Flash Friday- Flowers Flowers Everywhere

As spring in the Willamette Valley continues to give us gorgeous flowers, we thought we'd share some beauties of our own. From a precious little bonnet to a quilted masterpiece, we hope you enjoy this Flashback Friday.

So it's not a quilt, but I couldn't resist showing you the teeny preemie
bonnet Nanci hand-embroidered and made for a dear Instagram friend.

Love this sew much! We called it our "Anne of Green Gables" little quilt

The amazing stained glass quilt that Jeanette custom quilted 

And here is the whole stained glass quilt in all of its' beauty.
So many hours were put into both the piecing and quilting.
It is definitely an heirloom quilt!

Monday- New Tool Review

So last week we went over some of the small but mighty tools we use at OTS. This week we're bringing in the big guns...or rather big tools, that we use in the studio. Of course, you've read about our new "baby", the HandiQuilter Infinity quilting machine that we use on a daily basis, but we also have three other sewing machines that get quite a workout. 

First, I'd like to introduce you to the Janome Horizon Memory Craft 15000. This is my favorite to work with, but Jeanette also is learning to enjoy it as well. It has a number of features that make it just right for OTS.  In the technology department, I really likes the four apps that come with it that you can use with your iPad or iPhone. Practically, I have big hands and appreciate the actual work space. You can read more about it here.

The Janome

Of course, Jeanette's studios have always have at least one Viking sewing machine in them. I can remember going out to the garage "studio" when I was growing up and getting to sew a bit on her Viking machine she has way back when. Well, just like most of us, it seems as Viking has grown up and now has the Designer Epic. I've enjoyed this although I still tend to prefer the Janome, but Jeanette totally favors the Epic. It also has a touchscreen and lots of very cool features. You can learn more about it here.

The Viking Designer Epic

The one machine we both agree on is the Viking Huskylock 936 Serger. There have been a few bad reviews on the internet, but both Jeanette and I really like it. As a matter of fact, we both own one. These are great for both regular sewing- they're perfect for knits- and they are a terrific help in piecing large quilt tops. I just finished a quilt top on my serger because my other machine was in the shop, and it turned out really well. Viking has come out with a newer Huskylock, and you can read about it here. We would suggest, if you are needing a new machine, to look for the 936 model as it's got everything you'd need in a serger.

The Viking Huskylock 936

Hope this was a little helpful. There are a lot of sewing machines on the market, and these happen to be the ones we both use and recommend. Feel free to comment with questions about any of these machines, and we'll be happy to help. Thanks for stopping by, and have a sew-tastic day!

Flashback Friday- Facebook Challenge Edition

Did you know that both Jeanette and On The Stitch are on Facebook?  One of Jeanette's crafty friends gave her a 7-Day FB challenge about sharing quilts that she's quilted. She posted some great pics. We thought we'd share a few of the beautiful quilts for you.

Day 1- Stained Glass Quilted for Customer

Day 2- One of her first ProStitcher quilts

Day #- Quilt of Valor by Jamie
in honor of Jeanette's Dad

Day 4- Quilt made by Carol Kurth,
Applique by Pam More. One of the
first free motion quilts by Jeanette. 

Day 5- Quilt by Terry K &
quilted by Jeanette

Day 6- Quilt made and quilted by
Jeanette for grandson Ashton

Jeanette quilted this for Kaye L for her kids

Be sure to visit and like us on Facebook.

Monday- New Tool Review

One of the cartoons I grew up with was Mighty Mouse. I was always amazed when he saved the day even though he was so small. Here at On The Stitch, we have a number of small things that can be a mighty big help. Today's New Tool Review will focus on three of those small things that are super helpful.

First will be this small bottle of Fray Check by Dritz. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but once opened, it can be a huge help for any quilter. We tend to use it mostly when there is thread that needs to stay where it is or when something needs to not come unravelled. The best part is you only need to use one of two drops. Here's a little hint: after using it on your project, iron it immediately to keep the fabric soft and pliable. It's also terrific for other sewing and crafting, and at only around $5 per bottle, it's well worth having a bottle on hand.

The next little item is batting seam tape by Bosal. This may seem a bit excessive (pardon the pun), but I can assure you it is a valuable part of the OTS arsenal.  There has been many a time where a customer has given us the wrong size batting, and we need to adjust in order for it to work with the quilt they gave us. That's where this comes in handy. Simply butt two pieces of batting together and cover the seam with this tape cut to size. Iron the tape on the batting and voila, you have a perfect size batt               ready to be on put on the frame!

Our final tool to share are these Wonder clips by Clover. While we don't always use clips with our binding, sometimes it's good to have a little help. These are especially on curved binding. I also like to use them when designing quilt tops as they make changing blocks around a lot easier than pins. I think they're super!

Thanks for checking out our new tool review. Next week we'll look at a few of the bigger items that help us here at OTS. Happy quilting and see you soon!

Our New Machine Has a Name

Well, we have a winner in the 

"Name the New Machine" 

that has joined the OTS family! 

Congratulations to Charlene from Arkansas 

 name was drawn in the contest. 

We're sending a package of OTS goodies 

 to help her with her quilting.

And now for the name of our new "baby"...   

                                Ivy Perpetua

She has been a joy to work with so far. 

We are realizing there is a learning curve, 

but a few of the new features are amazing. 

We'll definitely be sharing more on what we think 

about our new Handiquilter Infinity, 

"Ivy Perpetua" in future blogs!

Flashback Friday- Springtime Edition

A sweet bird for a raffle quilt

 

Here's a look at some very Springy quilts

that we've made in the past~

Lots of flowers and pinwheels

A close up of a floral quilting design



Springtime stripes

 



A vintage embroidered quilt on the machine