Sunday, November 27, 2011

QUILTING

Hello and a good morning to all I wish all of you and nice Sunday ,I have not posted in a while ,first I would like to show you my new hand made leather thumb thimble ,there is a leather shop near me ,they make leather goods and they through out there scraps,I happen to be walking past the trash bin one day years ago and noticed a big bag of leather scraps and of coursed I took them thinking I could used them for something one day .
So I cut out the pieces into a shape that I thought it would work used a thick black polyester thread and stiched it up and it works wonderfully it really helps me push the needle through the fabric and then it is much easier to grasp the needle and pull it on the other side now I will make another for my finger that helps quide the needle underneath  ,I am really pleased that I thought of it .
I am quilting this quilt that I have been commissioned to make ,it is large 80 x 99 in. I hope I finish it by Christmas .
Here is the whole quilt on my sofa I chose a light blue border for it I think it goes well on it.
I even found some letters with her initials on it that makes it a bit personalized for her ,
After deciding that I wasn't up to fmq the large quilt I thought I better work  at fmq . I tried various methods in controlling the quilt better practicing on a panel I found that wearing my white fleece gloves that my dear friend Michelle sent me, they not only  keep my hands warm when it is cold out , they really help me grasp the panel and I am able to make smoother stiches I also use some hand cream  ,I even thought of putting glue stick on my fingers ,but I haven't tried that yet ,for now I am doing ok.
I really didn't have a specific pattern in mind you really don't have time to think when the needle is moving .
I plan on making some templates for fmq and I will be posting them of  course ,but I think I am progressing.
I tried different designs as you can see, I really am trying to get the motion of meandering, I am more of a structured person so it is a bit difficult for me.
I will be working to become better at it ,I got a helpful tip from a blog friend whom is great at it her name is Kheli  she advised me that it really helps to starch the top first  I will do that and believe it will help thank you Kheli.http://khelikarma.blogspot.com/ . Another thing I have been having some issues with is  thread tension and am working on that .  I thank you all for stopping by and leaving suggestions and comments ,wish you all many hours of quilting a crafting and try to make a leather thimble for yourself.

11 comments:

Oops-Lah said...

You are so ingenious with making that leather thimble. Love your quilt and wish you luck so it will be indeed finished at Christmas. I have a few UFOs I also want to have finished before the end of the year. And you are right; FMQ has to be practiced a lot and then practiced a bit more. I'm also at the stage and hope to get better at it one day. Have a blessed Advent time. Hugs V x

Kelly said...

Your FMQ looks wonderful! And thank you for the mention in your post! I love the quilt, it is bright and happy. Can't wait to see finished product.

Wacky Woman said...

They sell leather thimbles here and they are not cheap. This looks great Theodora. Love your quilt. Your customer is going to be very happy. I use plain old glycerin that the chemist sells, for tacky fingers to machine quilt. Just a few drops on you fingertips do the trick. Give you lots of control.

Cyndi said...

Hello, my dear sweet friend! I think the quilt looks gorgeous, and you are doing a wonderful job on your free motion quilting. I am too much of a scardy cat to try it! I'm afraid of making a huge mess. LOL! And you are so creative and thrifty, my friend. That was a great idea you had for making that thimble from leather. I'm sure that it not only helps to push that needle through, but protects your fingers as well!
Keep up the great work!

Much love,

Cyndi

P.S. I haven't been on the computer much lately but I just saw that you wrote me a couple of times. I will be writing you a letter soon!

Nifty Quilts said...

You are so innovative! Your leather thimble is a great idea. And your commission quilt is lovely too, as is your fmq. You have inspired me to do more fmq!

Deborah said...

The quilt is beautiful! I love the leather thimble you made. Good thinking.
Your FMQ is looking great. Keep up the good work!
Deborah

Sally Tharpe Rowles said...

What a beautiful quilt!! I wish you many happy hours working on it & best wishes for finishing it by Christmas.

Emma Breadstill said...

Hello,
This quilt is lovely. Thank you for finding me and following my blog.

Take care,
Emma xxx xxx

Shoutforfood said...

i love all the quilt. it must be tough work.

Browndirtcottage said...

I had a leather thimble l-o-n-g ago! I wore it out, only I was using it during my cross-stitch, garment sewing days! I remember it worked pretty good!!

Great quilt and your are doing amazing on the quilting!! I need to practice more on my FMQ!!!

Val said...

Theodora, I just LOVE this quilt. It is the sort I like to make myself :0) Yours is much larger than I have made and I think you are very brave to tackle fmq!
Thank you for stopping by my blog, it is always nice to see you have been.
Have a lovely week,
Val xx Berkshire UK