Lessons learned

Take two on my quilt is almost finished. I have shown some improvement in this second quilt. I bought a book on free-motion feathers, and couldn't quite get them, but tried something similar in meandering and it came out fine. One thing I didn't quite figure out was the tension or some other thread problem. I started out skipping stitches, so I read up on that and changed my needle and then needle size and then rethreaded my machine a million times and it eventually got...better, but not totally fixed (so I'm thinking I need a tune up).

The lilac colored thread on the top looked best on the prints not the yellow. I'm anxious to see how it washes up. Don't ask why I think that will help, but I think the thread will relax a bit. Other than that, the ivory thread on the backing looks great.

Another lesson learned, or something to watch out for: I noticed with the first quilt that the backing flannel was "stretchy" and since I bought the same one again, this 2nd one was also stretchy. In addition I messed up when I cut my backing into two pieces. I cut at the halfway point but then ripped it, and it was apparently not cut straight on one end because I ended up with one side one inch too short and the other side 4 inches too long. Sigh. Measure twice, cut once....grrrrr.... Then I pinned the top with not enough backing on the top and had to take all the pins out and move it and pin it again. So really I am learning, but very slowly... This is the floppiest flannel I've worked with, so I think it is the brand. I also had trouble with the thread breaking. I didn't have that problem before, but I want to play with heavier thread weights next time. I also had more problem with catching the backing into funky pleats while quilting. Sigh. Maybe I need to look into starching or doing the adhesive between layers. It was harder to get this quilt taut while pinning--or I was being lazy because I knew I was keeping this one...

This time I ironed the backing's edge into a fold for the binding, if that makes any sense, and I had less problem making a neat corner in the binding. I hand sewed it again and I must say it took much less time, but it does leave my left arm oddly sore (and I'm right-handed), so I can't do more than an hour or so at a time.