bricks and Blocks quilt along week 5

This week we are quilting our quilts. Because I have problems with my upper back in my shoulder area, I use a machine quilting frame, rather than quilt on a domestic machine. So I am going to show some samples and explain how the quilting is done. The first thing I would like you to do is stabilize your quilt. To do this stitch in the ditch along every other block. So start in the center and quilt on either side of that row of blocks all the way down. Then go onto the next one. Repeat all the way across. Then you can do the rows across. You really only need to do what you need to be able to keep the back from getting all puckery.

The first example of quilting that I think would look good in the "bricks" is called back and forth. With this one you start in one corner of the brick and go straight across, and then turn, and go across and repeat. Very easy and fun.

Another option you can do is called "wishbone" with this one you start in the top corner and angle slightly, then when you get almost to the opposite edge of your brick, make a loop, just a small one, and angle back to the other side. Repeat.

For both of these I like my free motion foot. When I can't decide what I want to do, I just do loop-de-loops. They are always fun or even just a meander or a stipple. Something like this is fun. I am doing little cloud shapes.

For the big squares you can do a heart in there, of course you have to start and stop a lot. You could also do an "x" in there. You could also do a large meander in there and a little bit of stitch in the ditch to get to another large square. I am only giving you ideas. This is your quilt and you need to quilt it the way you want it quilted. One of my daughters has chosen to handquilt hers. It is a queen size and there is no way she could do it with her machine. This is her quilt.

I currently have a quilt on my frame, but keep watching as in the next week, I will start quilting the crib one my daughter put together for me.