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81 Free-motion machine quilting tiPS anD motiFS from Quilting Art s 1Quiltingdaily.com

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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily F r e e - m o t i o n m a c h i n e Q u i lt i n g t e c h n i Q u e s

81 Ts f F-mt

Mh Qtg, Th Sthg, Qtg Mtfs

3

Tips or Successul Free-motion

Machine Quilting, Part 1Frieda anderSon

8 Tips or Successul Free-motionMachine Quilting, Part 2Frieda anderSon

10 Free-motion Quilting Motis

That Invite a Closer Lookrobbi Joy eklow

15 Thread Sketching 101,

Lesson 1: Focus on ColorSuSan brubaker knapp

19 Variegated Threads orFree-motion Embroideryrobbi Joy eklow

8

19

3

1 0

15




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily Yo’ve heard the old adage

abot drawing, right? Practice

makes perect! The same goes

or ree‑motion stitching. It takes

time, patience, and commitmentto get those stitches smooth and

even, and yor motis to look

impeccable.

In this eBook, eatring three

highly respected qilt artists,

Frieda Anderson and Robbi Joy

Eklow share their knowledge

and expertise or sccesslree‑motion qilting, and Ssan

Brbaker Knapp teaches yo the

basics o thread sketching. We

hope yo enjoy this compilation

o exercises, tips, techniqes, and

motis to help make ree‑motion

stitching n and enjoyable.

Yo’ll nd a lot o sel

inormation packed in this

booklet. I highly recommend

printing it ot to keep near yor

sewing machine as a handy

reerence gide.

Warmly,

ViVika Hansen Denegre

Editor, Quilting Arts M AgAzinE

Q uilting Arts presentsFree-MoTion MacHine

QuilTinG TecHniQueS

81 Tips for Free-motionMachine Quilting, Thread Sketching,

and Quilting Motifs

editor Vvk h dn

online editor c P

creative services

diVision art director l dv

designer K B

PhotograPhers ly s

Ky s

Poj nd nomon o n-pon nd ponl u only. In-

terweave Press LLC no ponblo ny lbly ng om o,omon, o mk onndn h -book, nd d houldpod uouly, plly whp o hnl nomon.Interweave Press LLC gn pmono phooopy ny pn publhd nh u o ponl u only.

in your life

put more

r esult s f r om our

sketch t o ar t quiltr eader c halleng e

10 cr eat i vi t y boost in g PROMPT S

OUR st a ycation ISSUE

c r e a t e unique f abr ic

3 t ec hni ques t o t r y

P. 69

P. 66

800.406.5283 ( U.S. & Canada)

760.291.1519 (International)qtgts.mQ uilting Arts mAgAzine

®, p.o. bx 469087, es, ca 92046-9350

Q uilting Arts mAgAzine® explores ideas , textiles, and techniqes

related to embellished and contemporary art quilting . Inside, yo’ll ind design inspiration,

step-by-step directions,

gorgeos photography, and motivation or developing yor

personal style, at all skill levels.

Quilting Daily




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily

all t he ght mvstips or successulree-motion machinequilting , part 1

Back in 1984 I started a

king‑size Ocean Waves qilt

or my sister’s second marriage.

It was machine pieced and hand

qilted. She didn’t receive it

ntil ater her third divorce. At

that time I realized I needed a

qicker way to nish qilting

my qilts, so I started machine

qilting. When I began machine

qilting, I started right in on a

qeen‑size qilt. I did mostly stitch

in the ditch and otline qilting

arond the elements o the blockpatterns I was making. Bt I soon

branched ot and started doing

basic stippling. Once I got bored with that, I began to do allover ree‑motion qilting, which is qilting withot

marking designs rst, creating my own and copying any ree‑motion designs that I saw. I learned mostly by trial

and error, looking at other people’s machine‑qilted qilts and then going home and trying to dplicate what I

had seen. I take a lot o photographs o machine qilting when I go to qilt shows, and I am still always looking

or new ideas. What I have inclded here are a ew simple tactics that I have discovered that will help yo to be

more sccessl with yor ree‑motion machine qilting. I am happy to share my discoveries with yo.

“Sun Dance” • 28" × 26"

Adapted romQuilting Arts M AgAz ine,February/March 2008

by Frieda anderson

tips for getting stArtedThere are ve basic elements that I

think will make machine qilting

more enjoyable or yo.

first you need some bAsic eQuipment

• A sewing machine with the ability

to drop the eed dogs is essential.

Yo cannot do ree‑motion machine

qilting well i the eed dogs on

yor machine do not drop. Yo can

cover p the throat plate, bt thatwill create drag, and drag is one

o or biggest enemies. So, i yor

machine does not have eed dogs

that drop, treat yorsel and by a

new machine that does.

