Lake Garden Quilt Sew Along
Week 5
Welcome to Week 5 of the Lake Garden Quilt Sew Along.
Hopefully you have managed to get your quilt top together and are happy with it.
Next up, I'll be sharing all my domestic machine quilting tips. I quilt most of my quilts myself using a combination of horizontal and diagonal lines. Occasionally I'll get a long armer to quilt my quilt but to be honest not very often. I love the full ownership that quilting gives you. I also love the simplicity of straight lines and how it allows the piecing and pattern of the patchwork to shine.
The Lake Garden Sew Along will be taking place in both the Facebook Group and on Instagram. If you post in Instagram, be sure your account is set to public so we can all see your posts using the #lakegardenSAL and #lakegardenquilt hashtags.
If you have just joined the SAL, welcome! Make sure to grab the pattern, read up on all the details and choose your fabrics, so you can catch up and join in the fun.
Next up, I'll be sharing all my domestic machine quilting tips. I quilt most of my quilts myself using a combination of horizontal and diagonal lines. Occasionally I'll get a long armer to quilt my quilt but to be honest not very often. I love the full ownership that quilting gives you. I also love the simplicity of straight lines and how it allows the piecing and pattern of the patchwork to shine.
The Lake Garden Sew Along will be taking place in both the Facebook Group and on Instagram. If you post in Instagram, be sure your account is set to public so we can all see your posts using the #lakegardenSAL and #lakegardenquilt hashtags.
If you have just joined the SAL, welcome! Make sure to grab the pattern, read up on all the details and choose your fabrics, so you can catch up and join in the fun.
DOMESTIC MACHINE QUILTING
TOOLS OF THE TRADE
As this is the last newsletter, I thought I might talk a little about quilting. I love to use straight lines in all my quilts and I have discovered a few things that might help you too!
Firstly, what you'll need:
Walking Foot for your machine - you may have to purchase this separately as most machines don't come with one, unless you’re a lucky duck and have bought a quilting edition - sometimes they include these as part of the package.
A walking food basically does the same thing as the feed dogs on your machine, except from above. It helps to feed the three layers of your quilt through evenly so that the fabric doesn’t bunch up.
40wt Thread - now this is just what I like to quilt with, so if you prefer something else, go for it! I like it because it's a little stronger and it also makes the quilting a bit more of a feature. I like to use Aurifil Thread, 100% cotton.
Basting Spray and/or Safety Pins for basting - I like to use both. I don't have a large sewing table to work on so all the help I can get, I take!
The safety pins are stainless steel, size 2. There are some fancy curved pins on the market which are great too. The basting spray is called 505 Temporary Adhesive. I like this brand as it has hardly any smell and stays stuck!
Hera Marker - A Hera marker is an awesome piece of plastic that allows you to mark your quilt without using a pencil/washout marker. The Hera marker places a fold in the fabric when your quilt top is basted that stays for a good amount of time. I love it because there is no need to wash out line markings afterwards. Just use your quilting ruler to get lovely straight lines.
As this is the last newsletter, I thought I might talk a little about quilting. I love to use straight lines in all my quilts and I have discovered a few things that might help you too!
Firstly, what you'll need:
Walking Foot for your machine - you may have to purchase this separately as most machines don't come with one, unless you’re a lucky duck and have bought a quilting edition - sometimes they include these as part of the package.
A walking food basically does the same thing as the feed dogs on your machine, except from above. It helps to feed the three layers of your quilt through evenly so that the fabric doesn’t bunch up.
40wt Thread - now this is just what I like to quilt with, so if you prefer something else, go for it! I like it because it's a little stronger and it also makes the quilting a bit more of a feature. I like to use Aurifil Thread, 100% cotton.
Basting Spray and/or Safety Pins for basting - I like to use both. I don't have a large sewing table to work on so all the help I can get, I take!
The safety pins are stainless steel, size 2. There are some fancy curved pins on the market which are great too. The basting spray is called 505 Temporary Adhesive. I like this brand as it has hardly any smell and stays stuck!
Hera Marker - A Hera marker is an awesome piece of plastic that allows you to mark your quilt without using a pencil/washout marker. The Hera marker places a fold in the fabric when your quilt top is basted that stays for a good amount of time. I love it because there is no need to wash out line markings afterwards. Just use your quilting ruler to get lovely straight lines.
BASTING
The first thing you’ll need to do is baste your quilt. Once you have pieced your backing, lay it down with the right side to the floor. Some people baste on their kitchen table, some on the wall and others on their dining room table or lounge room floor. It’s totally up to you!
I lay my quilt backing on my kitchen floor (after first removing the table and folding back the rug) and tape down the edges to keep the backing taut. I like to use masking tape. Then I layer the batting on top and baste it to the backing using the basting spray. This is easily done by yourself, a side at a time. After positioning your batting correctly, fold it back on itself, so half of the taped down backing is visible. Then spray that side with basting spray and gently smooth the batting onto the backing.
Repeat with the other side.
The first thing you’ll need to do is baste your quilt. Once you have pieced your backing, lay it down with the right side to the floor. Some people baste on their kitchen table, some on the wall and others on their dining room table or lounge room floor. It’s totally up to you!
I lay my quilt backing on my kitchen floor (after first removing the table and folding back the rug) and tape down the edges to keep the backing taut. I like to use masking tape. Then I layer the batting on top and baste it to the backing using the basting spray. This is easily done by yourself, a side at a time. After positioning your batting correctly, fold it back on itself, so half of the taped down backing is visible. Then spray that side with basting spray and gently smooth the batting onto the backing.
