Quilt As Desired Article 1: Modern Machine Quilting

September 28, 2016September 29, 20164 Comments

Last week I shared an article that Jacquie Gering and I had written for the National Quilting Association which dissolved last year after 46 years as an organization. Now that a period of time has passed and the rights have reverted back to me, I thought it would be an appropriate time to share with you the series of articles I wrote for them about Machine Quilting. There’s a total of 5 articles (2 of which were never published) and I plan to share them with you approximately once a week. Hopefully you’ll pick up a tip or two. Happy reading friends!

Note: The following article was written as a sample of my writing style and helped me land the free-lance writing gig. NQA asked if I wanted to go ahead and use it for my first column, but I chose to write on a different topic which I’ll share next time. So this is the first time this article is being shared in public.

Modern Machine Quilting

Whether you prefer to quilt by hand or machine, or send your quilts off to a professional for finishing, I’m here to share my expertise and offer advice on how to enhance your quilt’s overall appearance with appropriate quilting choices. This will be a regular feature in each issue of the Quilting Quarterly. We hope you enjoy it!

I love to make modern quilts and explore how to quilt them. Functional modern quilts are meant to be used and washed and they often include vast expanses of negative space. For bed quilts, the quilting should provide enough texture and interest to fit into a modern décor, without being so excessive that the quilt becomes scratchy, stiff and unusable.

I will illustrate an example of functional, modern machine quilting on a quilt I designed named Abacus. It’s made from circular blocks that are machine appliqued. It is sewn together in rows with increasing lengths of grey strips forming the background.

illustration_1_abacus_design

The first thing I do when considering how to quilt a quilt is take a picture of the actual quilt top or the quilt pattern, and print it off in color on a piece of 8 ½” x 11” paper. I will then sketch different quilting ideas until I come up with something I like.

The pen marks indicate the quilting lines, but not necessarily the color of the thread. I will quilt Abacus with a series of gently waving lines, using my walking foot on my home machine and slightly turning the quilt to form the waves as I stitch. This can also be accomplished by using a decorative stitch and maxing out the length and width. (Be sure try out different stitches to find one you like!)

illustration_2_abacus_sketch

Next, I will practice on a smaller sample piece with the same fabrics, thread, and batting I plan to use for the quilt. I think grey is a nice neutral thread choice, and I will use the seam lines between the rows to give me a relatively straight guideline to follow. Spending time on these steps now helps prevents disappointment down the road when a quilt doesn’t turn out like I envision it in my head.

illustration_3_abacus_quilting

Finally, I will quilt the real quilt, starting in the middle of the quilt and quilting the wavy lines from top to bottom, moving halfway across the quilt. When I get to the edge, I will turn the quilt around and quilt the other half.

machine_quilting_abacus

If you are using a long-arm machine to quilt this quilt, just load it from the side and quilt the wavy lines back and forth horizontally across the quilt, advancing the quilt as you go.

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Click here to purchase a PDF version of my Abacus quilt pattern.

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Abacus 32″ x 32″, designed pieced and quilted by Christa Watson

Color Blog Series – Black and White

September 26, 2016September 17, 20166 Comments

Have you all read about the year-long Color Blog Series? It’s hosted by my friend Michelle Wilkie who blogs quite regularly over at Factotum of Arts. First a little background: Michelle and I got to be pretty good internet friends and finally were able to meet in person at QuiltCon 2015. We thought it was fate when two of our mini quilts were hung up next to each other during the show. I’m excited to see her again next spring when I’ll be presenting a workshop for her guild The Triangle MQG.

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Me and Michelle at QuiltCon 2015 – notice my black and white bag!!

I was excited to choose Black and White for my color this month. I think one of the reasons I like using black and white so much is there’s not much color theory involved. You can’t get more opposite when pairing contrasting black and white together! So I thought I’d share a few quilts I’ve made using this graphic combo and talk a little bit about each.