• Yo also need to have a darning or

embroidery oot on yor machine.




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily Yor machine shold come with

one, bt yo might want to

prchase a new, clear one that has

the ront o the oot open. This

makes it easier to see where yo

are going while yo are working.

Check with yor sewing machine

manactrer or this item.

• I recommend getting a

single‑needle throat plate or yor

sewing machine. This has a smaller

hole where the bobbin thread

comes p to help create a smoother

and fatter srace or the qilt to

glide over.

• An adjstable chair is essential,

like an oce chair that will allow

yo to sit p high so that yo are

looking down on yor qilting, not

sitting in a hole. Yo shold be able

to rest yor arms on yor sewing

table srace. Yo don’t want to

have to hold yor arms p while

yo are machine qilting. They

will get heavy very qickly, so yo

will get tired very ast, and that willaect yor qilting.

second, you need the right needle

There are several kinds o sewing

machine needles that work well, bt

yo shold be sre to se the one

most appropriate or the abric and

thread yo are sing. This can make a

big dierence in both the appearance

and ease o yor qilting. These arethe or needles I se the most:

Quilting needle – This needle is

designed to work throgh mltiple

abric layers and across intersecting

seams. It is best to se cotton qilting

thread.

Embroidery

needle – This

needle has

a larger eye

and special

scar (groove

above the

eye) to

protect

decorative

threads rom

shredding

or breaking.

This needle

is good or

se withrayon and

acrylic

abrics and

threads.

Microfber/

Sharp – This needle is best or silks,

microbers, and or penetrating

densely woven abrics.

Metallic – This needle is larger

and has a specially coated eye thataccommodates metallic thread fow

at all stitch speeds. A large groove in

the shat protects the thread and helps

prevent shredding.

third is threAd

The kind o thread yo se will

give yor work a distinct look,

so experiment; there are so many

dierent threads on the market now.

I sggest yo se a lighter weightthread in yor bobbin than in the

needle, becase this will help keep

the bobbin thread in the middle o

the qilt sandwich where it belongs.

Or, i yo are sing a very thin thread

in the top, then the bottom thread

weight shold match what is on the

top. I also match the color o my

thread in the top with that in the

bobbin. I personally se a heavier

weight thread most o the time, sch

as a 30 in my top thread, bt I always

se at least a 50‑ or 60‑weight thread

in the bobbin. Again, experimentation

is the key. Remember, the thicker the

thread the smaller the nmber. The

weight o the thread is printed on the

spool.

fourth, you need A flAt work surfAce

Yo will need a fat srace or yor

qilt to rest on as yo work. I have

an area that srronds my sewing

machine that is fat or at least two

eet and extends all arond the

sewing srace o my machine. This is

especially important or larger qilts.

Drag happens very easily when yor

project rests on dierent heights, so it

is best to have the srace all arond

yo be the same height as yor sewing

“Tall Trees” • 50" × 50"




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srace. Drag will case yo to be

jerky in yor motion and will create

tension in yor sholders and arms.

It is extremely important to haveyor arms spported and relaxed.

Yor arms shold rest on yor sewing

srace, and yo shold se yor

hands like a hoop to move the qilt

arond. I have ond that yo shold

avoid pshing or plling the abric

throgh the needle, bt rather move

it as i moving the abric nder the

needle, like paper nder a pencil. I

position my hands on either side o an

area no larger than a dinner plate and,

by grasping the qilt on either side,I move the qilt arond. Once I have

lled that area, I reposition the qilt

and my hands, then start qilting

again in a new area. I always try,

when possible, to work my qilting

away rom mysel. This allows me to

see where I am going. It isn’t always

possible, bt it is a general principle

to help yo be more sccessl while

ree‑motion qilting. Roll yor large

qilts so that they will t nicely

as a package inside the arm o the

machine.

And lAst but not leAst...The th and most important actor in

sccessl machine qilting is qite

simple: practice, practice, practice.

Yo cannot get any better i yo don’t

qilt! The person who has a positive

attitde and works hard at trying

to improve will be the person who

scceeds. There are a lot o books

ot on the market abot machine

qilting, and I sggest yo read them.

Don’t jst look at the pictres, bt

actally read them and try some o

the exercises in the books. Everyone

brings their own qilting expertise

and has some little trick that yo

might nd is jst the thing to help

yo get better at machine qilting.

Only by experimentation and practice

can yo discover what works best oryo. The more comortable yo are

with yor qilting and yor setp,

the better yo will become. Keep qilt

sandwiches by yor sewing machine

to practice on. I always make a small

sandwich o the abric that I have in

a qilt, and I se that sandwich to try

ot threads and needles and patterns

beore I begin qilting on my nished

qilt.

