Basting

Hands up if you love basting quilts. That's definitely not my favourite job. I've searched high and low for a method that saves my back and my knees and doesn't involve weird yoga like positions on the floor that cripples me for a couple of weeks and requires Chiropractic care.

A few years ago Mr Q built me this basting frame which I might add, can also double as a quilting frame if I so desire. At the time I thought it was brillaint but it had a major disadvantage. I won't go into great detail but the setting up of it and the rolling, unrolling needing two people  got to me.

I paid for the last big quilt to get basted but here the longarmers charge the same price as doing an all over quilting pattern and thats out of my range.

I have been wanting to try Sharon Schamber's method and so I spent an afternoon this Easter doing just that.

Here are the U Tube links so you can watch the videos.

Hand basting part one

Hand basting part 2

 I had the slats of wood off the basting frame so it cost me nothing. It involves starching the backing, rolling that and the top on slats and as they get unrolled with the batting inbetween, you thread baste using a tailors tack stitch. I used the dining table and went surprisingly quickly. This method can be used if you intend to machine quilt or hand quilt.

I've used a new batting for this quilt. It's Quilters Dream Orient. It's a mix of cotton, silk and tencel which is a plant material.

My favourite batting is Quilters Dream Request, the thinnest 100% cotton batting. I was keen to compare the two. The Orient is super smooth and a thicker batt than the Request cotton but very soft and drapeable. I'd think it would be beautiful for machine quilting and big stitch hand quilting but not for fine traditional stitching.

The basting stitches are removed as you quilt which is a plus. I'm not sure how I'll go with the hand quilting though as it seems to me that the big stitches on the front may be finger catchers. I will let you know.

I had to think hard over whether I would hand quilt or machine quilt since I have so much on the go, it looked like machine quilting would win. That is until I pulled out these perle cottons. I'm a sucker for these varigated threads and big stitching, sigh.

In case you didn't know, the quilt being basted is the pattern from the Quilt Romance book by Kaffe Fassett and is shown on the cover.

We had to go to the mall today, which by the way I hate doing. I feel like malls suck the life blood out of me. Good thing is the threads I got and  the glasses Mr Q organised. The best part is having coffee and a macaroon at the Lindt chocolate Cafe and I had to get these blocks of chocolate. Look Amy! Look Cathy!

The Caramel is my new favourite and the sea salt has finally hit the shores of Australia.