Okay, yeah, it’s been awhile since I did a Thursday Thirteen, but hey, this one just had to be said:

1. The CFL (Cool Fluorescent Light) that is three sided and wraps around the foot for fewer shadows on your work. No more extra lights all over the table in my way!
2. Three (really!) thread cutters, one on the machine head, one on the bobbin winder and one in the bobbin case area. Do we really need thread snips any longer?
3. The separate bobbin winding motor. Fast, easy, and usable during embroidery.
4. The #24 free motion quilting foot. Neat and trim, with and offset shank and an open toe for better visibility.
5. The magnifier attachments. Three separate pieces with different mag levels, and you can even use them without attaching to the machine. Yeah, sometimes my eyes are tired (or is it just age?).
6. Built-in vertical spool holder. No more digging in a messy attachment box trying to find it.
7. Buit-in needle threader. It works much better than what the older models had, and better than what some other machines have now. Thread goes in the first time, every time.
8. The embroidery module. Waaaay better than what I had before, super easy to use, and virtually dummy-proof.
9. The knee lifter. Lift the presser foot with your knee and keep both hands on your work.
10. Infinitely adjustable motor speed. Not just a “half speed” setting, but a truly adjustable motor with a slider control. You can adjust the motor speed for different thread types during embroidery to minimize breakage, or use it to control the speed during machine quilting.
11. The foot control. Very sensitive, with the “tap of the heel” function to bring the needle up or down, and I love the cord storage on the bottom. Very neat.
12. The accessory box! Silly, but this is almost my favorite feature! Customizable storage for all the feet, bobbins, needles, etc. that you need near your machine while you work. No more digging through a cluttered box attached to a machine bed for whatever you need that’s always on the bottom. Add more shelves for bobbins or feet as needed.

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I’ll be teaching the Machine Quilting—Master the Basics class online at Quilt Campus, September 8-29. It’s a great way to bring the class to you, if you can’t get to the class!

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For the last two (or maybe more) weeks, I’ve been trying to design the outer borders for the bird quilt (a.k.a. “The Misery Quilt“). I really thought it needed some curves in the outer border(s), and maybe some more embroidery of some sort as well. I did test stitch-outs of a couple of embroidery options, and just didn’t have that “this is it” feeling about any of it. I played around with a diagram of the quilt, drawing curved appliquéd borders, viewing with mirrors, and just wasn’t terribly happy with any of it. I tried designing an appliquéd border without planning any embroidery to go with it, and still wasn’t happy with it.

Soft-Edge Piecing,
by Jinny Beyer

After a few really grouchy days (I get like that when I’m creatively stumped), I finally threw in the pencil, and headed to the bookshelf for inspiration. As I’d already been through all my books on borders and design, as well as all the books like the MAQS Founder’s Collection with all its prizewinning beauties, I pulled out Jinny Beyer’s Soft Edge Piecing for starters. I’m working with a border print and the soft edge piecing technique was in the original plan for the quilt way back when, maybe ten plans ago now. I really didn’t expect to have a flash of inspiration at that point, but desperation had set in.

Maybe the quilting goddess is smiling on this quilt (finally!), because I did see something in the Soft Edge Piecing book that had me grabbing for my fabrics to try it out. Here’s the result (click for a larger view):

I really, really like it! I had that “this is it” feeling immediately. The border print looks prefect between the light and dark borders, and I already know exactly how I’ll quilt parts of it, too. (Oh, and you see that tiny little satin stitching? I used the same technique on another part of the borders for this quilt and I used my Pfaff machine. I tried it on the Bernina this time, Read the rest of this entry »

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