A pAttern for success What ollows are some basic patterns

or yo to create. By starting with

simple shapes and moving into more

complex designs, yo can learn to




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily draw with thread, jst like drawing

with a pencil, sing ree‑motion

machine qilting to qilt yor

creations. I yo think o the needle

as yor pencil and yor qilt as

the paper, yo will move the paper

with yor hands nder the pencil

to create the design on yor abric.

It is important to develop a rhythm

between yor hands and yor oot to

make smooth stitches. Consistency is

what yo are striving or. By moving

yor hand to the speed o the needle,

yo will make clean, smooth stitches.

Yo don’t have to have “artist”

abilities; yo jst need to practice, be

consistent, and try hard.

I yo are having troble working a

design withot a pattern to ollow,

draw ot yor designs ahead on a

piece o paper and place the paper on

yor sewing machine withot thread

in the machine and practice going

arond the pattern. Get sed to the

rhythm o the stitch. Start ot making

small projects to qilt, working

yorsel p to larger projects. Go

beyond stippling.

In order to go beyond stippling, yo

need to be able to create good pivot

points and sharp, tight right angles

that are not ronded and wimpy. I

oten nd that when I am working a

design, I cont to mysel. By conting

ot the design I know when to change

direction. When yo change direction

don’t hesitate, jst switch direction.

stArt Quilting Okay, let’s start qilting. Keep these

things in mind when yo begin:

• Bring the bobbin thread to the

top o yor qilt. Hold yor

bobbin thread and top thread in

yor let hand and press down on

the presser oot o yor sewing

machine. Ater yo have started

moving, release the thread and

with yor let hand grab the abric.

Later, when yo have stopped, tie

a sqare knot and bry the thread

in the same hole it came ot o

in the qilt sandwich, plling the

knot tight to make it pop into the

sandwich.

• Start ot at a steady speed with

the machine, one that yo can

control. Visalize the design yo

wish to make. Start moving the

abric nder the needle to create

the design. Move yor hands at thesame speed as yor oot is making

the needle move. Try to always

work yor pattern away rom yo.

Look ahead to where yo are going,

jst like when yo drive a car.

• Remember to think abot spacing.

No matter what the size or shape

o the design, there needs to

be consistent spacing to create

the best look. I yor spacing isconsistent, then yo can change

designs while yo are qilting and

no one will notice.

• Try not to let the needle go p

and down in one place as this will

create knots on the back o yor

work.

• Work back and orth and p and

down, lling in an area abot the

size o a dinner plate. Once yocan no longer move the abric

comortably withot stretching

yor arms and sholders into

an ncomortable position,

stop. I yo have the option o

needle‑down on yor sewing

machine, se it. I not, when yo

stop, take a moment to pt the

needle in the down position, with

the needle inserted into the qilt.

Readjst the qilt and yor hands,

and then begin to qilt again.

some shApes to try Square stippling – Try to trn yor

ronded stippling into sqares. Make

yor corners crisp and clean; jst

keep moving. Yo can make this

into triangles and stars. Inevitably

someone asks in my machine qilting

classes i it is okay to cross lines while

machine qilting. My answer is this:

it is okay as long as it is part o the

design.

Me, me, me – It’s all abot “me.” This is

my riend Lara Wasilowski’s avorite

pattern, a series o Ms and Es. The

Squares

“ME”




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pivot point is very important in this

allover design.

Leaves – All kinds o lea shapes can

be made very easily with ree‑motion

qilting. They can be linked together

with lines, clstered on top o each

other, or connected top to bottom.

Feathers – Feathers need to be made

rom the otside in. Repeat to yorsel:

otside in, otside in. I tell mystdents to think o big Roger Rabbit

ears. They need to be foppy and hang

over a little. I yo don’t make the ears

foppy, yo will make hearts. Hearts

are okay, bt or eathers yo need

foppy. Yo can even

leave a little space

between the eathers

or a dierent looking

design.

Many great qilting designs can be

ond jst by looking at the world

arond yo. The pholstery at thelocal coee shop can be the perect

pattern to re‑create in machine

qilting. The pattern in the carpet at

the hotel might be jst what yo are

looking or. Visit the library oten and

look at books on all kinds o design

and art. Take lots o eld trips to

interesting places and open yor eyes.

Yo never know where a great idea is

going to come rom.

Leaves

Feathers

Stars Triangles

A D D I T I O N A LT I P S

•to hlp h qul ndwh ld moohly o hu o you wng , u py zng whnyou on h bkng o you qul. th kp lk.

