About Machine Quilting

So it is not surprising that in the beginning, despite every good intention, machine quilters found it very difficult to meet the expectation of their customers and consequently machine quilting struggled to gain a favourable reputation.

Thankfully, things are very different today. Machine technology has advanced to a cutting edge level. Modern machine quilting systems enable the quilter to achieve amazing results and it seems there is no limit to the possibilities. The machine manufacturers in the USA have trained specialist agents here in Australia to market the machines and provide after-sale mechanical service and support.

The variety and genius of tools available to a machine quilter is abundant. There is an endless supply of decorative threads in a huge range of plain or variegated colours. Really, with a little perseverance one can achieve any desired effect.

Battings are imported from overseas and also manufactured here in Australia. Fibres such as wool, cotton, silk, polyester, bamboo and more, are blended to produce very stable battings in various weights, thickness and colour. They are needle punched, chemically bonded, or heat bonded. The manufacturing process has greatly improved and so has the quality. Today’s batting shouldn’t bunch-up or tear when washed. We can rest comfortably knowing that even with a minimal amount of quilting, today’s quilt will remain in very good condition for many, many years to come.

A number of Australians are now designing very creative pantographs and the choice ranges from simple and open to very complex and creative designs. No longer do we need to import these patterns from overseas. Patterns are produced in user-friendly format and can be delivered to a quilter within a few days of placing an order. Digitised patterns can also be purchased online and emailed within hours.

Machine Quilting Options……

The advancement of machine technology and the development of the Australian machine quilting industry over the last decade or so, has enabled the machine quilting professional to offer, at their will, a complete range of machine quilting options.

Edge to Edge Quilting (Pantograph or All-over Quilting)
Most machine quilters starting out in the business offer ‘edge to edge’ quilting as it is usually the first method learnt on a long arm or shortarm machine. Edge-to-edge quilting is exactly that, a single continuous line of quilting worked from one edge of a quilt to the opposite edge with repeated rows all over the quilt. This method of quilting is quick and usually the most inexpensive option.

Panto’ Plus
Most E2E quilting is applied to a quilt as described above however, sometimes certain aspects of a quilt-top prevent the application of a pantograph design in the usual way. When a border has been machine or hand appliquéd, edge-to-edge quilting may not be the best way to achieve a favourable result. Most often quilters and quilt-makers want to avoid quilting over the appliqué. A smarter solution might be to quilt the continuous line only inside the appliquéd borders, border-to-border, and custom quilt the appliquéd sections. This is what we call Panto’ Plus, a pantograph plus a little extra.
It is also possible, although rather tricky, to work edge-to-edge quilting around a featured block or blocks. However, this sort of work involves many more stops and starts and tying-off of threads and so may not be the most practical solution.

Custom Quilting
To devise a machine quilting plan which compliments, enhances or supplements the pieced design giving thought to the quilt’s theme, style and the piecing techniques used. I consider any approach to machine quilting other than ‘edge to edge’ quilting to be a made-to-order or customised quilting plan.

Uncomplicated Quilting
A structured and yet uncomplicated plan of machine quilting which achieves symmetry and balance in the design. Any number of machine-quilting techniques or styles can be applied, including, freehand meanderings, medallions, border designs that turn around corners, open and fancy feathers, background fills, etc. Uncomplicated plans involve a minimal amount of quilting and no-fuss application.

Freehand or Free-form Custom
Doodling on paper is the best comparison and with practise, practise and more practise, a machine quilter will build a repertoire of stitched meanderings which can be applied to either the whole quilt or sections within the quilt such as backgrounds, behind appliqué, sashings and borders. Although some planning and skill is required, this free-form method of quilting frees the quilter from the need to mark-out or use tools such as templates and rulers.

Creative Quilting
When a quilter is asked to work his or her ‘magic’ on a customer’s quilt they are being asked to use their individual imagination and creativity to add artistic value to the item. Sometimes a plan comes instantaneously and sometimes it takes longer to develop a mental picture or idea especially if the design of the quilt-top is unique and innovative. Usually there is an established quilter-client relationship where the quilter has a good understanding of the client’s expectations and the client feels confident about granting artistic licence.

Traditional hand quilting methods involve marking a design from a stencil or pattern using soft leaded pencil markers, soap or chalk. Machine quilters may use similar methods to apply a quilting pattern to retain that traditional look. However, machine quilting techniques are different and so the actual design will need to be adapted. Whilst a hand quilter can slip the needle between the layers to move from one point on the design to the next, machine quilters prefer to quilt the whole design with the minimum number of stops and starts.

Formal Quilting
Formal quilting in my opinion is more structured in style, usually created using templates to guide the machine whilst quilting curved or straight lines from point to point. This type of quilting is produce spectacular results when the completed quilt is viewed from beyond. Formal quilting may also involve quilted medallions or swags on the border which may also be enhanced with suitable meanderings and other forms of background stipple.

Heirloom Quilting
Heirloom machine quilting entails any or all of the following: formal feathers, grid-work, cross-hatching, Baptist fans, stitch-in-the-ditch (SID), echo quilting and stippling or fills which when applied results are more conventional in appearance. However, this type of machine quilting is extremely time consuming and demands a concerted effort by even the most experienced quilter.

Wholecloth Quilting
A wholecloth quilt is one whole piece of cloth layered on top of batting and backing creating three layers and then quilted. The quilting of a wholecloth quilt, by any technique, becomes the main feature of the quilt and requires considerable planning and marking, in fact, the marking of a wholecloth quilt can, in some instances, take longer that the quilting itself.
A computerised machine quilting system enables its operator to skip the marking stage and move directly to the quilting but he or she will still need to carefully plan the work beforehand, choose or draw patterns and then size those patterns to suit the customer’s specifications. Understandably, wholecloth machine quilting is a specialist machine quilting service.

Qualifying Factors….

“A quilt isn’t a quilt until it is quilted”, how true is that? And it is fair to say that the quilting is a major distinctive part of any quilt.

Rather than delay thoughts about the quilting until after a quilt top is completed, it is a good idea to consider the quilting as an integral part of the overall quilt design. We are often so excited about actually making a quilt-top that we give little thought to the quilting, the methods and techniques to be used and the possible consequences of what is involved. It is wise to consider all aspects of the quilt you are creating prior to starting the project to ensure the intention becomes the end result.

When browsing for a machine quilting service, look at the gallery of quilts on their website. This will give you some insight about the quilter’s individual style of quilting which is as important to consider as their location, the types of services on offer and pricing. Some machine quilters show a true natural talent when it comes to creative freehand quilting which may be exactly what you feel your quilt needs whilst others may tend to ‘over quilt’ rather than ‘under quilt’ and this tendency may not be the approach you are looking for. You might prefer specifically, a softer, lighter feel to your quilts and so less is more for you or the restraints of your budget might mean you need to search for the machine quilter offering edge-to-edge quilting at competitive prices.

Easy Access….

The Australian Machine Quilting Association Inc aims to give the machine quilting customer easy access to machine quilting services all over Australia. Members profiles, albums of work and/or links to individual websites can be found by clicking here.

AMQA has an overall philosophy to encourage members to aim for standards of excellence.

I hope this information will bring about a better understanding of professional machine quilting and will be to the mutual benefit of both the professional quilter and their customer.

Happy machine quilting.
Barb Cowan ©
www.thequiltconnection.com.au