What’s Holding YOU Back From Quilting?

137 responses to “What’s Holding YOU Back From Quilting?”

1. What is holding me back is physical issues….I have back, neck, hand issues so have to limit my time on my machines.
   I REALLY wish someone would come up with yoga for quilters, or basic stretches for quilters!!!!
   Something I can follow along before starting my day, then maybe breaks, then a cool down at the end of the day!!!
   I have come up with some exercises, but it’s easy to forget.
   I am what I call an enthusiastic beginner, I just got my sit down quilter, and am just exploring the world of the neat designs and different colored threads.
   I am in awe of the things others say…..

   1. Yes, limiting your time quilting is a great idea. You can also pace yourself. Set you phone to remind yourself to stretch every 15 minutes, or even to go get a glass of water. I would think exercizes good for carpel tunnel would also be good for quilters. I know my neck and shoulders hurt from bad posture, so I try to take a break and stretch my arms in back of me and sit up straight when I sit back down

      1. Thank you for such good advise.

   2. Leah Day might have some, and she also used to sell a harness-type thing to help you keep correct posture while quilting. It’s called the Quilting Back Support (I searched “posture” on her site–leahday.com.

   3. A basic yoga sun salutation will loosen you up, and I am learning Tai Chi. Supportive fingerless gloves help with hand issues giving support to the joints. Limiting your continuous time is a good idea, get up and stretch often. Be sure your sewing machine table is the right height for you, as well as your chair.

2. Right now, my biggest roadblocks are the basting process due to the sheer size of a couple of the quilts I need to quilt. 96×96 is really daunting for me. I spray baste over a table, which works great for quilts that are only as wide as my table is long, but getting bigger quilts basted without puckers on the backing is difficult.

   My second problem is wanting to quilt curved crosshatch in large spaces. I have one quilt that I pieced 7 years ago but have been waiting for my quilting skills to catch up with my quilting plan. (Oh, and also the basting thing…;-))

   1. Jacque Gehring shows how to spray baste on your design wall. And there are also ways to layer and baste quilts with boards and pool noodles.

      1. I’m someone faced with a similar challenge… I have a 108″ x 108″ quilt that I’m trying to figure out how to baste, but I though spray baste was more for smaller projects, like baby quilts?.

   2. You Tube has a great video called “How to Sandwich a Large Quilt on a Small Table” I use this technique to pin baste all sizes of quilts and it’s wonderful. No more crawling around the floor. I use my folding cutting table so the height eliminates bending and back pain.

3. BASTING. Then there always is the fear of ruining, particularly a quilt with applique.

   1. I use spray basting, very lightly . I do it on a spare bed with the windows open. Because I do it lightly hardly any gets on the furniture. What does I wipe off with a wet cloth.!
      On the applique quilts I do raw edge. It doesn’t show much in the way of mistakes. Then I echo around the shapes. LOoks terrific when I wash it.

4. I bought a long arm frame to which I can put my home machine on a trolley . Not so expensive compared to a real long arm. It has proven to be a VERY large learning curve for me. One…. To move the machine instead of the quilt as I have been doing in the past . I’m still VERY CHOPPY in my stitching. And two ….Then I bought Pantograph templates to use. UGh ! Trying how to line up the template stylus and the machine needle has had me pulling my hair out. I’ve managed to do several Dog Quits , which they Love , love, love by the way ! Now I am using some quilt tops that are going to be and stay my quilts , but Phew ! what a long process to learn how to do this well.

   1. I use my trolley system to just baste my large bed she quilts. Then I mark the quilt with chalk pencils and slowly stitch with my machine set up on table so the whole table supports the quilt.

   2. What model of long arm frame did you buy? Was it made by the Grace Frame Company or another company

5. I’ve always wanted to learn to quilt, but I am afraid of after buying all the fabric and other items I need, that I will mess the quilt up.

   1. Jennifer, just start! Begin with something small. A doll quilt or a baby quilt will let you get started. A lot of charity groups would love to get that starter quilt and they won’t care that it isn’t perfect. Allow yourself to learn, be forgiving. For all our comments about what holds us back, all these quilters will tell you that they love the process.

