. It had flannel on top and fleece underneath. It was the softest, cuddliest quilt I'd ever felt. I was inspired to give fleece a try and I've been using fleece for drag-around-the-house-kiddie-quilts ever since.

Rainbows light reflecting tri-lobal polyester thread keeps a quilt soft

2. Use polyester thread! The kind of thread you use makes a huge difference in the feel of your quilt. Cotton thread, especially densely quilted cotton thread will give your quilt a stiff cardboard like quality. Yes, it will soften up over time with repeated washing, but if you want your quilt to start out soft, use polyester at the very least in the bobbin. Even if you use cotton on the top, pairing it with a polyester in the bobbin like Bottom Line by Superior Threads will keep the quilt softer and more supple.

My favourite top threads for cuddly quilts are trilobal polyesters like the one-inch-colour-change variegated Rainbows line or the new Magnifico range from Superior. These lint-free gorgeous light reflecting threads are beautiful to look at and soft to touch. Because they're made for machine quilting they run through my sewing machine like butter. Bottom Line comes in lots of colours and is available in pre-wound bobbins or 3,000 yd crosswound cones. I like to match my bobbin thread to the fleece colour. This creates gorgeous texture on the back of my quilts. All these threads are available here in the UK from the machinequilter website.

a paisley whole cloth quilt

3. Loosen up! This final tip has to do with method. Think of a quilt as a combination of quilted lines and un-quilted spaces. The quilted lines hold the quilt together and the un-quilted spaces give you the fluffiness. Both are necessary and good. No matter what materials you use, if you quilt too many lines you will quilt out all the fluffiness. If you want a soft and cuddly quilt then use a soft and flowing line design for the quilting and leave some un-quilted negative space. This will create a quilt that drapes well and is soft and fluffy.

Perhaps the tendency towards over-quilting comes from the methods and tools we use. Sitting at the sewing machine to free-motion-quilt small sections at a time, lends itself to dense quilting. Lots of people like this look. It's great for wall hangings, table runners and gorgeous award winning bed quilts. But not for soft cuddly kid quilts. Soft cuddly quilts need a looser, less dense quilting style. 

Gypsy,  our cat thinks it's cuddly even on the frame

I think it is easier to achieve a looser quilting style standing up at a frame. A machine quilting frame gives you a much larger section of the quilt to work on.  Frame quilting allows a free-er more open quilting style because it's so much easier to free-motion quilt when the frame is holding the quilt sandwich nice and steady. It's also much easier to create bigger flowing lines by using the sewing machine needle like a pen as you glide your sewing machine over the top of your quilt. 

The tools we use do shape the kind of projects we make. I find it much easier to create larger more flowing lines standing up at a machine quilting frame rather than sitting at the sewing machine and wrestling with my quilt under the arm. Perhaps this has something to do with my body tension. I'm up-tight sitting at the machine and I'm much more relaxed standing at the frame. Being relaxed translates into a looser more flowing quilting style, which of course creates a softer more cuddly quilt.

If working with fleece is a new idea for you and you'd like a sample, email me your postal address and I'll send you a  little machine quilting sample. The samples are machine quilted on a New English Quilter frame with tri-lobal polyester threads on top and Bottom Line in the bobbin. The quilt sandwich has cotton fabric on top and anti pil fleece underneath. You'll be able to feel the difference for yourself.

email: martha@machinequilter.co.uk

Test Drive a New English Quilter

Source: galionclassof64.com via Martha on Pinterest

 Maggie wanted a test drive. She'd seen our New English Quilter frames online and liked them better than any of the others. But she still needed to try them for herself. So Maggie came for a demo with her friend Jenny. It's always a good idea to bring a friend or husband along. Maggie brought both! Men and women see the frame quite differently. Men tend to notice the thought that went into the design and especially just how well the frame has been put together. Men wax lyrical about the ratchets and the screws and they love that it's made here in the UK.