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•ty dn bng, mkng mpl nd qulng hm o how you lk hm. a h bg qul howyou n on buy mll mpl om bng ndo.

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•H you mhn d l on y by lbl dl.

•Kp you mhn od whn you no ung . Du nd nml h wng mhn’ wo nm.




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Q uiltingOnce yo are comortably seated

at yor fat srace, with yor arms

spported and relaxed, se yor

hands like a hoop as yo move the

qilt arond. Move the qilt nder

the needle as yo “draw” yor motis,

thinking o the needle as yor pencil.

I position my hands on either side o

an area no larger than a dinner plate,

and by grasping the qilt on either

side, I move the qilt arond. Once I

have lled that area, I reposition the

qilt and my hands, then start qilting

again in a new area.

When yo are qilting, try to have the

work move away rom yor body, so

that yo can always see what is rightin ront o yo. I yo

do it the opposite way

yo can’t see behind the

presser oot very well,

and yo may rn into

things, sch as already

qilted areas or design

elements that yo don’t

want qilted. It’s like

driving a car; yo want

to have yor eyes moreon where yo are going

next, not on exactly

what yo are doing.

Yo shold be looking

in ront o the needle,

becase that is where

yo are going next.

a l l t h e

ght mvstips or successul ree-motion machine quilting, part 2

Adapted romQuilting Arts M AgAzine ,

Apri l/May 2008

by Frieda anderson

“Georgy Porgy Puddin

in Pie” • 24" × 24"




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more free-motion stitching shApes to try

Clustered designs – Almost any shape

can be clstered. Go rom making very

simple clamshell designs into bigger,

bolder fower shapes. Yo start a new

design on either side o the shape yo

jst nished.

Modern Baptist Fan – The traditional

version o this moti looks very rigid

and straightorward, bt yo can

throw in a ew crves and variations

to create a modern version o an old

avorite.

Individual motis – This is one place

yo might want to actally mark yor

designs on the srace o the qilt. I

always se chalk or soapstone to mark

individal designs on the srace o

my qilts. That way I jst need to sea damp cloth to remove the marks

ater I’ve nished stitching. Individal

motis are sally srronded by

some kind o simple stippling or ller

design.

As yo contine to work at yor

qilting, remember it takes lots o

practice. Look all arond yo or

inspiration—stdy the machine

qilting when yo attend qilt

shows, read books, take classes, and

watch or designs in yor everydaysrrondings.

Modern Baptist Fan Traditional Baptist Fan Individual Moti

Clusters I Clusters II Clusters III




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My ree‑motion qilting designs

consist o motis that are generally

abot 1" sqare, with a dierent

moti being sed in each shape. More

complex motis, sch as fowers, are

slightly larger, maybe 2" sqare. I

coordinate the color o the thread to

the color o the shape on the qilt,

and change both color and moti

when moving rom shape to shape.

I avoid sing the same motis on

adjoining shapes: i one shape has a

moti with crves, the shape next to it

has one with straight lines.

To practice these methods, gather theollowing spplies:

• Twelve 9"× 12" rectangles o elt,

any color Beore I start qilting

one o my sed qilts, I warm p

on either a sample sqare, or on

two pieces o elt, stacked together.

Felt makes an excellent practice

srace since it’s cheap, allowing

yo to throw it away withot

eeling badly. Felt pieces are also

perect or testing new motis.

• Sewing machine All yor machine

has to do is move the needle

For some people, qilting is a means to hold the

qilt together. For me, the opposite is tre: the

qilt is there to keep the qilting thread rom fyingo into space. My qilts are made rom hand‑dyed

abrics that I have pt together sing sed raw edge

appliqé, and becase my qilt tops are generally

pretty simple, I rely on intricate ree‑motion machine

qilting to draw the viewer in closer.

i t ’ s t

to stree-motion quilting motis

that invite a closer look

Originally published inQuilting Arts M AgAzine ,Fall 2003

by r obbi Joy eklow “Groovy Guitars”




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily p and down and give yo good

tension. Set it p or ree‑motion

stitching. I drop the eed dogs; i

yo can’t or don’t want to, jst set

yor stitch length to zero. Yo will

be controlling the stitches, not themachine. It’s as i the machine is

the pencil, and yo are moving the

paper. I yo have a straight stitch

plate, now’s the time to se it. It

helps avoid skipped stitches.

• Foot Yo will need either a

ree‑motion embroidery oot or a

darning oot. I preer a oot with

an open circle (on a Bernina, oot

#24). The open toe lets yo seewhat yo are doing and yo can

back p i yo have managed to sew

yor oot into yor qilt. Make sre

yor oot clears the srace o the

qilt when the needle is p; some

eet still pt pressre on the qilt,

bt yo want to be able to move the

qilt reely when the needle is not

sticking into the qilt.

