Category Archives: custom quilting

Many (ok, most) people notice my thread wall(s) when they enter my studio for the first time. Lots of people ask to take pictures (of course, be my guest!), and I get lots of comments about my nearly-famous thread wall.

Someone even once suggested that maybe I didn’t use all of the colors that I have. Um, actually, I do.

The other running joke in my studio is that while I don’t have 50 shades of gray, I do have 25 shades of nearly white.

So how do I choose which thread color to use? My goal is to find a color that works with all of the fabrics, and often times, it’s easy. Even If the quilt top itself is predominantly one color I’ll select a few cones of thread and pool a bit of each thread color on the quilt top to get a better idea of how each thread will look in quantity. I’ve discovered that what a spool of thread looks like is different than what a pool of thread looks like (what a difference one letter makes).

My general thread philosophy is that I don’t want the quilting to compete with the quilt top, but rather complement the quilt top. So I typically select a thread color that blends rather than contrasts with the colors in the quilt. If there’s a lot of light colors, then I’ll lean toward “natural” or a light version of the quilt’s dominant color–for instance, pale pink, lemonade, or celery.

What (you may ask with a twinkle in your eye) color would you choose if there are a lot of bright, different colors? Great question (I say, twinkling back)!

As an example, there are many beautiful Asian-inspired fabrics that have lots of different colors, some light and some dark. But they almost all have a bit of gold in them, and I’ve found that using a gold-ish color works perfectly.

gold chrysanthemums
gold chrysanthemums

Many modern quilts have lots of great colors and we mix solids with prints. Yay! and also aack! now what color to use? Again, I look to the fabrics in the quilt top, but green and yellow are really good choices to start with. And what works really well in many cases? A yellow-y-green like this or a greenish-yellow like this.

But wait! (you say) What about all of the other colors of thread on your wall? I can assure you, they’re not for show. What we’ve been talking about up to now is choosing one thread to use for an entire quilt. But if the quilting calls for something more than an overall design, then I typically choose a thread color that matches the fabric I’m working on. So that’s where aaallll those other threads come into play. Oh yeah, we play. Wanna play? Got a thread color question? Post it here, or ask me on facebook or instagram. Or come on over and we’ll have a thread party. Yay color!

The Extra Mile For Quilt Market

image

image

image

image

image

image

I spent all day Friday (and most of the night) quilting a top that will, probably, lead a more exciting life than I do. On Monday I got a call from Judy at E. E. Schencks that they needed a top quilted asap. Sure! Happy to help! Eeek!

Turned out that the top is a BOM from Schoolhouse, with big, beautiful squares turned on point, setting triandles, block sashing, and 3 (count ’em, 3) borders. The top measured 80+ by 100+.

Judy and I settled on thread colors and wool batting (for weight and travel). I was able to start the quilt first thing Thursday, but it was slow going because each block had its own quilting pattern. I worked on it all day Thursday and Friday. And Friday night. I finally finished it up around 11pm!

This will be a popular BOM I think. The blocks are really pretty, and set on point they’re dramatic. The fabrics selected for the sample are subdues taupes and grayed-blue and salmon pink accents, with a soft, natural motif, so I used classic feather motifs with a little twist. The wool batt gives the quilting a wonderful dimension–with the extra bonus of minimal weight.

Bonus project: while the blocks stitched out (on Click) I started (and finished) two large floral panels. These are for a friend (hmm, her name is Judy, too); she’s going to hang them in her sewing room. These are the first thread painting projects that I’ve done, but they were a LOT of fun.