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? for hand quilters
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Posted by grammyp (My Page) on Mon, Nov 2, 09 at 10:02
| Especially those who quilt with no frame. How do you baste your quilts? Can I use my safety pins or do they get in the way? I have a quilt I want to practice on and can use all the help I can get.
Thanks for your input.
beverly |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: ? for hand quilters
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Yes, safety pins might rust and will get in the way especially if you use a hoop. I baste by hand with white or off-white, inexpensive, like cone thread--No color threads for basting (might leave little dots when removed). I don't use basting sprays either.
A longarm quilter might thread-baste your quilt for a reasonable fee; it might be a welcome quick job between other large quilting jobs.
Here is a link with more info about how to baste.
BlueBars |
Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.quiltingassistant.com/basting.html
RE: ? for hand quilters
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| I've heard that you can pin from the reverse side too. I've tried this on small things and it works okay. Then your thread doesn't get tangled on them as you move around the top. |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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| I've always pinned with safety pins, and haven't had a problem. I simply move the ones that are in the way of the hoop, if I am using one. I don't use one very often. I have considered threadbasting because closing the pins is hard with arthritic thumbs. Bluebars-do you think it harder or easier? And how closely do you baste? |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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Beverly, I use both. If you are going to take a while to quilt and it is warm and humid the pins can rust. However, I lived in Longwood Florida with 100% humidity and I never had anything rust LOL!! But I was warned about pins by a pro.
I was taught to start in the middle, but I prefer to start on one end. I hand basted one end with large stitches and then pinned the rest. If it is a lap or smaller I just pin. One you have it hooped take out the pins in the hooped area. The reason I hand baste the ends is because I have a hard time quilting the edges. It is just me, try the pins, they may work for you. I have used an embroidery hoop and I find my 18" too large to hold well in my lap . The one I am using now is 12x12 that I bought at Michaels on sale. Just make sure the backing is smooth in the hoop and don't stretch too tight. You need enough 'play' in the sandwich to be able to quilt with smaller stitches. I have quilted this one close to the seams, about 1/4 inch because the quilt is so busy I didn't think any other design would compliment it. I prefer cotton batting and IMO it clings to the cotton fabric better than poly or blends. Again that's just me LOL!!!! I am planning to white work in the 4 large snowballs. I love HQ'd quilts, they are so soft.
Rosa
 
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RE: ? for hand quilters
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| Thanks everyone. I had forgotten about pinning from the back. Didn't think about not using colored thread either, thanks for the heads up. I'm planning on not using a hoop or a frame just to see how it goes. I do have a Q-snap frame and a small hoop if I need it. This is a real practice piece and will probably go in my parent's dog's house for winter. It is not large or fancy, but I really want to try my hand at hand quilting, so why not. I'll keep you posted. beverly |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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| I, too, will threadbaste my quilts. I prefer to hand quilt because I do not know the technique to machine quilt and because I like the solitude I can have while hand quilting. Gives me time for reflection. I have a q-snap fram also (like the one in the pic), but mine is larger (I think 18" sq.). It can be difficult to balance on the lap, but if you have something nearby (the arm of the sofa, for example) that you can rest the opposite top corner on it, it works just fine. Odessa |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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| Well, I've only done the one baby quilt, but I hand basted it. The quilt was taped to the floor, and it gave me a back ache, but then it was pleasant to quilt afterwards and easy to remove at the end. Has anybody tried using a big half circle upholstery needle with a pair of hemostats, a la surgeon-style? Then every stitch would just be a turn of the wrist.
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RE: ? for hand quilters
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| I usually pin starting at the center and working out in all directions. Sometimes I baste as well, and found that it's helpful around the edges of the quilt. I have always used just large hoops so far, and done a little with no hoop at all. But, the next one up is a queen sized, and she'll be stretched to a full sized frame. What I did discover on the project I'm working on now is fusible batting. I am a convert. This is just a 45 X 60 crib quilt, so I was able to get it fused perfectly. (sigh of relief). I used a low pile poly and it's been nothing but a joy to work with. The back side is immaculately neat and that's a first for me. I don't know how difficult it would be to use fusible on a larger project, mostly because of the difficulty ironing it together, but this has been a joy with which to work. |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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I have basted with thread, spray basted, and pinned. I am in the middle of quilting a full sized and it is pinned. I am using a 14" round wooden hoop which I prefer for large quilts. I think I prefer pins as the thread has a tendency to be less stable. I just remove them when I reach that point. I always start in the center and work outward. Perhaps that is just me. I have never had a problem with rusting. For small things I have sprayed and used a few stitches and usually use a Q frame with those as I have different sizes that work well.
I do have floor frame but it takes up too much room and I am not fond of that type of quilting. Jayne |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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| I have only hand quilted two quilts. The first in this endeaver I used a 16" hoop. I basted this by putting the layers on a large sheet of plywood (borrowed from a neighbor) that was placed on my small oval table. I secured the backing first to this with binder clips.(large) Then I put the batting down and then the quilt and secured that with binding clips. Then I basted. It took about a week to get the whole thing done, (a larger than twin size) and a very sore back, but there were no bubbles in the quilt. The second quilt I did was put into a Q snap frame. I thought I would not have to baste and made sure that all was tight, but as I am now nearing the end of this quilting this second quilt, I am not as pleased for it looks as if there are bubbles and tucks, even though I took great care to see to it that all was straight and tight when I loaded it. Hand quilting takes a lot of patience, imo. One's sense of time needs to be adjusted. It is not a "quilt in a day" project. The end product however, is very gratifying. I love the look of it. |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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| i use quilters safety pins - laying everything flat and then starting from the centre, put in as many safety pins as you can and keep straightening as you go. |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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bozogardener asked about threadbasting versus closing the pins--do you think it harder or easier? And how closely do you baste?
Pins are hard for me to close, but I don't use them; I don't do machine quilting. For thread basting I consider a minimum space between lines is the width of my hand. The closer the basting, the better the quilt, I think. There will be no shifting if the quilt is well-basted.
I quilt in a 14-inch Hinterberg lap hoop so I can use both hands to quilt, turn and tilt in any direction. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Hinterberg.
Oh, and consider hiring a long-arm quilter to thread baste for you. They can often fit a basting job in between larger quilting jobs, and it is well worth the minimal expense especially if you have a bad back!
BlueBars |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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| I have a quilt to sandwich now, and my thumbs are so bad right now that I've been putting it off. I think I will try thread basting this one and see how it goes. I have a glass-topped table that has thin edges, so I can just clip the sides with those big office paper clips (the ones that look like chip clips). |
RE: ? for hand quilters
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I use a long, strong needle (darning needle?). As the needle comes up from the bottom, I use the side of an old table spoon to tilt the needle upward. It is easier to grab the needle and avoids needle pricks. Of course, a thimble, and a rubber finger cot on the other finger or thumb will make the needle easy to grab. Both these tricks make the job much easier with less stress on your hands and arms.
Start in the middle with a really long thread, leaving the thread tail laying all the way across to the other side of the quilt. Baste to one side, knot, then turn yourself around, rethread the needle at the middle, and baste to the other side = no knots at the center and less thread breaks.
BlueBars |
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