My First Twin Size Quilt

by Josée

I have been working on a twin size quilt for my daughter the last couple months. Because I am a newbie quilter and a perfectionist each stage of making the quilt has been a painstaking process. The quilt is made up of disappearing nine-patch blocks and I used this quilt as my inspiration. The off-white and olive green fabrics were purchased from a local quilting shop but all the other fabric pieces were gifted to me by a lovely friend.

In retrospect, piecing the quilt together went quickly, it was the actual quilting that took the most time. I have this dream of mastering the art of free motion quilting because it’s just so cool! The thing is, it really isn’t an easy thing to do well unless you practice a lot. So before starting the quilt I did a bit a practice following Leah’s guidance and that was very helpful. As I quilted, my squiggles became less jaggety but I found it challenging to keep a nice stitch length when stopping and starting. Any tips?

In the end I am happy with the quilt’s funky eclectic look and the fact that I completed my first twin size quilt.

Linking up to KCCO and FMQ Friday.

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9 comments

anne February 27, 2013 - 1:53 pm

I can't believe you're a beginner! that is beautiful.

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Jane February 27, 2013 - 2:19 pm

Wow, Josee, that really looks amazing! A job well done! Wish I could help you out on the stitch length problem, but at least for everyone else looking at it it looks very professional!

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Kim Corrigan-Oliver February 27, 2013 - 7:32 pm

Beautiful!

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From Scratch - Our Homemade Life February 27, 2013 - 7:36 pm

Oh – I just love it! I would love to learn to quilt someday. Gorgeous!!

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crunchymama February 28, 2013 - 4:34 am

I think you are lying on being a beginner…simply gorgeous!

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Gerda March 2, 2013 - 2:51 pm

great quilt!

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Karen at Fireball March 2, 2013 - 6:37 pm

I really like your quilt. The quilting looks great.

I do have some advice: control really improves when you can slow down and speed up without wildly varying the stitch length. Keep practicing by quilting!

Try putting a book under your heel so that the ball of your foot isn't "reaching up" for the foot pedal. I always sew with a nice thick book under my heel (and no shoes), and it seems to give me more fine control over the machine foot pedal.

I am still working on starts and stops. I try to make sure the quilt is not pulling at all on the needle, and I try to have my hands exert a very slight pressure in the direction I want to go when I start.

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Alyx Patterson March 3, 2013 - 3:56 pm

This is stunning! I, too am a beginner and have been having trouble with spacing my stippling, but practice does make perfect! I think your quilt proves that!

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Josée March 4, 2013 - 5:09 am

Thanks for the tips Karen!

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