Good to hear your top is almost done. What size is it going to be? Get it layered and basted pronto, so you’ll feel like starting the quilting phase. I promised myself when I started quilting that I didn’t want to wind up with a stack of unquilted tops. After completing 70 quilts in 12 years, my stack consists of three, one of which is my next project. Do you have a quilting design yet? Stitch in the ditch? An X through each square? Or an allover pattern like stippling? You can do free motion quilting with a darning foot, just remember to drop the feeddogs so you’ll be able to move the sandwich in any direction. How has the experience been? Better than you thought, or much with the wailing and gnashing of teeth? Can’t wait for the photos!
Well, technically, I’m not quilting it…just tacking it. Because I’m a wimp.
Although all the techniques sound intriguing, and make me think for ever-so-brief a moment, “OOh! I could do that! I could…um, stitch in a ditch! Or bees knees!! I could, I could!!”
And then I come back to reality a bit, and remember that I am the same woman who cannot make a dress unless it can be cut, pinned, sewn, and worn within the same 24 hour period. 
So I think I’ll just knot it or tack it or whatever it’s called. Someday, I think I’d like to try quilting, but I’m not sure I have the patience right now, or the hand-eye coordination.
Putting the top together has been fun, actually. I cut a billion 4x4" squares, then the whole family gathered in the bedroom while I laid the pieces out on the floor until they were juuuust perfect. (I had 14 different patterns, and just put one in each row, in random order.) Then the puppy chased the kittens through the whole shebang, and the little ones helped me pick it all up and put it back in order, and the end result is…well, it’s bright. It’s larger than a crib blanket, about the size of the throws that you can buy for a couch. 14 squares by 17 squares, actually. Just right for my daughter to use now and grow into for a few years.
I’m actually very proud of it. I’m going to be a little more orderly on my next one, I think, and will do a checkerboard of darker greens combined with brighter colors on the off squares. I think I’ll do bigger squares on that one, though, as my son has picked out a frog pattern with large frogs.
Does ANYone have pictures of their quilts to post??
I’m sorry bodypoet, I only have pictures of my very earliest stuff online. Here it is. I have lots of digital pictures, though–maybe I could post some later. I have to go make candy now, it’s the last day I hope, yay! (I love doing candy every year. I also love the finishing part of doing candy best.)
I read this thread with great interest. I just finished my very first quilt top. I’m in the process of hand quilting it. I’m no great shakes at hand quilting, that’s for sure. It’s been fun learning, but I really want to learn to machine quilt.
Here’s a picture of the top before I started quilting. Quilt
Not only is this my very first quilt, its also only my second ever sewing project. Until October I didn’t even know how to thread a machine, so I’m quite proud of this baby quilt. I hope I actually finish the darn thing!
Leave it to the SDMB to not only have several quilting enthusiasts for a thread like this, but an actual quiltguy and a quilter. God I love this place :D.
Hey Tamarin, very nice…is that the Yellow Brick Road pattern?
I threw a few of my recent projects up. Two baby quilts, a folk-art Thanksgiving wall hanging that is really quite unlike me, and the Christmas tree skirt I’ve been wanting to make for…oh, 9 years or so. It took me a long time to find just the right pattern, ya know. Anyway here they are.
Hurry up and finish bodypoet so we can see!
Yes, it’s the Yellow Brick Road pattern. It’s so simple. I finished the top in 2 evenings. I think my next one is going to be Stepping Stones. (Can you tell I’m afraid of triangles?)
I love your tree skirt!