Machine Quilting On a Regular Sewing Machine
There are some real myths out there regarding quilting these days, and one of those myths is that you need to fork out a bunch of money to get your quilts professionally finished by someone who has a long arm quilting machine. I’m here to dispel this myth today!
Long arm quilting is beautiful and is a great thing for those who want to use it. It has a very specific look and it’s true that some of the intricate designs they make simply can’t be done on a domestic home sewing machine. But if you’ve convinced yourself it’s the only way to get a large quilt quilted, think again.
I’ve been quilting large quilts on my regular sewing machine for years — in fact, other than the two I’ve hand quilted, I’ve done all my quilts at home on my normal machine. There are many reasons to choose to do this step yourself, the first being that you will save a ton of money. Long arming does not come cheap, whether you’re hiring it out or purchasing a long arm machine for yourself.
Personally, I really love the look of home machine better. I actually prefer the imperfections and I even enjoy the time I get to spend finishing a quilt completely myself.
Quilting on a Regular Machine
I understand that logistically, quilting something large on a little sewing machine might seem confusing to some. HOW do you do it? How do you get the bulk of the quilt under the arm of your machine, how do you mark the lines, which direction do you go, how do you prevent your hands from hurting, how do you keep the quilt back from bunching up underneath, how, how, how??
Don’t worry, I answer all of those questions and more in the following YouTube video. Watch as I quilt my own quilt at home and get all my tips for success.
If you need help with other aspects of putting your quilt together, not to worry, I’ve made lots of beginner friendly quilting content! Here are some helpful links for all the quilt making concepts:
Beginner’s Quilt Blog Series
Making the Quilt Sandwich
Hand Quilting
Binding a Quilt
My Entire Quilting Playlist on YouTube
Some Quilting Freebies in my shop!
I hope this quilting tutorial was helpful for some of you. Mostly, I want to do my part to convince the world that sewing and quilting is for everyone and can be done on a budget. I think consumerism has snuck into our lives in every single facet, including the quilting realm, and I’d like to remind myself and others that quilting started as a very economical hobby/necessity, and we can keep it that way.
Cheers!
Nikki
