IN THE KNOW
Sure, there are loads of fancy free-motion designs out there, but sometimes simple really is best! Suzy Williams has all the info you need for super-straight quilt lines, every time…
Straight line quilting is a clean, modern style that is incredibly satisfying… when done well. If you dive in with all of the knowledge and tools you need, there’s no chance your next project won’t be fabulous! You supply the tools, I’ll supply the knowledge (…and the knowledge of the tools. I’m doing double duty over here).
Start with a good baste
Before you start, make sure you begin with a good baste. You may be a pro quilter with perfect speed and accuracy, but your quilt can still bunch up and get puckered if your basting isn’t up to snuff! Take your time, and make sure you don’t skip any steps when it comes to basting your quilt. Start with ironing your quilt top, as well as your quilt backing. This might not come as a surprise, but, you may even want to iron your batting! Batting sometimes gets wrinkled from being crammed into its packaging, and needs some smoothing love, too.
When each layer of your quilt sandwich is nice, flat and wrinklefree, baste it, and baste it good. I prefer to pin baste, so I place a safety pin every four inches all around my entire quilt. Is it a lot of pins? Yes. Yes, it is. But it’s worth it. For those who prefer to use basting spray, be sure to spray the backing to the batting, as well as the quilt top to the batting. Don’t mess around here, quilters! Finish with ironing the sandwich to heat-set the basting spray. If you sense any lumps or bumps, do not hesitate to take out pins or peel away layers to fix the problems. This is where you set yourself up for quilting success!
Ask your batting what it needs
When you’re feeling pretty good about this basting business, go ahead and get to know your batting. Start your relationship off right, and ask your batting what it needs. When you purchase batting, it comes with a set of instructions. Usually, these instructions will tell you whether or not you need to pre-wash it and also how closely you need to quilt so that the batting doesn’t shift. Most batting requires quilting at least every eight or ten inches, but I’m going to recommend you overachieve a little bit: quilt every four inches. I know it sounds crazy, but when I spend so much time piecing a quilt, I want it to last through many washes and cuddles. When I quilt lines at four inches apart, I know my quilt sandwich is secure and I sleep better at night. So will you.
But… what if you want to quilt closer than four inches? You can!
Take each step slow and steady (especially when stepping on your pedal) and your straight line machine quilting will be a stunner!
Dense quilting can look beautiful and give your quilt lots of texture!
Walk (don't run) with your walking foot
To set up your sewing machine, strap on that walking foot. When I first learned straight line quilting, I was so excited that I slammed my foot on the pedal and raced from top to bottom. You better believe that after my sprinted quilt job I was very sad and confused to see that my fabric was pulling in multiple directions and stitches were skipping.
When quilting with a walking foot, don’t sew at maximum speed. Walk that walking foot. You’re working with thicker layers than when you’re piecing blocks, so even with a walking foot, you want to sew about half as fast as you would when piecing.
Get a fresh needle
After I move my patchwork foot to my walking foot, I also replace my needle. I have found that a new 80/12 Universal needle and 40 wt. thread work great together. They’re basically the straight line quilting power couple.
Pick a complementary thread colour
When picking a thread colour, go with your heart… but also maybe ask yourself a couple of questions first:
■ Do I want the quilting to be a subtle texture or a bold design?
■ Do I want the patchwork piecing to be the central focus, or do I want the quilting to be the star? These questions will guide you to the perfect thread colour. I typically pick thread that matches the lightest fabric in my quilt, but if your goal is for the stitches to stand out, go for gold… or another hue with contrast! Take a few spools of thread and lay them out on the quilt top. This will help you visualize how they'll look.
Take each step slow and steady (especially when stepping on your pedal) and your straight line machine quilting will be a stunner!
"Most batting requires quilting at least every eight or ten inches. I recommend you over-achieve a lit tle bit and quilt every four inches. When I quilt four inches apart, I know my quilt sandwich is secure". SUZY QUILTS