Hand Quilting 101

Hand Quilting 101

Handquilting Timepiece

I've gotten a lot of questions from beginners trying to figure out how to hand quilt on their own,
without learning from a class or another quilter.

Like many of you, I had never really seen a hand quilted quilt "in the cloth"
until I was a young adult.

Quilts were not a part of my childhood...
except for comforters having a cover tied with yarn to hold it on.

Although it's difficult to address this subject in its entirety,
here are some very basic guidelines.

Quilting stitches resemble a running stitch penetrating all three layers :
the top, the batting and the backing.

A single strand of 100% cotton quilting thread is used.
Quilting thread is generally glazed to make it glide through all the layers.
It is stronger than regular sewing thread.

Quilting can be as simple as "quilting in the ditch" or perhaps 1/4" away from the seams.

Complicated quilting designs are generally drawn on the quilt top before stitching.
They can transferred to the top before beginning any of the quilting
or they can be drawn as you come to the area to be quilted..."mark as you go".

A variety of marking tools can be used : colored pencils, chalk, etc.
Anything used on your quilt top should be tested on a scrap of fabric
to make sure the marks can be removed. They should wash out or be erasable.

No knots should appear on the outside of the quilt layers. Make a "neat" knot at the end of your quilting thread.
The easiest way to do this is to form the end of the thread into a circle and wrap the tail of the thread around the circle 2 times.
Pull to tighten. The knot should be within 1/4" to 1/2" of the end of the thread.
Trim the end if necessary.

Quilting needles are very short. Use quilting "betweens", size 9, 10 or 12.
The higher the number, the shorter the needle.

To begin quilting, insert the needle into the top about 1/2" away from where you want to start.
Pass the needle through the batting layer only until the tip has travelled to the starting point.
Pull the needle and thread until the knot is at the surface of the quilt top,
then tug until the knot pops underneath the top layer.
The knot should be hidden within the batting layer
and not visible on either the top or bottom of the quilt.

The quilting stitch is most efficient when you use a rocking motion
to execute several stitches on the needle before pulling the thread through.
You may need to consult a book on hand quilting for this technique.

To end a line of quilting, it's necessary again to bury the knot within the batting layer.
Hold the thread a couple of inches above the quilt top. Wrap the thread 2 times around the needle (still threaded).
Pull the needle and tighten the knot. Ideally, the knot should be about 1/4" from the quilt top.
Hold the thread out of the way in the opposite direction from the way you were quilting.
This allows you to see the hole made by your last stitch.
Insert the needle back into the hole made by the last stitch
and travel in the batting layer about 1/2" away.

Come up through the top and pull until the knot is laying against the top layer.
Tug and pop the knot into the batting layer. No knot is visible on either side of the quilt sandwich.
Cut the thread close to the top, taking care not to snip into the fabric of the quilt.

One of the common complaints from beginning quilters is that
the quilt stitches only catch a thread on the back, or don't come through the back at all.

Here are three suggestions you may want to try in order to make the stitches more even on front and back :

1. You may have to loosen the tension of the quilt sandwich in the hoop.
The hoop should be between 14" and 18" in diameter.
(Don't use an embroidery hoop for quilting.) There should be some slack
so that the needle can be rocked back and forth with 4-5 stitches on it.

2. Insert the needle for your first stitch in a vertical position.
Return as close to vertical as possible for each subsequent stitch.

3. There should be two distinct pushing motions when doing the rocking stitch.
The first push is from the vertical position. Stop pushing when you feel the needle tip penetrate the bottom layer.
As you rotate the eye of the needle down to the quilt top, begin pushing up with the underneath hand.
You should be pushing up just behind the tip of the needle, using your finger as a fulcrum, like a teeter totter.
The second push propels the needle forward making the quilting stitch. If you're not catching the back of the fabric,
it may be falling off the needle as you're rotating the needle down. Try saying "push, push" as each stitch is made.

It is very difficult to understand the concept of quilting through all three layers unless you can actually see a quilt "in the cloth".
I strongly recommend taking advantage of any opportunity to do just that...
a quilt show, at the quilt shop, or at a guild meeting.

It's not a quilt until it's quilted! I hope this will at least get you started.