• Thread I preer polyester or rayon

machine embroidery thread,

40‑weight. Wind a bobbin ll o

the same thread yo will se in the

needle. I like to se a thread stand

to allow the thread to eed o the

top o the spool. I have been having

good sccess with Isacord Polyester

Embroidery thread; it comes in

a myriad o colors and the spool

stands p on its own.

• Needle I se both the SchmetzEmbroidery needle, size 75, or

Organ Titanim Sharps, size 12.

Both o these needles help keep the

thread rom shredding.

• Eye protection I wear my biocals

while qilting. I’d rather not have a

needle come fying into my eye.

sAmple 1This is the easiest and most versatile

o all the motis. Start at the pper let

corner, move down, move over to the

right, go back p, move over to theright. When yo’ve done abot an inch

sqare, change the proportions, so the

longer lengths are going vertically. I yo

aren’t in a good place to start another

sqare, stitch a straight line along the

otside o the sqares yo’ve made ntil

yo get to where yo want to be.

sAmple 2A sqare trned into a

spiral. Start at the pper

let, move right to the

edge o the sqare, and

move down jst short o

the edge o the sqare, leaving enogh

room or the line o stitching on the

retrn trip. Then trn let, leave enogh

room again or the retrn trip, and go

back. Each time, leave room or the

retrn trip. When yo get to the center,

trn arond and come ot between the

“lane” yo let beore (Figre 1).

Figure 1

sAmple 3,curved spirAls Same as Sample

2, bt moving in

a circle. The trip

into the center is

clockwise; come ot

conterclockwise (Figre 2). Yo can

ll almost any shape with a spiral—

jst ollow along the edges, leaving

room or a retrn trip. Yo can also

make the retrn trip sqiggly.

sAmple 4, fAns

Similar to Sample 1, yo are jst

crving the long lines. Start at the

center with a short arc, and make

them longer each time. When theyget too long, they get messy, so do

only abot six arcs, and then start a

new an, sing the edges o the qilt

shape and the last line yo qilted as

bondaries or the arcs.

Figure 2




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily sAmple 5I call this “garlic.” Start

at the pper let corner,

make a small clockwise

loop, then switch directions andmake a conterclockwise loop arond

it. Then repeat. Start a new “garlic”

whenever yo want. I don’t have the

loops all go back to the beginning o

that specic moti; they “bonce” o

earlier loops (Figre 3).

sAmple 6This is the same as Sample 5, except

the tops o the loops are pointy.

sAmple 7This leay design reminds

me o waltzing: yo take

one step orward, one step

back, then one step orward throgh

the center o the shape yo jst made

(Figre 4).

1

2

3

4

5

Figure 3

1

3

2

Figure 4

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•

D wy o uppo h wgh o you qul (lk long f bl) o h h wgh o h qul no pullng gn h ndl.

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•Fo hd, i hoo o h h ndlhd nd h bobbn hd mh.en whn h non djudply, you wll boh hd. idon’ u l hd; i lk hhd o b bl.

•Whn you n h mddl o hqul, ’ o mo h qul upnd down hn om d o d. iuully wh lly ond

pn. On pn wh on, ind myl ung on hnd o onolh “up-down” momn, h oh omo h qul om d o d.

•i p my -moon ln bou 1 ⁄ 4"p. You mgh wn o wok lllg. i k m bou n hou o llup qu oo o qulng. You nu h dg o you p oo gud, nd gld long h dg o hhp o long h l ln quld. th on on i p mll oo o

lg oo.•Don’ look h ndl whn you

qulng; look h ln you dwng on h qul. and pl dono look h l whl you unnng h mhn. Look hpu, nd hn look you qul whl you w.

some tipsB E F O R E Y O u S T A R T




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily sAmple 8This is similar to Sample 7; jst take

the back and orth steps a ew more

times beore moving on.

sAmple 9Same as Sample 7,

except this time,

make a spiral dring

the last orward step.

Yo can vary this moti innitely by

doing all kinds o interesting things

within that shape created by the rst

two steps (Figre 5).

sAmple 10This is similar to

Sample 9, except the

spiral comes in the second step. Yo

can make this ollow a line. Echo theotline to get back to the beginning o

the line i yo want to do another row

(Figre 6).

sAmple 11Crved lines are easier to repeat

gracelly than straight lines.

sAmple 12Make the ends o the lines pointy, then

start crving them enogh to “bonce

o” the last line. Work in sections

going p and down.

sAmple 13Combine a spiral with straight lines to

make fowers or sns.

3

1

2

Figure 5

3

1

2

Figure 6

What I do could be called“organized meandering.” I don’t

do any marking or planning ahead

o time.