Modern X

Modern X was the first quilt I made using black and white. I created it for the Modern Quilt Guild’s pattern of the month series back in 2014 and after making it, was hooked on using this color combo. I used black and white Kona solids to create the highest amount of contrast possible, and created a focal point by coloring the X with a pop of yellow-green. Pattern available here.

Illusions

Christa Watson Illusions

The design of Illusions was on my mind for quite a few years before actually making it. I got the idea from the optical illusion known as “cafe walls” and wanted to see if the illusion would still work in quilt form. Again, I used solid black and white, with solid gray forming the skinny lines between the squares. To really see the optical illusion in action, scroll your screen up and down a few times to see it wiggle. 🙂

illusions_quilting

Quilting detail on Illusions, using black, white and gray threads to match.

Illusions hung at QuiltCon in 2015 and caught the notice of the editors of Modern Quilts Unlimited, where the pattern was subsequently published in the Spring 2016 issue.

Lightning

lightning

Ahh Lightning!! This time I used prints to create the strong contrast. The thing I learned in working with black and white prints is that you need to separate them into piles of white prints on mostly black background and the opposite: black prints on a mostly white backround. If too many of the prints have equal amounts of both colors, the contrast will be lost when mixed with other fabrics. I love throwing in a bit of gray when working with black and white prints to give the composition a bit of extra interest.

Again, I chose to accent part of the design using yellow-green solids. I guess I have a thing with black, white and green! Lightning is patterned in mybook Machine Quilting with Style, and I used leftovers to make a fun pieced backing!

lightning_back

Click here for a tutorial on making the pieced backing.

HRT’s

hrt

Lately I have been having a thing for HRT (half-rectangle triangle) designs. Usually when I design in EQ7, I start out with solid black and white. That’s where this design is now. I’m sure I will tweak it quite a bit before coming up with a final layout. I may even completely change the colors, too. But for now, using black and white while designing allows me to create the most graphic impact I can, allowing me to focus on the design, rather than the colors I will eventually use. The funny thing is, each time I’ve started a design in black and white, I want to make that version, too!

Double Star Quilt

I designed this Double Star Block for a friend’s monthly block tutorial series (The Beehive from Blossom Heart Quilts) and I love secondary pattern that emerges when the blocks are placed together side by side. This is one of those ideas that I designed in gray scale first, and then just decided to keep it that way! Although I only made one block for the series, I’m dying to make a whole quilt from these!

doublestar_finished

Click here to get my double star block tutorial.

How about you? I’m curious to know what your favorite color, or color combination is. Please leave a comment and let me know! The be sure to follow along with the color series to see other fabulous combos.

Click here to read all of the color series posts on Factotum of Arts.

Machine Quilting with Style: Color Crystals Re-Imagined

September 23, 2016September 22, 2016100 Comments

I’m so excited to share additional colorways of the third quilt from my first book, Machine Quilting with Style. Color Crystals is my modern version of a jelly roll quilt! In practically any bundle you buy, you can separate the solids or prints into distinctive colorways, and then use the leftover strips on the back.

Here’s the original quilt using a bundle of bright Kona Solids:

Rain 54″ x 62″ by Christa Watson. Photography by Brent Kane.

Color Crystals, Re-imagined

Here’s an alternate colorway I designed in EQ7 using Amanda Herring’s Desert Bloom collection for Riley Blake. This pretty group is divided into three colorways of red, aqua, and gray with two whisper soft background prints that I alternated in the background strips. I repeated some of the fabrics to create cohesion in the design.

I was having so much fun playing around with these fabrics, that I decided to flip the positive/negative space in this version below. I placed the strips randomly in the background to create a sense of movement and paired them with solid red “crystals” for a bolder, more dynamic design.

Now can you just imagine all the possibilities??

