Fortunately, today was just the kind of weather I enjoy. It was cool tending towards cold, but clear with some big fluffy clouds around. The light was really gorgeous and it helped me get into a calm mood before I got to the machine.
I spent my day quilting the Eye Spy on the longarm machine. In my February 8 post, I old you that my next longarm session would be on March 2. Instead I went today. My assistant for Monday bailed and Friday works much better for me, so I changed the date. As I sit here, the Eye Spy is completely quilted. YAY!
I woke up with one of those “who stuck a knife in my temple/forehead” kind of headaches. They happen periodically especially during times of stress, but I wasn’t happy about it. I drank a whole bunch of water and caffeine and ate more protein than should be legal so I could go on about my day. Amazingly, longarming is a good antidote to a headache!
I was more familiar with most parts of the process this time and the session went a lot better. I completed a larger quilt in a slightly shorter amount of time. I didn’t have to stand as long and it was slightly less expensive.
I used an easier pattern which contributed to completing the larger quilt faster. I tried really hard to manage a consistent speed and to make the designs larger. As the day went on I did tend make smaller motifs, which I will have to work on.
The crazy part about the whole process was the back. I spent last weekend, when I wasn’t shopping for headstones and wasting time, making sure the top, which has a lot of bias, was stable. I only started the back and figured I could do it this coming weekend. Then I changed the date of the longarm session and totally forgot I hadn’t made the back. Huh?? I don’t know what I was thinking. Fortunately, I remembered on my way home. I spent the evening, in between life stuff, making the back. They never go together as quickly as I think they should, but it all worked out.
During my last session, I felt like I had a really steep learning curve. This time, I had more of an idea of what was happening and knew, basically, what to do when prompted. By the end of the day I was starting the rows myself without assistance. I really in absorption mode – trying to absorb the process. I didn’t take as many notes. I still needed a lot of help and reminders, but I have made a lot of progress and was much more confident. I do want to go over my notes tonight and see how they jive with what I remember now that I have two sessions under my belt.
So cool! How many hours did it take to quilt it on the longarm? Was it fun? I spy a teapot!
Hi Leslie!
Thanks for reading. It took me about 5 hours on the longarm to quilt. That wasn’t constant stitching. It included a wobbly needle, broken thread, rolling up and bobbin changes. I also took a couple of breaks.
All right! You really did it, and I can’t wait to see the quilt up close and in person. I’m glad that you were able to do it even though you were headache-y
I love reading about your process! Congratulations. It looks huge.
The last time you did free hand flowers. What did you use for this quilt? Did you emphasize the blocks or do an all over pattern?
I did a double bubble kind of pattern. It is an all over pattern. I will post some close-ups later so you can see how it looks. I am very pleased with how it came out and will probably use this pattern again..