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sAmple 14

The spiky lines in Sample 12 canbecome a eather. Draw a crvy

horizontal gideline rom let to right,

with a chalk marker. Start this eather

at the center let edge, making spiky

crves rnning along the line. Make

them bigger as yo move towards

the right. This creates the top o the

eather. When yo are at the right

edge, stitch right along the drawn line,

then orm the bottom o the eather by

making spiky crves along the bottomhal. Ater a while yo won’t need the

gideline. Yo can also se the edge

o a shape as a gideline and move p

and down it, bilding p the design to

ll space.

sAmple 15Make more fowers. Form a center

spiral, and make the spiky lines go

back and orth arond the spiral.

sAmple 16Combine crved long lines and leay

shapes to make a design that looks

like wood.

Practice and see what new motis yo

can come p with. Next, we’ll coverree‑motion qilting or borders,

playing with variegated thread,

and combining motis in a more

complicated ashion.

No one except you knows what you

meant to do. This is not billiards

where you have to say what you plan

to do beore you try to do it.

I you are striving or a moti and

it morphs into another shape, go

with it. I you get bored illing

space with one moti, then switch to

another. The inal eect is all that

matters. Sometimes I try to make a

eather and end up with a lower.

That’s ine with me.




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When qilters talk abot bilding

their stashes, they are oten reerring

to abric. Bt art qilters have stashes

o thread, too. When I started art

qilting, the nmber o spools o

thread I boght grew exponentially.Lckily, they are small, airly cheap,

and easy to store.

It seems overly simplistic to say it,

bt thread adds color to yor art qilt

(nless, o corse, yo are sing the

exact same thread color as yor base

abric). For “A New Box,” I sed

white abric as the backgrond to

demonstrate jst how mch color yo

can add to a piece with thread alone.

Generally, the heavier the weight o yor thread, the more color yo add.

Heavier threads have lower nmbers,

so a 100‑weight silk thread will add

almost no color at all, and a 12‑weight

cotton thread will add a lot.

When stitched heavily,

thread can completely cover the

backgrond abric, changing it

entirely. When stitched lightly on

a backgrond o a dierent color,

thread adds fecks o color that canchange the viewer’s perception o the

backgrond abric. This phenomenon

was exploited by the pointillists, who

painted sing tiny dots o color. In

their work, a eld o small red and

icame to art qilting rom a traditional qilting backgrond, and in traditionalqilting, most color decisions revolve arond abric. Thread is almost an aterthoght;

yo sally don’t even consider it ntil the qilt top is complete. And in many cases,

the qilting is done to add textre rather than color to the qilt.

thread sketching 101, lesson 1:

Fo cus o n Originally published inQuilting Arts M AgAz ine,February/March 2010

by susan brubaker knapp

“A New Box” • 141 ⁄ 4" × 73 ⁄ 4"

White abric and

cotton thread were

the only materials used

to create the surace

o this small piece.




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily yellow dots o paint wold mix to

give the impression o orange. The

same is tre o an art qilt composed

o yellow backgrond abric stitched

with red thread.

Yo can se thread sketching tochange the appearance o yor base

abric’s color, or to make it stronger

or more sbtle. For “Postcard From

Glacier National Park: Avalanche

Lake,” I started with only ve abrics,

then added many dierent thread

colors to achieve the sbtle variations

in shading.

The montain range, or example,

eatres a bright medim‑ble threador the lowest montains, a ble‑gray

or the middle montains, and a

very light ble and white or the

tallest peaks. These thread colors

demonstrate the basic artistic principle

that objects ar away appear lighter

than those in the oregrond.

In the water, brown and green

threads o dierent shades create

the refections o the dark pines, the

green grass, and the oliage. Lines o

horizontal ble stitching tone down

these thread colors to make the water

appear more nied and to create the

sensation o peacel ripples on the

srace o the water.

One great way to add shades o color

and make realistic sbjects appear

more lielike is to se variegated

thread; I se it reqently in my

work. Bt yo have to choose and se

variegated threads carelly, being sre

to consider how mch control yo

want over the color shits.

color exercisesHere are a ew ideas or exploring

color. To get started, be sre to read

Setting up Yor Workspace and A

Whn i u h m hd khng,i m ng o hnqu n whhhd -moon hd on hu o n qul. thd khng no qulng, whh h h pmypupo o holdng h ly o h qul ndwh ogh whl ddng xu.thd khng hppn bo hqulng, bu h b b o hqul op h bn onud.

th dn bwn hd khng nd hd pnng n b ompdo h dn bwn h gnldpln o khng nd pnng.Whn khng, h pmlyonnd wh pung h nlhp nd ln o h ubj. i lgh, quk, nd b bon. Pnng h nd mo nund, pung ubl o olo, lgh, nd om. Mo who do hd pnng ng

muh h hdwok h ouldb ondd -moon mhnmbody.

thd khng un, nd n wy o dd olo, ln, xu,dmnon, pn, nd momn oyou qul. in h x-p onhd khng, i wll:

•Du h o h omnondp o hd khng.

