Quilting and Binding....the Flowering Snowball

Hello....hello....are you still out there?!

We are getting close to the end....I promise!

Once your top is all together and the quilt has been basted...you are ready to quilt!  Yay!  

As many of you know, I LOVE hand quilting!

As a new quilter, I hand quilted all of my quilts...the traditional way.  As a matter of fact, I don't think it even occurred to me that a quilt could be quilted by machine.  

But in recent years, I have converted to quilting by hand with perle cotton using a big stitch.  In my childhood, this would have been called a pick stitch.  

    

I must have been destined to be a quilter because I love the repetitive nature of quilting.  Holding the layers, coaxing the needle through and back out to create the perfect stitch.  

Obviously, not everyone is able to invest the time it takes to hand quilt so free motion quilting or straight line quilting may be the option for you.  But even if you choose to machine quilt, you can still add some hand quilting...it is a lovely option.

    

I am almost finished quilting my Flowering Snowball quilt...

 

For hand quilting with perle cotton, I like to use size 8 perle cotton and I LOVE Valdani thread.  Perle cotton is similar to embroidery floss except the thread is twisted, so you can't separate the threads.  Size 8 is bold enough to be seen and yet not too heavy; making it difficult to pull through the layers. If you can't find size 8 or would like a thread that is not as heavy, look for size 12.

As far as needles, I like Fons and Porter Utility needles.  They are designed for size 8 perle cotton and the pack comes with a rubber disc that can be used to pull the needle through if it gets stuck.

I did a tutorial on the method I use for hand quilting and you can find it here....

I do use a hoop, and I use a Thimble Nimble {different from the thimble in my tutorial}

     

I am a sucker for simple designs in my quilting.  Even if I choose to machine quilt, more often than not I will use straight line stitching or just a series of big loops.  

  

I have never sent a quilt out to be quilted, so I can't really help much on that front.

After the quilting is all finished...the only step left is to bind!

    

 I have a tutorial for binding here....

this method ALWAYS works for me.  And I do prefer to hand stitch my binding on the back.

 

So many fabrics are perfect for binding.  I love spots, stripes, gingham, but don't forget a scrappy binding.  This Feather Bed Quilt is one of my favorite quilts and the scrappy binding just makes me happy!

 

Okay...I will let you get back to your Flowering Snowball!

I can't wait to see them!

xo mary 

 *** as luck would have it.....Lucy at Charm About You just did a post on hand quilting.....you can find her post here.  What a talented girl!***