What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

Have you started on your Seeing Stars quilt-a-long quilt? It’s not too late! This month (March) we are selecting fabric and cutting. I will share my progress and thoughts as we go. My friend Pam is also going to quilt along and I’ll share her approach as well.

Selecting Fabrics

My Choices

Since this quilt is mostly scrappy, I started with a fat quarter pack from my stash that was very “well-aged”.  It gave me a start on my color palette. Then I added in some additional fat quarters for more variety.

I wanted to follow the hack ...

Starting with a well wound bobbin is essential for good results when quilting. That’s why you need to know how to operate your Handi Quilter bobbin winder. It’s a great machine that will provide you with perfect bobbins every time, when you get it set up correctly. Handi Quilter offers 2 types of bobbin winder, one that comes exclusively with the Moxie machine and the other comes with all other HQ longarm machines. We will start with the standard bobbin winder.

First, download and READ the manual. You can find it here. Scroll down til you get to ...

Starting with a well wound bobbin is essential for good results when quilting. That’s why you need to know how to operate your Handi Quilter bobbin winder. It’s a great machine that will provide you with perfect bobbins every time, when you get it set up correctly. Handi Quilter offers 2 types of bobbin winder, one that comes exclusively with the Moxie machine and the other comes with all other HQ longarm machines. We will start with the standard bobbin winder.

First, download and READ the manual. You can find it here. Scroll down til you get to ...

Have you ever joined a quilt-a-long? Now is your chance to try one on for size. Handi Quilter’s first quilt-a-long is just starting and it’s FREE!

The Videos

The last Tuesday of each month we will premier a video with hints, tips and techniques you can use to create your Seeing Stars quilt. Noon Mountain time (11am Pacific time, 1pm Central time, and 2pm Eastern time in the US) is when the videos will premier. If you are outside of those time zones, you can figure out when to watch here.  If you can’t watch live, you ...

Have you ever joined a quilt-a-long? Now is your chance to try one on for size. Handi Quilter’s first quilt-a-long is just starting and it’s FREE!

The Videos

The last Tuesday of each month we will premier a video with hints, tips and techniques you can use to create your Seeing Stars quilt. Noon Mountain time (11am Pacific time, 1pm Central time, and 2pm Eastern time in the US) is when the videos will premier. If you are outside of those time zones, you can figure out when to watch here.  If you can’t watch live, you ...

We have a fabulous new collection in the shop this week.

We received Zen Garden from Stephanie Brandenburg. Stephanie has been designing fabric for years, but recently partnered with Northcott Fabrics for the printing and distribution of her brand Frond Design Studios.

Stephanie is a painter first and all over her fabric collections are inspired by the boldly colored nature-scapes she creates first with paint and brush. Zen Garden is no exception to the bold beauty she is known for and it is a must add to your collection.

We also created new kits for our most popular bag pattern ...

With so many types of quilting fabrics available, choosing the right one can be overwhelming. It’s important to understand their differences so you can choose the best one for your next project. Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about quilting fabrics.

Types of Quilt Fabric

Although standard quilting cotton fabric is our hands-down favorite for making quilts, there is a wide variety of fabrics available for sewing quilts, home decor and garments, such as batiks, wovens and flannel. Some are made from natural fibers like cotton and linen, while others are man-made. The base fiber affects ...

This year Handi Quilter is proud to introduce NEW HQ Stitch machines! Handi Quilter is known for the best longarm machines in the industry, but we also offer domestic machines for all sewers.

With the February HQ promotion you can score a FREE HQ Stitch machine with your purchase of a new longarm or Pro-Stitcher package. Details of the promotion can be found here.

New – HQ Stitch 310

The HQ Stitch 310 offers a solid but portable machine with a versatile stitch collection that will see you through most sewing tasks. This little go-getter includes a selection of 8 accessory ...

This year Handi Quilter is proud to introduce NEW HQ Stitch machines! Handi Quilter is known for the best longarm machines in the industry, but we also offer domestic machines for all sewers.

With the February HQ promotion you can score a FREE HQ Stitch machine with your purchase of a new longarm or Pro-Stitcher package. Details of the promotion can be found here.

New – HQ Stitch 310

The HQ Stitch 310 offers a solid but portable machine with a versatile stitch collection that will see you through most sewing tasks. This little go-getter includes a selection of 8 accessory ...

When you get started quilting the amount of supplies you need can be overwhelming. So for today’s video I break down the nine supplies you absolutely need to get started, and the nine you don’t.

The catch is, the nine supplies are the same item, at different price points.

I go over what kind of sewing machine you need, and two upgrade price points that you don’t need to start, but can be nice if you decide you can’t live without quilting.

