How to Quilt Plenty of Sunshine-A Background Motif

Good Morning, Quilters! Where have YOU been? I know, I know…YOU were here….I was not! I took an unscheduled break from blogging while my family was in town for Christmas. Then I took a little more time off to get my house back in order. Then a little longer while I put my tired brain back in order (no small task)! Pretty soon a lot of time went by without blogging. Isn’t it interesting how easily we can be tossed off our routines? Well, it’s time. Time to get back to routines like doodling, quilting and writing and maybe even exercising!?

Let’s get started with an easy machine quilting motif, Plenty of Sunshine! To begin this background or allover motif, stitch a circle. Don’t worry if your circle isn’t perfect! We are creating a hand-drawn look, not a ruler-perfection look.

Closely echo stitch the circle two or three times.

Stitch a jagged line all around the circles.

Add a short straight line and another circle.

Stitch around the circle two or three times and add the rays around the circles. Tuck the rays into the previous motif to keep the design cohesive.

What is the best thread for machine quilting? I have several favorite threads for machine quilting, but one of my favorites is Aurifil 28 wt cotton. 28 wt thread is a slightly heavy weight thread so it is visible. Your quilting motifs will shine when you use heavy weight threads. (Use lightweight thread when you want to create texture only.) This spool, color #3920 is variegated which adds a bit more interest to this design. What is the best bobbin thread for quilting? I think it’s best to pick one thread for the bobbin and use it all the time. Choose a thread that your machine likes and is lightweight (50, 60, 80 wt). My machine loves Aurifil 50wt cotton. I always use it in the bobbin.

I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day… What about YOU? Are YOU back to YOUR routines? Is YOUR house clean and YOUR head clear? Are you back to your quilting routine? Have YOU been doodling? Do YOU need a little sunshine?

Tomorrow: UFOs…

You will probably be very surprised by what I have been thinking about UFOs! May YOUR day be filled with quiet quilting, Lazy Lori PS…Check out my books Free Motion Machine Quilting 1-2-3 and More Free motion Machine Quilting 1-2-3 in my Etsy shop for more step-by-step tutorials and tips! There’s a fun surprise in every package!