pennyswings

I am in a quandry as to what to do. This is mainly because my lack of experience so I have two questions that I need help with and since I value all your opinions here they are.
I am two blocks shy of the 16 blocks on my Dresden Heart quilt. I did post the first two squares last month and will post them again here so you can give me advice. I am thinking about how to quilt each heart. I am going to quilt around each leaf in the heart and the center heart. Then do a echo quilting around the completed hearts. For the quilting stitchs I was thinking of doing it by hand using a colored embrodiery thread and a blanket or leaf stitch. I am also contemplating using a zig-zag machine stitch around each leaf in the heart and the center heart. So this is my first question, how should I quilt them.
To go with this question, and most importantly, once I decide how to quilt them should I sandwich the quilt together and then quilt the hearts or should I quilt the hearts and then sandwich the quilt and do echo stitch around each completed heart?
Thanking you all in advance,
Penny

Shemjo

I am trying to understand what your question is. Are you planning to quilt them a block at a time (QAYG); hand quilt, or machine quilt?
I think you need a sandwich to be able to quilt- just stitching about the design would look pretty, but .....
I don't think I understand your question. :?
The blocks are beautiful, BTW! :lol:

lfw045

Either way will work out fine. It all depends on what you want showing on the backside....just the outline of the hearts or the actual quilting of each heart to show on the back. JMHO

pennyswings

Maybe this will help clarify, I am not sure when you do an applique on a quilt how to quilt the applique.
I did a baby quilt with applique of baby bears in different postions. The quilt was hexagons with the baby bears in the middle of each hexagon. On that quilt I hand quilted in a open leaf stitch around each baby bear then put the quilt together and did in the ditch around each hexagon, (see baby quilt below). I just don't know if I would have been better off putting the whole top together, sandwiching the quilt then hand quilting around the baby bears. I am concerned how the back of the quilt will look if I do the quilting around the applique after I sandwich the quilt.
Thank you for compliments.

pennyswings

Thanks IFW045, that is really my question. How will the decorative stitch, like the blanket stitch show up on the back of the quilt? I know what it looks like on the back of one of my hand embrodierys and I want to back to look nice because I want it to be reversable. I guess I am answering my own question here. But thought those of you who do this type of quilting might have a couple of good suggestions.
Thanks you are making me think here. :roll: Was thinking while I was cutting out the last of the appliques and needed to clarify this in my head.

Rose Hall

You could make a sample with two blocks and do each block a different way and see which you like better.
Rose Hall

pennyswings

Rose:
Thanks for the suggestion. I do have a couple of appliques where glued it to the front of the fabric instead of the back so I could use those to experiment on. Thanks again for taking the time to answer me and for the great suggestion.

Ninnie

love those blocks, can't wait to see it finished!


Ninnie

amma

One thing you may want to consider is to check your batting package to see how close your quilting stitches need to be. :wink:

pennyswings

OMG, I never even knew they tell you that. I never read past what type of batting it is.
Unfortunately I can not get cotton batting here (I live in Argentina, Yes Argentina!!) and it is way too expensive for me to ship so I make due with what I can get. Lately I have been using Polar Fleece because it is about the same weight and thickness of the cotton batting I am use to. My only other choice is polyester and I hate quilting with that stuff.
Thanks for the tip. When I come back to the US in July I am going to buy two or three packages and bring it back with me and use some for this quilt. I will certainly check the packages this time.