      1. Thanks so much.

      2. Take a beginning quilting class at a local quilt shop! It is SO helpful, and you can ask questions. If there are no local quilt shops nearby, the next best thing would be to take one online.

      3. Thank you so much Ellen. We don’t have a local quilt shop, I just signed up for a online class on Annie’s. Cant wait to get started.

6. I’m struggling to get a uniform stitch length. If I move the sandwich too slowly it has jagged lines, but I have not learned how much I need to speed up to avoid long stitches swooping between motifs.

   I’m constantly doodling, but when I try to make smooth doodles I sometimes get line overlap. If I can’t doodle it I know I can’t quilt it. Lately I am trying to be more patient and do everything more slowly.

   1. I found that listening to my machine and finding a rhythm helped me with that. Find a medium speed and slow down on curves…just like driving. The more you practice the better you will be at finding your groove

7. I would like to learn a few easy all-over designs and then learn how to mark the quilt. I look at that huge (or small) quilt top and just have no idea where to start or what to do!

   1. OH, My Start in the middle. I think it was on Lori Kennedy’s blog that I read about doing 1/4 of the quilt at a time, and each time you start a new quarter, you start in the middle

      1. Good tip

8. 1 – Basting a 108″x108″ quilt! My Hinterberg frame, which I normally use to baste my quilts, isn’t wide enough.
   2 – TENSION!!! It seems like I get the tension adjusted just right and a while later notice the tension is off. Hopefully the Bernina tech fixed it, but either way, getting the tension set so the stitches are balanced front and back has always been a problem I’ve had. I can’t remember up or down…
   3 – FEAR of failure. Ruining a quilt.

   1. Lol….I just today day down at my quilter, tension messed up! No one touched it from last time I used it! Why?
      Tried adjusting it, got frustrated, decided to just sew, thread kept breakimg(this on another machine!)
      I guess I needed a break from seeing totally today😁

9. All these ladies are WAAAAY ahead of me. I have fabric galore (who doesn’t?) I have a 2 bedroom condo with quilts in both rooms and have made quilts for several grandchildren. The last one I made, I was not proud of because I procrastinated and had to rush. I keep saying I’ll make charity quilts, but never get around to it. Baby quilts are so small they go quickly, but I probably don’t have the pastel colors I’d like to use. Hey, a good excuse to go shopping!

10. My biggest roadblock is what to quilt! I keep staring at the quilts willing them to tell me what to do and they just keep staring back. I’m completely stuck.

11. Time!! I don’t have much time to quilt.
    Space to lay out backing, batting,and top to pin them together.

    1. My concern very similar. I have 2 quilt tops ready for Christmas gifts 2019 & got stuck.
       Trying spray starch the top till stiff. ( how much should I spray it? What if I do it wrong and mess up the work Ive done on the top.
       And couldnt figure out how to piece backing and the where/ how lay it out to pon baste together.can I use a flannel sheet for the back and what problems should I watch out for

12. Fear, anxiety over not knowing how to applique or how to cut pieces so when you see the corners meet up, need I go on?

13. As I pick out a messed up FMQ block, done with my long arm, I see I don’t retrace my stitching well, I make pitiful pebbles, and I end up with a million cut threads to bury and areas to repair/redo after removing it from the frame. I’m so grateful my husband bought me the software because I’m realizing FMQ is not my thing… but I try because somewhere in me is a “wanna be”!

14. I get stuck on which quilting design to use, and the lack of time to practice to really learn how to free motion quilt. Especially because most of my quilting is done at retreats or at a friend’s house, so there really isn’t room for machine quilting. And it’s just easier to make another quilt top. 🙂

15. I am so excited, I just bought a mini log cabin coaster pattern from Annie’s crafts and have pulled out my fabrics to start cutting. I can’t wait to start sewing on my coasters. Thank you so much for your encouragement. I look forward to sharing photos with you soon.