Handi Quilter Sweet Sixteen Day 4 - FMQ sewing machine vs HQSS

When it comes to FMQ I would like to give a shout out to Leah Day. I learned to FMQ by watching her videos and taking Craftsy classes with her. She has a really great teaching style, and her designs are free on her website, along with "how to stitch" videos.

FMQ done on Husqvarna Emerald - Leah Day lollipop tree pattern

When I started free motion quilting I upgraded my Singer, bought a machine with feed dogs, read a book, and expected to learn how to do it fairly easily. How hard could it be? Well, hardish it turned out. Thread "bird nested" or "eyelashed", stitches were really hard to control, and I was either racing along at 80 miles an hour, or negotiating a tricky turn like an elderly chicken crossing a busy highway. My Husqvara also gave me endless issues with the free motion feet. Their design is a bit silly and the top of the foot would get a stress break really easily. At $50 a foot this was a big deal, and the dealer just shrugged and sold me a new one.

The one on the left works better than the one on the right!!

 Once I'd found Leah's site, I stopped buying feet and wound an elastic band around the top of the broken foot and it worked better than before. I also invested in a Supreme Slider, and that was a game changer. The silicone surface gave me sufficient "glide" that I finally began to feel I might be able to master this FMQ thing. I started using Bobbin Genies too, and they seemed to help with bird's nesting on the back. I never got to terms with gloves though. I have 2 different brands, and frankly, I can't quilt with either of them. I need to feel the fabric.

Then I bought a Bernina and, partly because it is such a great machine, and partly because I had been practicing, FMQ seemed to have a lot less thread issues etc. but I was still using the Supreme Slider. Actually it was my third, because I ripped one, and sewed through another one. When they say wash after each use, that is advice worth taking... I still struggled with visibility though. I always felt I was craning my neck to see what the heck I was doing.

FMQ done on Bernina 350 PE

And now I have the Sweet Sixteen. I know it's early days but I do feel a little as though I'd died and gone to heaven. No feed dogs for the up/down controversy. No peering around the machine to see my work area, no wondering how to get more light where I'm working. No need for a Supreme Slider, Bobbin Genie etc.

Now the only thing I have to get my head around is that all the controls are on the control panel. I do still find myself looking for the lever to engage the machine, and the hand wheel to drop the needle into the fabric! And I wish there was a thread snipper like on my Bernina.

Making fabric scraps into useful donations

Unwanted fabric, big and small is a problem for lots of crafters, quilters etc. The stuff piles up! My son's college had a sobering labeling system for garbage. Cans read either "recycling" or "landfill". Yikes! It's so easy to toss stuff in a garbage bag and not think about what happens to it after that. 

So, I have scraps large and small, thread up the wazoo, not to mention UFOs that are never going to get finished because I either screwed them up too badly to make it worth the time to fix them, or I really hate them. Leah Day had a thought provoking post on what to do with unwanted fabric, and it didn't take much investigation to find out that my local quilt shop collected pillows stuffed with all the unwanted soft stuff, and donated them to the local animal shelter. Done deal!

I can't tell you how therapeutic it is to take a rotary cutter to really ugly projects, or projects which have driven you to distraction. And when the end result is something that will provide a little comfort to a homeless animal, well, it positively makes your halo glow, and takes away all the guilt so often associated with UFOs!

All you need is some kind of container for your pillow, to support it while you are filling it. I have a rectangular basket which I keep next to my sewing machine, so it's really easy to dispose of all those threads. 

Then you need some fabric for the pillow casing. Obviously I do not use my rather nice hand-dyed shibori, this is for demonstration purposes only! I normally buy fleece when it is on sale, as it is so nice and snugly. Lay the fabric out, then fold in half, right sides together. Sew the 2 short ends closed and turn it right side out. 

Hand-dyed Procion MX shibori

Hand-dyed Procion MX shibori

Remove cat from fabric and line basket with it - the fabric, not the cat. 

In a shockingly short period of time the pillow will be full of threads, trimmings, free-motion practice strips and the like. If you are feeling kind, buy some cheap batting and slice a little into each pillow for some extra softness. Check for stray pins. These will not add to the comfort of the pillow!

Not your average pretty blog picture!

Dangling threads are a great temptation. You may have to rescue some which have mysteriously left the basket.

Make sure the pillow is not so full that it is no longer soft, then sew up the long open end. I just zigzag it closed. Your scraps are taken care of, you have a nice soft pillow for a needy animal, and the effort involved is minimal. Thanks for spurring me to action, Leah!