I attended my first machine quilting class, yesterday!

LOL! Let's just say I need more practice with free-motion quilting. It's really a good thing that I have a sense of humor, and this class was not about getting a great (much less, a good) grade. My straight-line quilting was pretty good. I was able to figure out the path the needle had to take to create a continous stitch line. I learned so much. I learned about the relationship between fabric choice, thread density, needle choices, batting choices, quilt pattern choices, stitch length and tension in relationship to fabric and batting choices...... how all of these factor into the finished product. I also learned how to clean and oil my machine (I could've failed the class simply from how dirty my machine was when I came to class that morning.) A good rule of thumb for ALL seamstresses (and quilters)... CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN your machine after every eight hours of sewing. Who knew that I had giant dust bunnies living in and around my bobbin case? I met three fellow quilters: Gordon (a beginner quilter but an accomplished tailor); Mary (who was the most studious out of the four of us); and Judy, the class clown. I sat next to Judy, not knowing she was the class clown. She had me in stitches (excuse the pun) and the class instructor was threatening to separate us. Needless to say, the class was fabulous. It was the best $45 I've spent on an art class. Now, off to practice, practice, practice!!!

My first attempt at free-motion quilting:



The front of the straight-line 'quilt.' When you look at a quilt, with all of the various patterns and fabrics, most people don't really see the 'quilt pattern' on the front (sorry about the glare from my window):



The back of the straight-line 'quilt.' When you flip a quilt and look at the back, the quilt lines are more evident:



Thanks for stopping by! Despite the tornado and lightning warnings, it was a fun, fun day; and I hope to be able to take more quilting classes down the road.