Quilter’s Dream Prize Sponsor

When I make my quilts, the batting is just as important as the fabrics and thread. Therefore I’m delighted to announce that one of my favorite batting companies, Quilter’s Dream

will be giving away two prizes to help promote their new Dream 80/20.

Each winner will get a White Dream 80/20 queen and a Natural Dream 80/20 queen. This time around, winners we be selected from the US due to shipping limitations.

To enter, just leave a comment letting me know your favorite way to use a jelly roll! For a bonus entry, you can share a picture of one of your jelly roll quilts in my Facebook Group: Quilt with Christa. We have a really fun community over there and everyone loves getting inspired by what everyone else is doing!

Last Week’s Winners

Congrats to Jane M. and Diane M. who each won a copy of my second book, The Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting (co-authored with Angela Walters). I’ll pick this week’s winner next Thursday morning and post it with the next re-imagined quilt next Friday!

Christa Watson Books

Click here to see all of the quilts from Machine Quilting with Style.
Click here to see all of the quilts from The Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting.

*Note: this post contains affiliate links – thanks for your support!!

Machine Quilting with Style: Rain Re-Imagined

September 16, 2016September 15, 2016148 Comments

Welcome back to week 2 of the 12 week celebration for Machine Quilting with Style! This week I’m excited to again share “Rain,” which I think is one of the most modern quilts I’ve ever made. My husband Jason was actually the one who inspired the design. He was doodling on his iPad one day and I thought his design would make an awesome quilt! So I translated his scribbles into this minimalist modern quilt:

rain

Rain 60″ x 80″ by Christa Watson. Photography by Brent Kane.

Jason and I went back and forth with ideas for naming this quilt (meteor shower, streaks of color colored rain, etc.), and the colorful strips for some reason brought to mind streaks of rain. Wouldn’t it be nice if rain really was colorful like this? Then I had the idea to quilt with heavier weight colorful threads matching each of the strips and extending the quilting lines off the ends, creating a streaked effect.

rain_detail

When you look closely, you can see that the parallel straight-line quilting isn’t exactly perfect and that’s okay. I truly believe that “perfectly imperfect” quilting adds to the beauty and hand-crafted look of the piece!

Purple Rain

I’ve been wanting to explore different colorways with this design and of course the first variation I thought of was Purple Rain. When Prince died earlier this year, the design became even that much more meaningful to me.

purple_rain

I think the light gray sets off the purple strips nicely, don’t you agree?

How about this black and gray version? It’s the same design but tweaked by using just two colors and letting the stripes go all the way across the quilt. The graphic movement it creates is very striking, and I love exploring design possibilities like this!

black_grey

Although I used solids for these versions, I’ve seen several of you remake this quilt using prints, which looks just as fabulous! In fact, when you click the link below to view all of the quilts from my book, you’ll see another variation of each finished quilt made by my friends. This should get the ideas flowing!

Click here to see all of the quilts from Machine Quilting with Style.

Weekly Giveaway

For this week’s celebration, I’m giving away a signed copy of my second book, The Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting, co-authored with Angela Walters. One US reader will receive a hard-copy, signed by both of us, and one international friend will get an e-copy from my friends at Martingale/That Patchwork Place.

Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting

To enter, leave a comment below letting me know if you’ve ever made a modern quilt before. For an extra bonus entry, you can share a picture of your favorite modern quilt in my Facebook group: Quilt with Christa. And just to clarify – what’s modern to you is modern to me. 🙂

Last Week’s WinnerS:

Congratulations to Lori M. and Jill B. who each won a copy of Machine Quilting with Style! I’ve sent message to both. I’ll pick this week’s winner next Thursday and post it with the next re-imagined quilt next Friday!

Machine Quilting With Style

Click here to purchase signed copies of either of my books.

The Quilter’s Planner 2017 – Now Available for Pre-order

September 13, 2016September 12, 20163 Comments

Let me tell you how I met my friend Stephanie Palmer, creator of The Quilter’s Planner. We both had been invited to tape a series of machine quilting demonstrations for QNNtv’s Quilt It – The Longarm show back in the summer of 2015.

