Both rooms at Laurena’s Longarm were buzzing on Sunday, July 10 for our #QuiltsforPulse afternoon. Busy quilters had five quilt tops ready for the longarm machine, and a sixth was on the frame by the end of the afternoon. Meanwhile, cutting, sewing and pressing stations buzzed with finished blocks. The group enjoyed getting to know each other, but an undercurrent of thoughtful contemplation ran solemnly through the afternoon.
SaveJane Burnett kindly donated a wonderful selection of rainbow color fabrics which are being used in the tops, backs and bindings.
Kendra contemplates options for a topBoth the blue room and the main studio buzzed.Sue advises between stints on the quilting frame.One of the Just Sew tops on the longarm frame
We’re on track for completing 10 quilts for the Orlando Modern Quilt Guild’s initiative.
The sock in the gut last Sunday was fierce… not another mass murder hate crime. How can we help the healing?
The Orlando Modern Quilt Guild offers one way that quilters can reach out to those impacted by the tragedy at the Pulse Night Club on June 12, 2016. The call is out for bright, happy heart quilts using rainbow colors. Want to join us? We’d like to help them out with finished quilts.
The OMQG asks that the quilts be between 48 x 60 and a twin size. Laurena is purchasing white on white fabric to back 10 quilts. She will use the fabric with the blocks on the front to capture that modern esthetic.
Would you like to help us in this effort?
On Sunday July 10 from 1 to 5pm, we’ll meet to begin assembling quilts (or who knows? Maybe there will already be tops to quilt!) here at our studio in Burlington, MA. If you’d like to attend or contribute blocks, just RSVP here
Need ideas for heart blocks? Here are some suggested by the Modern Quilt Guild
Allison of Cluck, Cluck, Sew has a heart quilt block you could useFoundation pieced hearts from Sew Mama Sew’s Amy Gunsun
When there is pain, a quilt made with comforting thoughts is one way we can help.
Summer brings long days – the perfect opportunity to get more done!
Summer brings hot evenings – the perfect opportunity to escape into air conditioning!
This July, reserve your Mini Studio Block on Wednesday and Thursdays evenings.
Tangle of Lights pattern from Leah Day’s Free Motion Quilting Project
That’s right! Three hours of air conditioned longarm quilting on Wednesday and Thursday nights throughout July. Begin your Mini Studio Block between 4 and 6 pm.
What are those weeknight Mini Studio Blocks?
July 6 and 7
July 13 and 14
July 20 and 21
July 27 and 28
Call Laurena’s Longarm Quilting at (781) 229- 0734 or email at info at burlingtonlongarm dot com to reserve your block now.
Is there something in the air? Is it spring madness? Lately, we’ve seen some tiny quilt backs. I’m talking about quilt backs a mere 2″ bigger than the front. That’s tight! Ideally, your quilt back should be 6″ – 10″ longer and wider than your top. There may be a pieced quilt back in your future!
Add a contrasting fabric down the middle of your quilt back. Linda rented one of the hand guided machines this week and was gracious enough to let us photograph her backs. In the first quilt back, she’s added a coordinating print to two strips of solid.
In her second quilt back, she stitched strips of black on black prints and bordered them in red. What a great way to use up the leftovers!
Apply the Rule of Thirds to your quilt back. The Rule of Thirds is used by artists and cinematographers to create a pleasing composition. The camera on your phone may have the horizontal and vertical grid which divides your frame into a “nine patch” or “tic tack tow.” Creating movement around the center quadrant is pleasing to your eye. How do you do this yourself? Take the dimensions of your quilt back and divide them by 3. Add a strip of fabric a third of the way across your back or create your own nine patch of made from stash fabric.
Improvise your quilt back with leftover blocks
The improv quilt back from Modern Quilt Relish
There’s a lovely tutorial on how they approach piecing a quilt back on Modern Quilt Relish. It makes a very interesting back, albeit more time consuming. A design wall helps to lay out options. Need a big design wall? Come to Sew Social, on first and third Thursdays. We’ve got loads of room to spread out and a wall covered in batting, ready for your quilt back improvisation.
As we head into summer, the spring madness of small quilt backs will probably calm down. However, what goes around, comes around! Be sure to keep in mind that a quilt back should be at least 6″ – 10″ longer and wider than your quilt top.