•show you xmpl om my wok h llu h lmn o hdkhng.

•Pod hnl nomon onondon lk you wokp,ndl nd hd, blz, nduul ool.

•G you om x o mpoyou hd khng.

com long wh m nd ln omhng nw!

WHAT IS THread sketching?

a Quick noTe ABOuT stabilizers sblzng you wok llympon whn you hd kh. ido ll my hd khng on bpnnd o ly o non-ubl,nonwon nng uh Pllon® 910 o Hy Wgh shpng ad( podu i puh Hnok Fb). i you wokng on pln p o bkgound b, i

ommnd bkng wh po ubl wb uh L sm-a-sm 2®, nd hn pnnng o hnng. som popl lo u hoop o blz h p. Wh o mo nomon on blz n hnx nllmn o h olumn.




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SETTING uP YOuR

workspace •Mk u you mhn ll whyou wok . Wokng on lg f u wll mpo h quly o you hng mmubly.

•i you n’ od uom wng bn, ond buldng you ownom nxpn plywood.

•i you do pmly mll wok, youmy b bl o g wy wh n ylxnon bl h ound you mhn.

•Fo hd khng, you nd o h wng mhn pbl o doppng d dog (ho ll h und h p oo h pull h blong you h). Whn you dop hd dog, you onol h momn o h b und h ndl, no hmhn.

•i you u n old mhn h n’ dop d dog, y dung you h lngh o 0, o ong you d dog wh p o hywgh pp, uh bun d, pddown on op.

•You’ll lo nd pl p oo o you mhn; mo h dgnd o -moon hng h ound o ol b nd png lodd o mo up nd down wh h

ndl. som popl u l yl-moon qulng oo. Oh p ml dnng oo.

•a gh h ho pl (wh mll hol) wll mpo h quly o you -moon hng.

•Good lghng mu.

Above (detail below): “Postcard From Glacier National Park: Avalanche Lake” • 91 ⁄ 2" × 63 ⁄ 4"

Only fve abrics were used in this piece:

one each or the sky, the water, the hill with

trees, the mountains, and the bank o the lake

(abrics shown on opposite page). All the

color variations were created using the threads

shown above, plus black and white.




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Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily Qick Note Abot Stabilizers; then

start yor thread sketching adventre.

•Interpret a subject that is all about

color using only thread on white

abric, as I did in “A New Box.”

Consider stitching balls o yarnor spools o thread. You may fnd

it helpul to take a photo o your

subject, blow it up to the size you

want, and then trace the outlines

onto white abric, using a light box

or brightly lit window. I you want

to practice using my crayon image,

you can download the design (see the

More Online box at the end o this

article).

•Experiment with changing the base

color o your abric while using

dierent colors and/or weights o

thread, as I did in “Postcard.”

•Create a piece o tartan (plaid) by

starting with a single base color o abric and changing it with simple

horizontal and vertical lines o

stitching in dierent colors.

•Create a piece using only one thread

color and its tints (adding white),

shades (adding black), and tones

(adding gray).

•Stitch a color wheel using thread

alone.

Above: Detail rom “Indian Corn”

Variegated purple thread adds an additional

color to the corn while defning the kernels.

Right: Detail rom “Round Red Barn”

Shades o brown, gray, and black thread,

stitched on a mottled gray abric, create a

realistic looking stone oundation.

Here are several visual examples o how

thread can be used to add color.

Right: Detail rom “Magic Beans”

Yellow thread is used to accentuate the

lightning bolt designs stitched into the green

background.

exAmples




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i love to se variegated

embroidery thread. I

think it makes a mch

nicer line on the qilt,

and the change in color

breaks p the line—yor

eye is more occpied

with the color and doesn’t

see as many faws. Have

a look at a sample o

the same moti done

with solid color thread,

and with variegated.

(Sample 1)

i t ’ s (st)

Polite to stvari egated threads or ree-motion embroid ery

Originally published inQuilting Arts M AgAz ine,

Winter 2003

Variegated thread comes in

many types o bers: rayon,

polyester, metallic, and

cotton. The rayon threads

sally have a consistent

“variegation” or color

change. In other words,

the length o each color on

the thread is consistent.

My nderstanding is that

polyester thread is not as

consistent. I yo have a

thread that is consistent,

there are “games” yo can

play as yo qilt.