I also go over what you absolutely need for fabric, thread, rotary cutters, mats ...

This easy tutorial will get you running to your sewing machine! Today we have a fun and beginner-friendly project that only takes a few hours to complete! Read on for a photo tutorial on how to make a quilt-as-you-go table runner. The magic of this technique is that when you finish piecing the fabric together, you’ll be done with the quilting part, too.

Quilt As You Go Table Runner Supplies

• One pack of Tablerunner Batting by Happy Cloud
• Marking pen (that won’t disappear with heat)
• 1.5 Yards fabric for backing (Cut to 52″ x 33″ rectangle) 
• Half ...

Last week I wrote about making my temperature quilt. I had several questions about how to apply the binding while the quilt is still on your longarm frame. I explained this in a past post, but thought you might like to see it again (or see it for the first time!)

I’m willing to bet 9 out of 10 of you bought your longarm machine because you were not happy wrestling that large quilt through your domestic machine to do the quilting. Am I right? We solved one problem. But, then what do we do? We finish the beautiful ...

Last week I wrote about making my temperature quilt. I had several questions about how to apply the binding while the quilt is still on your longarm frame. I explained this in a past post, but thought you might like to see it again (or see it for the first time!)

I’m willing to bet 9 out of 10 of you bought your longarm machine because you were not happy wrestling that large quilt through your domestic machine to do the quilting. Am I right? We solved one problem. But, then what do we do? We finish the beautiful ...

I made a temperature quilt for 2022. Have you heard of them? Just Google temperature quilts and you’ll find lots of examples!

Making a Temperature Quilt

The idea is to record the high and low temperature for each day. Assign a fabric (color) to temperature ranges and use the fabric associated with the high and low temps each day to make a block. Sew all the blocks together in chronological order and you’ll end up with a visual representation of the year’s weather. It can be pretty darn beautiful!

Choose your block

You can choose whatever block ...

I made a temperature quilt for 2022. Have you heard of them? Just Google temperature quilts and you’ll find lots of examples!

Making a Temperature Quilt

The idea is to record the high and low temperature for each day. Assign a fabric (color) to temperature ranges and use the fabric associated with the high and low temps each day to make a block. Sew all the blocks together in chronological order and you’ll end up with a visual representation of the year’s weather. It can be pretty darn beautiful!

Choose your block

You can choose whatever block ...

At the start of December 2022 our friend, Helen Godden, started her annual Christmas Countdown Quilt-a-long. Helen is our Handi Quilter Ambassador who lives in Australia. She’s an accomplished artist and a superb stationary machine quilter. I decided to join in the quilt-a-long and take you all along with me. So today I will share my journey, some things I learned along the way, and the finish.

In the last post about this topic I showed you how I prepared my fabric with Helen’s design by tracing her pattern. I made a few changes (thanks Helen for understanding ...

At the start of December 2022 our friend, Helen Godden, started her annual Christmas Countdown Quilt-a-long. Helen is our Handi Quilter Ambassador who lives in Australia. She’s an accomplished artist and a superb stationary machine quilter. I decided to join in the quilt-a-long and take you all along with me. So today I will share my journey, some things I learned along the way, and the finish.

In the last post about this topic I showed you how I prepared my fabric with Helen’s design by tracing her pattern. I made a few changes (thanks Helen for understanding ...

You’ve heard of paint by number, but today we’re bringing you the quilting version! Our friend June Tailor came to visit and taught us everything you need to know about quilting as you go. Keep reading for four free video tutorials and a bonus video where Kimberly shows her quilt as you go skills while making a table runner!

What is Quilt As You Go?

Quilt as you go projects allow for quilting in smaller sections. It’s popular for quilting blocks or parts of a project before attaching them instead of quilting at the end before any ...

We have a new machine in our family! I’d like to introduce you to the Handi Quilter Amara ST.

The ST part of the name stands for STationary. You move the fabric under the needle to quilt. The machine stays stationary. It is packed with all the best features quilters value most.

Features

Stitch regulation

Amara ST is equipped with built-in In-Sight Stitch regulation technology that keeps your stitches perfect! Free-motiion quilting has never been easier. All you need to think about is moving the fabric to execute your design. No need to move at a steady pace to ...

We have a new machine in our family! I’d like to introduce you to the Handi Quilter Amara ST.

The ST part of the name stands for STationary. You move the fabric under the needle to quilt. The machine stays stationary. It is packed with all the best features quilters value most.

Features

Stitch regulation

Amara ST is equipped with built-in In-Sight Stitch regulation technology that keeps your stitches perfect! Free-motiion quilting has never been easier. All you need to think about is moving the fabric to execute your design. No need to move at a steady pace to ...