Women tend to focus more on what the frame will do, how it can be used to complete quilts more quickly and comfortably and to a much higher standard. Two heads are better than one, and three are better yet. Jenny was a brilliant person for Maggie to bring. As an experienced long arm quilter, Jenny knew what to look for in a frame. She could compare it to her Gammill and confirm that yes, the New English Quilter did move just as smoothly for a fraction of the cost. It was much much easier to set up and take down and was just the right size to fit into Maggie's available space at home.

Coming for a test drive helped Maggie decide that the 8 foot NEQ2 was just the right frame for her. This size frame would enable to to complete bed sized quilts up to queen and smaller projects too. She's ordered a JUKI TL98P sewing machine as well as the table and the Nifty Grip speed control handles that replace the foot pedal. Maggie will come again to collect her frame is a couple of weeks time. She'll enjoy the next demo even more. Then we'll pack her new 8 foot NEQ2 frame, table and Juki TL98P Nifty Grips in the car and she'll head off home. With two free demo's under her belt she'll be definitely ready to roll when she get's home!

No place like home

Source: google.co.uk via Martha on Pinterest

Last week,  two sets of gals came for a demo visit from different parts of the country. Lynda purchased the 8 foot New English Quilter 2 at the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham. She came to visit with her mum, Doreen to collect her new frame and get a personal tutorial. Shows like the Festival of Quilts are so exciting and they provide the perfect opportunity to try and compare all the frames on offer. But sometimes people are so focused on purchasing the frame that they don't remember what to do with it once they've got it.

our stand at Festival of  Quilts 2012

 Shows are busy and crowded.  In all the commotion it can be hard to see and remember all the information that you need to get a new machine quilting frame up and running. Coming to collect the frame is the perfect solution. In the comfort of home with just a few people you have time to think. You can ask all the questions you like,  try the frame again,  play with various threads, and see how to load a quilt sandwich. We take the frame and table apart and put it back together, and look at lots and lots of quilts. And yes, we do have cups of tea and coffee and cakes to keep us going!

Source: tinywhitedaisies.tumblr.com via Martha on Pinterest

On a personal note, these collection demo's give us a chance to get to know our customers better. It's lovely to have the time for conversation over a cup of coffee or tea and a nice slice of cake. This works both ways. Our customers also enjoy the personal touch. People like knowing the Lincolnshire village where our frames are made. Once we've spent a few hours playing with the frame and sewing machine and talking shop, customers feel much more confident that they'll be able to get everything up and running smoothly when they get home.

Little Houses in the Big Woods machine quilted by Martha Milne

Kate's Ohio Star

All quilted!

Kate sent a photo of her finished quilt. It's lovely! What the photo doesn't show is just how quickly she finished this project. Kate was heading off to Sweden last week to visit her brother's family in their new home. She wanted the quilt as a house warming present. But the flight was for Saturday.

setting up Kate's 8 foot NEQ2

 On Wednesday she had the frame all set up, but realized that she needed a spring loaded hopping foot for her sewing machine. Unfortunately, the local sewing machine shop shuts on Wednesday afternoons. So we had to wait till Thursday. The last time I saw Kate it was Thursday evening. She'd just finished a little practice piece. She'd added some side strips to the quilt top and was loading it on the frame. 

Kate's un-quilted Ohio Star top

Kate said;"Quilting took no time at all - had it finished that evening! Very excited to get more finished now. Got a few planned..."

 Kate used a scalloped mussel shell pattern, the same line design she used last September, when she's been finishing some quilts to take to University.

The great thing about getting a line design in your head is that it all comes back when you need it again.The scalloped mussel shell pattern is a quick and forgiving pattern, easy to maneuver every-which-way around your quilt top. The light travels beautifully across the quilted surface and mistakes just seem to disappear! Kate used a King Tut thread #920 Sands of Time and a 100/16 Topstitch needle. She quilted a present she can really be proud of in just a couple of hours.Not bad after a gap of 10 months. Well done Kate! What a difference the quilting makes!

scalloped mussel shell quilting detail