We were picked up from the airport at the same time and immediately connected. By the end of our 30 minute car ride we had swapped life stories and become instant friends! She told me all about the creation of The Quilter’s Planner, and it was such fun to listen to her describe her project with such passion and enthusiasm.

stephanie_quiltit

Stephanie shows me one of her projects in the large “green room” while we take turns being filmed.
Several quilts from my books are laid out flat on the table beside her.

When Stephanie invited me to participate as one of the designers for the 2017 Quilter’s Planner, of course I jumped at the chance to participate. Not only is the Quilter’s Planner perfect for keeping track of day-to-day things like a regular planner, it has specialty planning pages just for quilters.

quilters-planner-2017-cover

The 2017 Quilter’s Planner features this awesome cover, which will also be included as a pattern!

And to top it off, The Quilter’s Planner comes with a pattern pack of 14 downloadable PDFs. I was thrilled to make Feathered Chevrons as my contribution. It’s a remake of my older Charming Chevrons design, updated with a new layout using my Kona Solids palette.

feathered_chevrons Photography taken in scenic Maine by Kitty Wilkin of Night Quilter.

I was even more thrilled with the photography, beautifully taken by our talented friend Kitty Wilkin (who can photograph your quilts, too if you are interested.)

feathered_chevrons_styled Photography taken in scenic Maine by Kitty Wilkin of Night Quilter.

I especially love how Kitty got some great closeups of the quilting on this quilt. I used two of my favorite machine quilting designs, “Switchbacks” and a variation of “Swirls ‘n Pearls.” As I do with all of my quilts, I love to include machine quilting suggestions with my patterns.

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Photography taken in scenic Maine by Kitty Wilkin of Night Quilter.

feathered_chevrons_swirls

To learn more about each of the featured designers, click each name below to go to their blog and follow them!! Many have already included pictures of their quilts that will be included.

Amy Friend of During Quiet Time, Amy Sinibaldi of Nana and Co., AnneMarie Chany of GenXQuilters, Cheryl Brickey of Meadow Mist Designs, Karen Lewis of Karen Lewis Textiles, Kari Vojtechovsky of Craft-Happy, Katie Blakesley of Swim Bike Quilt, Lee Monroe of May Chappell, Lindsey Rhodes of LR Stitched, Rita Hodge of Red Pepper Quilts, Stephanie Palmer of Late Night Quilter, Yvonne Fuchs of Quilting Jetgirl

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Order your copy of the quilter’s planner today!

Machine Quilting With Style: Ripples Re-imagined

September 8, 2016September 7, 2016142 Comments

Ripples is the first quilt presented in my book Machine Quilting with Style. The technique is what I call “structured improv.” The basic block shape is a traditional log cabin. However, each of the individual “logs” in the quilt are cut and pieced improvisationally so that no two blocks are alike! I selected teals and grays from my stash, plus leftovers from other projects. Here’s the original quilt as it appears in the book, my abstract representation of rippling water:

ripples_no_background

Ripples 66″ x 88″ by Christa Watson. Photography by Brent Kane.

Let’s Play!

Now it’s time to have some fun, discovering alternate looks for this design! Of course the layout possibilities are endless. Here’s a another version, showing the same color scheme, set in a more traditional “barn-raising” layout. I imported swatches of fabrics from some of my favorite fabric brands into EQ7 to create a “virtual stash” for this quilt.

ripples_bluegrey_barnraising

I design my quilts in EQ7 so that I know what they’ll look like before I make the first cut!

