One of the parts of quilting that I love the most is machine quilting. Now there are so many talented people that can quilt on their sewing machines, but I have had the honor of learning to quilt on a long-arm quilting machine. It took me years to convince Mom (Linda) to teach me and when she finally did, I knew that I was hooked! There is such an art, a talent that comes with machine quilting. It takes a person with an amazing eye, a plan or vision. Mom had all the things that it takes to be amazing. And, I am so blessed to have been able to study under her. I loved going down to the basement and watching her quilt, helping her come up with the details to go into a border. The time we spent planning out a quilt was precious time and I loved being a part of it.
This is the machine and it's table (it's not what you imagined, is it?). This table is 16 feet long (I think).
There are three layers to a quilt; the backing, batting (middle), and the top. Both the top and backing have to be hand pinned onto the rollers. The batting rests happily in between.
This is where the magic happens. The machine head reminds me of pilot handles. This is where you drive/sew your design into the quilt (quilting all three layers together). There are so many things that can go wrong; the thread breaks, the tension is off, the list goes on and on.
One of my favorite memories is when the thread constantly broke or the tension would be just the slightest bit off. Mom would say, "I would throw this machine out that damn door, if it wasn't so heavy." She always got it working again though, even if it did take a day or two.
Mom had tons of tops finished, but never really got around to quilting her own quilts. Mostly, she stayed busy with quilts she took in for her business. On my visits back to KC, I get to throw some of the tops Mom made into the machine. This was one that I finished over our Christmas visit. I look forward to out next trip to Kansas! I can't wait to see what goes in next.
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