I recently had the opportunity to quilt an edge-to-edge design on a client's gloriously scrappy double four patch quilt. My client's quilting hobby had been "dormant" for the past sixteen years, until her adult son asked her to make this quilt for him. The most exciting thing about all of this for ME is that her fabrics are ones that I had never seen before, different from what's been available in quilt shops throughout my own quilting journey, but also different from the much older fabrics I encounter when repairing vintage and antique quilts. However, the wide range of colors and the busy nature of the quilt top necessitated a careful thread selection. It was Glide thread in Khaki for the win!
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| Don't You Love That Green/Purple/Turquoise Batik? And the Orange/Red with Turquoise Spots?! |
The thread I chose, Glide in color Khaki, is a warm beige neutral with just the barest hint of green-gold. Glide has a bit of a sheen to it, so Khaki mimics a metallic thread against the deep navy blues and blacks, but is much less flashy (and less finicky!) than a true metallic thread.
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| Glide thread in color Khaki, available on Amazon here (affiliate link) |
The pantograph design we chose is Golden Curls, knowing that the quilting design itself wasn't going to show up much on these fabrics. Golden Curls creates wonderful texture and movement that works well with the many autumn colored and leaf prints in the quilt top.
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| More Stash Envy: The Birdies! The Floral Prints! The Batiks! |
When choosing quilting thread for a top that has as many different colors as this one, I try to stick to the value of the lightest fabrics in the quilt top. If I'd used a darker thread, it would have looked like the little yellow bird had been decapitated by the quilting! The soft Khaki thread blends nicely into those creamy off-white fabrics and is soft and subtle against the darker fabrics, without fighting any of the prints for attention.
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| Golden Curls E2E in Khaki Glide Thread |
You can see the Golden Curls quilting design best on the pieced border blocks that have narrow black sashing. See how the Khaki thread imitates a subtle gold metallic against the black fabric?
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| More Fabric Envy: The Fuschia Chevron! The Purple Batik! The Green Leaf Print! |
In this section of the quilt, you can see how the Golden Curls panto suggests rolling waves as it crosses the gorgeous blue marbled bookbinder's print fabric and suggest a gust of wind swirling through a pile of leaves against other fabrics.
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| Golden Curls Quilting Design More Visible on the Backing |
With this quilt, the quilting design is much more visible on the reverse side where the Khaki thread contrasts with the deep tone-on-tone turquoise of the backing fabric.
PSST!! I'd Love to Quilt for YOU!
By the way, if you or any of your quilty friends has a quilt top or two that needs quilting, I'd be delighted to quilt for you! My turnaround for edge-to-edge quilting is currently running about 2 weeks, and you can click here to find out how to book your quilt with me.
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| Samwise the Sweetie-Pie at 13 mos. |
I'm linking up today's post with the following linky parties:
SATURDAY
UFO Busting at Tish in Wonderland
SUNDAY
Frédérique at Quilting Patchwork Appliqué
Oh Scrap! at Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework
14 comments:
I don't recognize any of those fabrics! the quilting looks good - looks like you have really gotten the feel for your machine now and are comfortable with it.
These old fabrics are beautiful, it's a unique quilt! Pretty quilting design, and this thread is just perfect!
Thank you for linking up today ;)
Samwise is adorable! 103 pound lap dog? Whew mine is only 7 pounds. The khaki thread color looks fabulous! And it’s funny because I’m not a fan of khaki.
Michelle
https://mybijoulifeonline.com
What an awesome quilt, Rebecca!! Your thread choice and quilting design were spot on to enhance the finished product.
I love the khaki color glide thread. It blends in nicely with so many colors. Great quilting.
Cute puppy.
The khaki thread is a winner. I too enjoyed all the fabrics in this special quilt. I enjoy seeing lots of fabric variety in a project and your client nailed the fabrics into the perfect configuration. That quilting pattern is GREAT! Sam is adorable! He can share my lap anytime!
What an eclectric group of fabrics. Sounds like you really enjoyed working on this one and how marvelous that your client now wants to do more quilting.
Pat
I just used Khaki Glide on my latest quilt, too! Fun fabrics! Fun quilting!!!
102?? Oh my! BTW love the combination of the glide and the panto for that quilt - brilliant!
Okay, this is a really dumb question, but is Glide thread made just for long arm quilting? I recognize a few of those fabrics, or at least I have some scraps in my stash that look similar. Samwise is adorable!
I probably use a similar or same golden khaki Glide on a lot of quilts too, it just blends well with everything. Oh, my!! 103 pounds and still growing!!
Oh, Wendy -- the only dumb questions are the ones we're too afraid to ask! :-)
Glide is a 40 weight trilobal polyester thread from Fil-Tec that was originally developed for high-speed machine embroidery. It's very similar to Isacord 40 weight poly machine embroidery thread (which might be easier to find locally since most Bernina dealers stock that thread). This type of thread has a pretty sheen for any kind of decorative stitching, but is much stronger than a rayon embroidery thread, which is why it performs so well for both machine embroidery and long arm machines. But you can absolutely use it in your domestic machine as well. On your domestic machine, you might want to use a thread net and/or set the cone behind your machine so the thread comes off the top of the cone. Start with a size 75 or 80 needle but you can go bigger if you experience any shredding. Usually a dull or damaged needle will cause this thread to shread and break, a problem instantly solved by a fresh, new needle. You can either use the same thread in your needle and bobbin or you could go with a lighter weight bobbin thread if you want to experiment. If you try it and you have trouble, please reach out!
Rebecca
I've never thought to use a khaki thread on scrappy quilts, but it sounds like a great idea! Your quilting looks wonderful on your friend's colorful quilt. Samwise looks like a sweetie, and I love his name!
I will have to try out that thread. It looks beautiful! Of course, your lovely quilting helps.
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