A New-to-Me Skill

Back in January I pieced this top featuring a cute Paddington Bear print. It's been on my to-do list for quilting this month.

Because of the bias plaid, I didn't want to just give it my usual walking foot diagonal grid treatment. I'm not a proficient FMQ quilter - about all I can handle is meandering or stippling. Sometimes an actual motif is needed. This quilt needs something in the bear blocks, maybe a spiral. 

I sketched a spiral on paper and practiced stitching on the lines onto a scrap fabric, using the stitch regulator on my Bernina.  It went better than I expected. I stitched over the paper spiral three times. Then I carefully pulled the paper off the fabric to use it as a template.

The paper came off in two parts, two halves of the spiral.

I traced one of the parts onto template plastic and cut it out so I could trace around it.

Then I carefully marked around it onto the quilt, using a water-erasable marker.

Carefully, slo-o-owly, I quilted on the marked lines.

Not bad! I can do this! I quilted spirals in all the bear print blocks. (I had previously quilted in the ditch around all the blocks to stabilize the quilt sandwich.)

My spirals are not perfect, far from it. There are lots of bobbles and wobbles. But after the quilt is washed and crinkles up I think it will look all right.

Whoo-hoo! As my little grandson says, with great excitement in his voice, "I did that!"


Monday Link-ups:
Small Quilts and Doll Quilts
Em's Scrapbag
Love Laugh Quilt


PS -Thanks to all who responded to my request for weight-to-yards conversion info yesterday; some are no-reply bloggers whom I can't reply to personally.