Free Motion Quilting - Why I love it?

Do you know what is my favorite part of making a quilt? The actual quilting process. The process where I take my finished quilt top along with the batting and backing to the sewing machine and stitch those layers together. I have made a lot of quilts with Straight line quilting lately, but my first love has always been Free Motion Quilting.

I first attempted Free Motion Quilting in 2010 - on a quilt I had made using my Mom's old clothes. I had the brilliant idea of using an old curtain as batting. It made the quilt super heavy to move. I was using my lovely little Betty (Bernette e56) at that time. 

After a tiring 2 days of stippling the quilt, 3 fingers of my right hand were numb for 8 days. So much so that I thought I had permanently damaged them. I pricked them with a pin every morning to check and was about to tell my husband that I needed to see a doctor for my numb fingers the day the pin hurt! Thankfully, there was no permanent damage, I realized my mistake and never repeated it again.

But that wasn't when I fell in love with Free Motion Quilting. I was just exploring it at that point. I was stumbling around and still trying to get comfortable. 

Then I got my Bernina 330!!! That was a game changer! Suddenly Free motion Quilting started feeling almost effortless. I have made some of my most striking quilts on it.

When I was using Emily - my Bernina 330 - I was sure that I did not need the BSR (Bernina Stitch Regulator). I thought I was skilled enough to do the job. And if I used it, I will never develop the skill and control I need to be a good Free Motion Quilter.

I made some super extensive FMQ-ed quilts before I was introduced to the magical BSR!

The BSR changed my life! I know its a very dramatic sentence, but it did wonders for my work. It took my FMQ to a whole new level. I had better control and my stitches were awesome.

My confidence grew and so did my finishing.

I felt like I had more control over my quilting than before. And the quality of my work grew exponentially. I will forever be thankful to Sabine Schiner who gave me the BSR when I bought Ross - my Bernina 710.

I love how FMQ softens the look of the quilt.

I also love how it adds character to a quilt. And makes artwork out of mere mug rugs!!!

And sometimes it creates pure drama.

It has the capacity to elevate the quilt dramatically.

I love how Free Motion Quilting makes my quilts look. Have you tried it? Do you love it or hate it?