Our “Learn to Use a Longarm” classes are filling up quickly in 2016. Laurena always says that real quilting begins when you return, ready to use the longarm yourself for the first time after the class.
We’re there to support you on your longarm journey, helping you load the layers and preparing for the first stitch. When the sides are clamped and you’ve tied down your threads, it’s all yours!
Here are 5 Tips for Beginning Longarm Quilters
Be nice to yourself! Feeling unsure is normal; after all, you’re trying something new. Probably you’ve gone to shows, liked photos on social media and read books, so you’ve seen fabulous examples of longarm quilting. You probably don’t see everyone’s first longarm quilting experience. Even if you’ve been machine quilting, remember that you are learning.
Breathe. Are your shoulders hunched, or your jaw tight? Longarm quilting can be really pleasurable. Our hand guided machines all have adjustable table heights for a physically comfortable experience. A couple of long exhales before starting to quilt lets you release any anxiety built up.
Choose a simple quilt top. Practice makes improvement. If the only quilt top you own has 5,000 pieces and you want to use rulers, and fill it with feathers, save it for another day. Make a simpler top, use muslin or a choose a charity quilt top for your beginning longarm quilting.
Choose a simple quilting pattern. Organic, flowing shapes that suggest a motif are great for many quilts. You can practice smooth, consistent movement across the quilt which results in lovely, even stitching.
Give your quilting the horseback view. Did you ever hear the adage that “if you can’t see it from the back of a galloping horse, no one else will?” It’s true!
Rome wasn’t built in a day, so enjoy your time with the longarm quilting machine. It’s about the quilting experience as much as it is the quilt.
Ok, quilters: Do you have any other suggestions or advice for newbie longarm quilters?
Do you have a love/hate relationship with social media? On one hand, there’s so many cool things to discover. On the other, there’s quilting to be done. We hang out on Facebook, like and occasionally post our own photos on Instagram. Now we’ve figured out a way for Pinterest to work for us!
Click on over to our Pinterest page and you’ll find many of the patterns for the Statler Stitcher organized into quilting style. While we don’t have all of them up, we hope you can begin imagining some of the possibilities for your quilt!
Next step: Creating a board of the hand guided patterns available for renters. Stay tuned!
Now the question: will we be able to resist not clicking and collecting the fabulous images, ideas and patterns for quilters on Pinterest? Do you have a places we shouldn’t miss?
Sew, share, get suggestions at a productive evening with Sue Pedersen. With more than 25 years of sewing experience, she says she’s made every sewing mistake possible!
Enjoy your stitching, knowing you can turn to Sue to resolve sewing “situations.” She’s happy to suggest alternatives to these “situations” that don’t require a seam ripper!
At only $10 per evening, these three hour sessions are a great way to complete tops and get to know new people.
Sign up for an upcoming session by clicking here. If you have any questions, email Sue at smp44 at comcast dot net.
In August, 2015, LLQ switched from an hourly longarm machine rental rate to the studio block rental approach. With more quilters interested in rental longarm quilting machines, splitting the day into blocks creates more opportunities to turn those tops into quilts.
But not everyone needs a whole four hours in the half day block. What to do? Offer a three hour block of studio time in our mix.
One of our lovely customers recently requested that we use Quilter’s Dream Cotton Supreme in her king size quilt… she won’t be cold this winter. With that roll now added to our batting wall, it means we currently have all four Quilter’s Dream Cotton Batting in stock.
The Supreme is a 100% cotton batting in a 93″ width and costs US$0.50 per inch ($18/yard). We sell all of our batting by the inch and cut them from the roll just for your quilt.
If you’re not sure which batting to choose and want a toasty, heavy quilt this winter, ask to feel the new Quilter’s Dream Supreme!
Professional Longarm Quilting Services in the Greater Boston Area
There’s no better time than the present to start that quilting project you’ve always talked about. At Burlington Electric Quilters, we’re here to help you learn new skills and complete amazing quilts in no time through our various professional longarm quilting services. The atmosphere at our studio is warm, fun, and welcoming to quilters of all backgrounds. Whether you’ve been sewing for decades or are just learning the basics, our professional longarm quilting services include aid and resources for everyone.
Come participate in a class or rent time on one of our computer- or hand-guided Gammill longarm machines at our cozy quilting studio in Burlington this season.