Here’s another layout, and another colorway, using Bonnie and Camille’s Ruby collection, plus coordinates from my “virtual” stash. I selected reds and greens for one half of the block, with aquas, creams and light grays for the other half. I set the blocks slightly differently so that now the ripples go the other way and are more centered.

ripples_bandc_opposite

Here’s another graphic layout with very strong lines, called Zig-Zags, using the same fabrics. In all variations, the same number of blocks are made, but each block is rotated differently.

ripples_bandc_zigzag

Isn’t it fun to explore the possibilities? I hope you will enjoy seeing all of the quilts from Machine Quilting with Style re-imagined over the next few weeks. Perhaps you’ll discover that one of the designs speaks to you in a new colorway.

Celebration Giveaway

Each week as I share the re-imagined quilts, I’ll celebrate the one-year milestone of my book release with a giveaway. To start off, I’ll give away a signed physical copy of Machine Quilting with Style to one lucky reader here in the US! And my publisher will send an e-copy to one of my international friends!

Machine Quilting With Style

To enter, leave a comment letting me know if you’ve ever made a log cabin quilt – and if you want to share – how many?? For an extra bonus entry, you can share a picture of your favorite log cabin quilt you’ve made in my Facebook group: Quilt with Christa.

Comments will be open through next Thursday at 6PM PST. I’ll a choose two winners at random (one US, one Int’l.) and will announce their names in next week’s post on Friday, along with the next virtual quilt!

Click here to see all of the quilts from Machine Quilting with Style.

We’re Celebrating a Birthday This Week! (But It’s not What you Think)

September 6, 2016September 8, 201616 Comments

It’s time for a birthday celebration, even though it’s not technically my birthday. Although my daughter did make me this lovely cake when it was my birthday last month.

cake

My favorite cake – German Chocolate with Coconut icing. The strawberries were a nice touch.

Happy Book-Birthday!

What I’m excited to celebrate is that it’s my first book’s first birthday, this Thursday, September 8th! (The fact that I published another one less than 9 months later makes them almost like twins right??)

But anyway… I can’t believe it was just a year ago that I released Machine Quilting with Style, with the help of my friends at Martingale/That Patchwork Place. Now, some might call this an “anniversary” celebration, but writing a book really did take as much time and effort as having a child, so I think “birthday” is an appropriate word. 🙂 And what a fabulous year it has been!

Click the image above to see each of the quilts in the book, plus an alternate version.

I have to thank so many loyal friends and followers for helping this book be so successful! It really does mean a lot to me when you guys cheer me on. 🙂 In the last year, I’ve met so many fabulous people, while Machine Quilting with Style has reached some milestones, too.

It’s consistently stayed in the top 100 for patchwork books on Amazon, and it’s been one of my publisher’s Top 20 bestsellers. Seven of the quilts have been in local and national quilt shows, and three have won ribbons. All of this furthers my goal of reaching a wider audience and helping people understand that it’s okay to make “perfectly imperfect” quilts!

Quilts ON Display from Machine Quilting with Style:

In order above: Facets won 2nd at AQS Paducah, Candy Pop and String of Pearls won ribbons at my local show, Rain and Focal point hung at QuiltCon, Lightning and Square in a Square were juried into Road to California. The rest are: Little Man’s Fancy, Static, Ripples, Color Crystals, and Broken V.

If you haven’t yet seen the book, take a look at this awesome video review from the folks at Chatterbox Quilts. Honestly, it made me tear up a little. I mean, you love what you create, but when other people do, too, it can be quite a humbling experience!

Let’s Celebrate!

To celebrate this huge milestone, I thought it would be fun to re-color each of the quilts in EQ7 (the software I originally used to design the quilts), and then showcase them side by side along with the original quilt so you can compare the two. I’ll share one new colorway each week, starting this Thursday. After all, sometimes a quilt can look completely different just by changing up the fabrics.

And of course, no birthday celebration would be complete without gifts! So along with helping you imagine what the designs would look like in different fabrics, I’ll be hosting 12 weeks of giveaways, one for each quilt. Won’t that be fun??

machine_quilting_detail

I love all of the detailed photography in the book, shot by the talented Brent Kane for Martingale.

