Friday, March 9, 2012

March FMQ Challenge

     Anyone practicing  free motion quilting for the challenge?   This month is really basic and good review.....meandering, loops, swirls.   Figuring out where to do what type of quilting is usually the biggest challenge.  Guess that is why a notebook of ideas is suggested this month.
   I pulled all those loose pages I had saved with quilting motifs from magazines and such and put them in one notebook. I was amazed at the number I have saved.   Now I have a great reference source.   So part one done.

  Now for the practice.  I decided to finish up the tissue box owls and experiment with different quilting.

Meandering....stippling is the very dense version.  Meandering  reminds me of arms, legs and noses!  This is what I generally use when I quilt a watercolor quilt, where the quilting is probably never going to be noticed because of all the floral prints.   On the WC quilts I do it medium to large style, very open and not dense.  When washed, this pattern has the look of a soft old-fashioned quilt.   Dense meandering or stippling will make the quilt flat....like a pancake, but it is great to make appliques stand out or those feathers from last month.












Loops....I like doing the curling loops.  This pattern reminds me of a lasso and the way it twists and curls back on itself.  When nothing else seems to interest me, I do lots of loops.   Or sometimes the loops are like a lot of "L" shape letters just strung together with meandering.   One great benefit of this pattern is that it can work in a good bit of  fullness---ahem, that's really excess fabric---especially in a border.






Swirls.....use them anywhere!   Open swirls in a larger style are my favorite pattern.  A great all over pattern that seems to soften and blend the entire quilt.   But I also find myself doing smaller, closer ones to create texture in open areas.



Packed tear drops.....create a really neat texture.  I just threw this one in because I like the look it creates.   Then I whipped out to the border and finished the whole thing off with the vines and leaves from January.
  Check out the other progress at SewCalGal blog for the free motion challenge.
  My design wall  is empty!  How did that happen?  Time to cut fabric and get something going.  I think I am going to work on another Bonnie Hunter pattern, the variation of her star struck.
Happy stitching.

13 comments:

Janet O. said...

You've done what I have only intended to do. I have downloaded all of those Patsy Thompson designs, and a few others and saved some from magazines, but the notebook hasn't taken form yet. Good for you!
Your quilting looks great!

The Nifty Stitcher said...

Fabulous quilting Debbie and I just love your owls!!!

SeeingStars said...

Your owls look great with the FMQ behind them. Do you realize how guilty you're making us feel by posting your notebook of quilting motifs? Yikes! I've been meaning to do that for quite some time now. I know I really should, but it just seems like ... work. Guess if I start with a few, I could add more later.

Anonymous said...

what a wonderful project,so cute,well done.xx

Nicki said...

I love the owls! We had a family of Eastern Screech owls in our owl box for the first time last spring & I'm so hoping to get them back this year. Your precious owls remind me of them. Your FM quilting is fantastic & I love the notebook idea.

Joanie's Trendy Quilts said...

Nice message on the different motifs and when and how you use them. Your work is incredible! I love the idea of creating a notebook of the various quilting motifs.

Marjorie's Busy Corner said...

Beautiful work...

HollyM said...

The little owls are so charming. I really like the packed teardrops design.

In stitches and seams said...

nice work ... and that looks like a great note book too.It's always nice to have ideas at hand when deciding what to stitch.
in stitches

AnnaPeng said...

Beautiful work~

Ashlea Tenner said...

Beautiful Quilting! I love the owls too!

Lynne said...

wow! What great FMQ!

Rebecca Grace said...

Your owls are adorable! Beautiful FMQ, too. I'm entering the FMQ Challenge late in the game, and the March tutorial was taken down already so I'm sneaking around in everyone else's posts to try and figure out what to do to catch up. Thanks for posting these terrific photos!

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