Repeat with the other side.
Next, I layer the quilt top, right side up and baste it to the batting and backing.
This is done using the same folding technique as used with the batting.
This is done using the same folding technique as used with the batting.
Finally, I plonk myself down in the middle of the quilt and start pinning from the centre out, every 3 inches of so. I think the combination of my weight and the pins help to baste the quilt really well.
I will share a video of this process on both Facebook and Instagram.
QUILTING
After you’ve basted your quilt, what you need to do is increase the stitch length on your machine. I usually sew using a 2.2 length and then up it to 2.8 when quilting. My machine is a Bernina, so check yours as every machine is different.
My first Lake Garden quilt above, has been quilted with 1¾" grid, or there abouts.
The grid in this case, was based on the piecing blocks of the quilt.
Now the best way to explain how I do this is with a diagram.
My approach is to begin in the middle of the quilt. I quilted the first red line (smack bang in the middle) and then continued sewing the rest of the red lines out to the right hand side of the quilt.
Then I went back and quilted all of the yellow lines in between the red lines. Once all the yellow lines were done I went back and did the blue lines.
The idea is that the red lines anchor the quilt. Then you go back and fill in the gaps. If you tried to do the 1¾" quilting from the first row, your quilt would end up being distorted and no-one wants that!
Just remember, after you’ve completed all the red lines, you need to flip the quilt around, so you’re quilting from the other side and working from the middle to the right, before you go back and do the yellow and blue lines.
Always complete all the lines from one colour before moving onto the next colour.
The grid in this case, was based on the piecing blocks of the quilt.
Now the best way to explain how I do this is with a diagram.
My approach is to begin in the middle of the quilt. I quilted the first red line (smack bang in the middle) and then continued sewing the rest of the red lines out to the right hand side of the quilt.
Then I went back and quilted all of the yellow lines in between the red lines. Once all the yellow lines were done I went back and did the blue lines.
The idea is that the red lines anchor the quilt. Then you go back and fill in the gaps. If you tried to do the 1¾" quilting from the first row, your quilt would end up being distorted and no-one wants that!
Just remember, after you’ve completed all the red lines, you need to flip the quilt around, so you’re quilting from the other side and working from the middle to the right, before you go back and do the yellow and blue lines.
Always complete all the lines from one colour before moving onto the next colour.
Once you complete the first set of lines, you then need to spin the quilt and start working in the opposite direction which creates the grid.
The next version I made using Art Gallery fabrics and I decided that I wanted this one to be quilted with only horizontal lines.
Follow the guide below, and quilt the first red line (smack bang in the middle) and then continue sewing the rest of the red lines out to the right hand side of the quilt.
Once the red lines are complete, flip the quilt and finish the red lines on the other side.
The go back and do the yellow, then the bue and finally the green lines.
Follow the guide below, and quilt the first red line (smack bang in the middle) and then continue sewing the rest of the red lines out to the right hand side of the quilt.
Once the red lines are complete, flip the quilt and finish the red lines on the other side.
The go back and do the yellow, then the bue and finally the green lines.
The third Lake Garden quilt I did with a combination of horizontal / vertical and diagonal lines.
With this look, you need to complete all the horizontal and vertical lines first, before starting the diagonal lines.
The grid on this quilt is spaced out further so there is only a set of red and yellow lines to complete. The diagonal quilting will fill in the gaps.
With this look, you need to complete all the horizontal and vertical lines first, before starting the diagonal lines.
The grid on this quilt is spaced out further so there is only a set of red and yellow lines to complete. The diagonal quilting will fill in the gaps.
Once all the vertical lines are done, spin the quilt around and do the other direction so you have a completed grid.
Then you need to set yourself up, so you are quilting on the diagonal, and repeat the whole process again, starting with the red line in the middle.
I have decided to quilt my sew along version using closely spaced cross hatching.
The first line when working through the diagonal centre of a quilt can be a bit tricky, but if you roll your quilt up nicely first and take your time, it will work. Just remember as you quilt to the right, each row gets smaller and therefore quicker!
The first line when working through the diagonal centre of a quilt can be a bit tricky, but if you roll your quilt up nicely first and take your time, it will work. Just remember as you quilt to the right, each row gets smaller and therefore quicker!
Make sure your complete all the lines in one direction on both the left and right had sides before spinning the quilt and working in the other direction.
I didn't use a Hera marker to mark any of these lines because I use the piecing as my guide. Then with the final rows of quilting I just made sure the walking foot was in the middle of the space using my eye.
My lines are definitely not perfect, there are wobbles but when you look at the whole quilt you don't notice them. Well in my opinion you don't, you just see gorgeous quilty texture.
If you decide to tackle diagonal lines, just remember to add the the ¼" on the edges, because there is still binding to go on.
My lines are definitely not perfect, there are wobbles but when you look at the whole quilt you don't notice them. Well in my opinion you don't, you just see gorgeous quilty texture.
If you decide to tackle diagonal lines, just remember to add the the ¼" on the edges, because there is still binding to go on.
I will also share a video on how I quilted this version on both Facebook and Instagram.
Did you have fun? I hope so because putting all this information together takes me a lot of time. I love sharing all my knowledge with you all but I definitely earn the cost of the pattern that you bought creating these sew alongs.
Stay tuned for another Sew Along later in the year and until then, I would love if you could keep posting any EJJ creations in the Facebook group. I truly love seeing what you make,
Emma x
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