“Citrus Moon”by r obbi Joy eklow




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First, try isolating a color with

a moti. (Sample 2) Start ptting

down a moti, and when yo see

the thread color change, start a

new moti right away i yo can.

Eventally, yo’ll have lled a space

with leaves or whatever, with each

one stitched in one color. Don’t

worry that it takes a while to get

it going. No one will notice yo

didn’t get them all; they’ll notice the

cool mosaic eect o the ones that

worked.

Another game to play is what I call

“msical thread chairs.” (Sample 3)

I pick two motis — let’s say sqare

spirals and rond spirals. When the

thread is one color, I qilt “in the

rond” and when the next color

comes p, I switch to the sqare

moti. I sally have to grop two

colors together in one moti. When

the second color comes p, it’s time to

work my way ot o the center o the

spiral. Again, don’t worry i yo can’t

separate the colors in the beginning.

Try a twin or even a triple needle to

ree‑motion qilt. I yor machine

doesn’t have two spool pins, se a

thread stand or the second spool.

Thread the machine ptting one

thread on each side o the tension

disk. (I yo have tension problems,

try threading them together on one

side o the disk). Yo may have to

increase the bobbin tension i yo

are sing two dierent thicknesses

o thread and the bobbin thread

comes p. Newer machines have a

twin needle limitation that keeps the

needles rom swinging too ar to the

let or right; activate that i yo are

sing twin needles with any stitch that

is not the straight stitch.

Remember that when yo are moving

the qilt, yor motions to the let

and right will create a skinny linewith both threads going along that

line, while orward and backward

movement creates two separate lines.

Think o this as similar to calligraphy,

where the thickness o the line is

changed by the directional movement

o the needle. use two dierent colors,

two dierent types o thread, perhaps

a rayon and a metallic, or whatever

seems entertaining. (Sample 4) One

downside to sing a twin needle is

that yo will have a zigzag line on

the back o the qilt. Decide i that

bothers yo or not.

Yo can ree‑motion qilt sing other

settings on yor machine besides

Sample 2 Sample 3 Sample 4

Sample 1. Let shows solid thread,

right shows variegated thread.




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the straight stitch. Set the machine

p or zigzag, drop the eed dogs as

yo normally do, and move the qilt

towards and away rom yo; moving

the qilt sideways doesn’t prodce

very good reslts. The beaty is in

having the machine move the needlelet and right while yo vary the

orward and backward motion. Yo

can make an eort to line the patterns

p next to each other, or jst go or

whatever eels good. One stitch I love

to se is the “elastic” or “stretch”

stitch. It’s a three‑step zigzag — three

stitches towards the lower let, and

then it zags. (Sample 5) Yo can also

try this with a twin needle. (Sample 6)

filling in borders

When qilting a border, I start in the

lower right corner, with the blk o

the qilt on the table instead o in my

lap, and sew along the border as i I

were driving along a narrow road.

Sometimes I like to have a wavy moti

move along the borders o the qilt.

To get some reglarity, I will mark a

center wavy line arond the border,

and “bonce” motis along that line.

That line becomes a divider between

motis. I can do “garlics” all oriented

pward and to the let, on the inside

o the line, all the way arond the

qilt. Then I go arond doing garlics

pointing p and to the right. The

nished border resembles a eathered

cable. (Sample 7) Yo can also change

the moti. For example, make fowersthat t in the space to the let o

the line and garlics to the right, or

even straight lines rnning rom the

wavy line to the edge o the qilt.

Sometimes I will se one thread color

to the let o the wavy line and another

on the right. (Sample 8)

Sample 5

Sample 6

Sample 7

Sample 8



Free-motion macHine Quilting 81 tiPS and motiFSQuilting Daily Yo can also mark circles along the

border, ll them in with fowers or

some other rond moti and go back

and se a rectilinear moti to ll in the

space between. (Sample 9)

combining pAtterns

I yo have a large area to ll, one

way to make it more interesting is to

combine two or more patterns. I will

start ot with a crvilinear pattern,

sch as garlics, and move it along in

one direction, imagining a line drawn

on the backgrond. Then I’ll go back

and ll in arond it with a rectilinear

pattern; when I get bored with that,

I’ll switch to a third pattern, or even a

orth. (Sample 10)

The more patterns yo se, the more

interesting the qilt will be to the

viewer. The viewer doesn’t know what

patterns yo were intending to se,

so eel ree to switch arond and try

new things as mch as yo want. Keep

yor eye ot or patterns that yo can

translate to ree‑motion qilting.

Sample 9 Sample 10

N e e d f r e s h

i N s p i r a t i o N ?

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