Sharing is Caring

As I re-share the quilts each week, I hope you’ll also share your versions of them in my Facebook Group: Quilt with Christa. This will provide loads of inspiration for those just starting out on their quilt-making journey. Many times, I end up liking my friends’ versions even better than the originals!

Click the image above to join my facebook group and share your quilts, finished or not!

Where to Buy

So I’ll meet you back here on Thursday to get this party started!! In the meantime, you can purchase Machine Quilting with Style from your favorite local quilt shop, or these locations:

Signed Copy from Me
Amazon (lowest price)
Martingale/That Patchwork Place (free e-copy with purchase)

MQWS_signed

The very first copy I received is the most special because it was signed by all those who helped produce this book. It really does take a village to write a book!

Featured Designer and Positive Direction Pattern in Modern Quilts Unlimited

July 29, 2016February 5, 201710 Comments

The Summer 2016 issue of Modern Quilts Unlimited goes on sale today and I’m pleased as punch to have two features in it.

Modern-Quilts-16-08-Summer-Cover

First of all, I’m the profiled designer. If you are like me, you may enjoy quilting magazines for the articles as much as you like the unique patterns. Well, imagine my surprise when they asked to interview me for this issue. I was so impressed with Linda Griepentrog who wrote the article. After a nice phone chat, she was able to take my often long answers and rambling thoughts about quilting, and distill them into a concise well-written article. (I always joke around with my workshop students that they get to see me live and unedited when they learn from me in person, LOL!)

Spotlight_Article

When Modern Quilts Unlimited asked to include me in the issue, they also invited me to submit a pattern to go along with it. (In case you were wondering, I got paid for the pattern, and the freelance writer gets paid for her feature article). This was just perfect because I had playing around with a patriotic plus design for awhile, and creating it for the issue was the perfect excuse to make the quilt, which I named Positive Direction.

Postiive Direction Magzine Image

Positive Direction in the Summer 2016 issue of Modern Quilts Unlimited

I’ve always wanted to make a modern patriotic quilt since I’m not as much of a fan as traditional Americana decor. I think adding the aqua and grey punched it up a bit and of course I had to quilt it to death like I usually do. I used Wool batting to give it some loft which really allows the machine quilting to pop!

I designed the quilt in EQ7, like I do all of my quilts and I just love being able to see what the quilt is going to look like before I make it!

positive_direction

My Positive Direction EQ7 sketch – I get all the thinking done before I start sewing!

Update: The PDF pattern is available for purchase in my Craftsy Shop!

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The Skull Quilt Mini and a Fun Quilt Swap

July 15, 2016July 14, 20166 Comments

My local modern quilt guild, Las Vegas MQG recently teamed up with the Orlando MQG to do a modern member mini quilt swap. It was So. Much. Fun! Each team leader from both guilds assigned us someone to make a quilt for and we were given an interest sheet about what our partner liked and didn’t. We made a mini quilt for one person, but then received a mini from a different partner (scroll to the end to see the awesome quilt I received from Rene’!)

skullduggery_finished

Skullduggery by Christa Watson, 15″ x 17″

So here’s the quilt I made for Frank Palmer of Full Frontal Quilt and Dyeworks, who thinks “Black is fabooshalicious and red is a neutral.” He also loves “odd and unusual things and skulls and tattoos.” (As a side note, Frank was a guest on the Crafty Planner Podcast earlier this year so I knew I needed to make him something that would fit his fun personality!)

sitd

I stitched in the ditch using the BERNINA dual feed, which acts much like a walking foot.

I pieced the quilt from solid black and red squares, so that it would retain the pixelated look. Then I stitched in the ditch around the major skull sections to outline the design and anchor the quilt for additional free-motion quilting.

wavy_flames

Free-motion quilting wtih the BSR, using matching Aurifil thread – #2250 Red.

