I was having trouble with some thread breakage and they helped me until I was no longer having trouble with it. David (Shop Owner) even went and found a new thread holder to change the position of the thread which helped reduce friction, and while it was better, I was still having thread breakage. Rhonda suggested another means of friction reduction and her method worked! I went the rest of the afternoon with no thread breakage.
Before going onto the long arm I had to put the quilts on leaders. I have my leader centers marked... Notice anything wrong in this picture?
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| Leaders NOT centered... I still don't know what I was thinking. Actual center is that fold on the left... I was more than 3 inches off!! |
I marked my center on the quilt back, but then when I went to put the leader on, I completely ignored my mark! What was I thinking!?? Well, I wasn't about to undo all those pins to make the quilt center and the leader center match, so I grabbed my water soluble pen, and I marked a new center on my leader... It worked well, and saved ma at least 30 minutes.
So at the shop, I started with Jonathon's quilt.I used a fun colored thread on top and black on the bottom.
Then I quilted the Stars and Stripes quilt for my boss.
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| Mission Accomplished... Fully quilted, but from a distance the quilting is not visible, allowing the pattern to fully take center stage. |
Next step. Binding. Have I mentioned that I HATE binding. It is BY FAR my least favorite part of each project.
Oh Yeah, one more thing that I have to share... When taking the Stars and Stripes quilt off of the long arm, I failed to cut my bottom thread! I pulled the quilt off the frame, and I walked to the back of the store where I could toss it on the large tables and fold it... It was then that I found thread still attached to the sewing machine over 50 feet away! It wound through aisles, around an FQ table and around a sewing machine. Rhonda exclaimed, "Paul, it is never a dull place when you are in the store..." (I'll take that as a compliment...)
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| I only took this one photo, but trust me, I am at the back of the store taking this photo, and this thread runs all through the store.... |
More next week. I'll get some good photos of both quilts after they are bound and washed.
Until Next Time,
Paul
Both quilts look great Paul. I love the multi-coloured thread you used on Joshua's.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to have a go on a long arm machine.
Binding is not so bad Paul, at least it means you're nearly onto your next project!
Do you mind me asking what your LQS charges to use the Long Arm? Recently I reported (on my podcast) that my LQS only charges $6/hour and someone said theirs charged about $30/hour. I am curious about yours.
ReplyDeletehehe I used to despise doing binding, too. Not sure when that changed for me - now I love it because it means a finish and some good movie-time while I stitch the back down. Still chuckling about the thread tracing through the store. . .
ReplyDeleteGreat job! I have time booked at my LQS long-arm today. I'll try to remember to cut my thread when I'm done...LOL! :)
ReplyDelete