Monday-New Tool Review

A plethora of threads

Obviously, every quilter knows how important good thread is to their craft. At OTS, this is no exception. We use Superior Threads for all of our machine quilting. The selection of their "Sew Fine" threads cannot be beat in color, stitching and wear. They also make the quilting easier as they leave almost no lint and are great for all batting, whether cotton, polyester or wool.

Besides helping to choose quilting designs, choosing the right thread color is another favorite task. So many people just choose thread that matches the backing or front of a quilt, but we like to put a lot of thought into our choices.

Here are some questions we ask when choosing thread:

~Would a blending color or pop-out color look better on the pieced design?

Some quilts are very simple while others have a wide variety of colors. Sometimes the quilting looks better when blended while other quilts look fantastic with a bold color choice of thread.

~What quilting design are we using and which color would highlight that?

The color can matter if we are using a unique or custom quilting design.

~What style of quilt is this?

This one's especially important as more quilters are doing vintage-styled quilts but want a modern quilt design or vice versa.

Superior Threads also has a great website and monthly thread club which we love being a part of as we get to try new colors each month. Like we've said before, we don't get any money from sharing our tools with you, but we want your machine quilting and sewing to be the best it can. Enjoy your Monday and stay sew happy!

Flashback Friday- Babies, Boxers and Motorcycle Pigs

We were busy with some fun quilts a few weeks back. 

Here they are for Flashback Friday-

Jungle Buddies- quilted with jungle leaves
 for a happy new Grandma

A close up of the Boxer quilt. It was quilted
with a dog bone design in brown.

The Boxer quilt- it's doggone awesome!

Motorcycle Pigs- The back was out of flame
fabric. It turned out great!

I couldn't resist a close-up of the flame quilt design

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!

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!

Our New Arrival

We've got a new arrival here at OTS,

and it doesn't need changing or feeding

unless you're talking thread, oil and needles.

A bit of background~ We've been quilting with a Handi-Quilter Avante longarm machine for a few years. It has been a joy to work with, especially as we've continued to learn more of all the things it can do. It has helped us to design and quilt so many beautiful creations. With the added help of the Pro-Stitcher, there has been almost nothing we haven't been able to accomplish...except for larger quilting designs and multi-rows. From today on, that will be a thing of the past. How, you may ask?

A new arrival appeared at OTS yesterday.

It's larger, it's longer and it's got a new name.

 

The New Arrival in hiding

Ladies and gentlemen, I introduce to you {insert drum roll here}...

The New Arrival revealed

THE HANDI-QUILTER INFINITY!!!!

It's quite an amazing machine. Very similar to the Avante but much bigger. It has a quilting depth of 26 inches! Yes, 26 inches! This means we will be able to do up to 24 inch designs or two rows of design in one swoop on its' 12 foot long frame. Needless to say, we are quite excited around here!

We do have one little problem. We haven't come up with a name for it! What we'd like to propose is a contest. That's right, the first contest in the history of OTS. All you have to do is comment below with a name suggestion for our new arrival. We will then draw a winner at random on April 1st (no, this is not an early April Fool's Day joke). Not only will you get to name the new machine, but we will send you a gift pack of sewing goodies from OTS. So, put your creative thinking cap on, and come up with a great name to help us welcome our new arrival here at On The Stitch!