Next, I free-motion quilted a wavy flame design in all of the red areas. I thought the look of the flames matched the feel of the design quite nicely! I used a matching Aurifil 50 cotton weight thread in red. I quilted it using the BERNINA stitch regulator which helps my stitches stay nice and even. Though truth be told, I can quilt just as easily with or without the regulator. I love using the open toe so I can see my quilting stitches easier.

pebble_quilting

Finally, I quilted the background with a dense pebble texture, using one of my favorite neutrals – Aurifil #4241 Very Dark Gray. It’s not quite black so it actually shows up on black fabrics better than straight black does.

Skullduggery EQ7

Like all of my quilts, I created this design using EQ7 software so that I knew exactly how to put it together before starting. As an added bonus for my fellow EQ7 users, I’ve made the file available for you if you want to make your own version (just be sure to credit me as the designer if you do).

Click here to get the Skullduggery EQ7 file download.
Note, this link will only work if you have EQ7 installed on your computer.

If you make a version of this quilt or any of my other patterns, please be sure and share it in my Facebook Group: Quilt with Christa. 🙂

orlando_swap

This is the quilt I received in the swap. I love solids and black and white so this suits me to a T!

Feathered Chevrons Finish

July 12, 2016January 13, 20177 Comments

I’m so happy to have finished another version of my Charming Chevrons pattern! This layout is called Feathered Chevrons, and I made it using my Kona Designer series charm packs, plus Kona Coal.

Feathered Chevrons is an alternate of my Charming Chevrons quilt pattern.

Feathered Chevrons by Christa Watson, 64″ x 80″

This is the third version of Charming Chevrons I have made, and all three layouts are available in the original pattern, along with 4 different sizes.

Click here to purchase a PDF pattern of Charming Chevrons.
Click here to purchase a print pattern of Charming Chevrons.

feathered-chevrons-backing

I love it when the quilting shows up well on the back.

I used some leftover chunks of Kona solids to make a pieced backing. I love how the quilting really shows up on the back. I stuck a label on the lower back corner before I put the binding on so I would only have to hand-sew it along two of the sides.

quilting_practice

On the test sample, I quilted the swirls flowing in opposite directions. On the quilt, I quilted them all flowing in one direction. Other than that, I stuck to the original plan.

Like I do for most of my quilts, I made up a test block so that I could see how the quilting design and thread color looked before diving in. Even though it’s a little more effort to do this, it saves me a lot of aggravation in the long run. If I like how this piece looks, then there won’t be any surprises when I’m quilting the quilt, and I can just relax and enjoy the process.

quilting_switchbacks

I filled in all of the gray background areas with switchbacks, one of the motifs I teach in my book Machine Quilting with Style. Notice how I stitched an area of relief inside the block, by quilting straight lines about 1/4″ away from the seams. This allows the different sections to pop, and also shrinks up the amount of area I need to quilt.

swirls_pebbles

Next, I filled in the chevrons with a motif I call “swirl-feathers.” It’s a new design for me, made up of swirls that branch off of each other rather than filling in the whole space. Then I filled in the spaces in between the swirls with pebbles.

I quilted it entirely on my BERNINA 770 QE. I anchored the quilt by quilting straight lines with my integrated dual feed (which works like a walking foot) and then the free-motion sections with my BSR (BERNINA stitch regulator.)

Aurifil-Thread

You’ll be hearing more about some of my favorite Aurifil thread colors in the coming months.

I love to use Aurifil 50 weight cotton for piecing and quilting all of my quilts. It’s lightweight yet strong and I never have any issue with thread breaks. I used Aurifil 2920 Light Brass for the swirls and 2605 Grey for the background.

feathered_chevrons_quilting_detail

If you make your own version of Charming Chevrons, please share it in my Facebook group: Quilt with Christa. I’d love to see you progress! I’m also happy to chat about machine quilting over there and answer your questions in the group for all to see.