Quilting and Airstreams

[rebelstand]

Originally Posted by Foiled Again

The 306 & 319 are actually 3/4 sized head machines. Get one with a wooden base and you can make a quilted bag to carry it in (Use heavy nylon woven straps and encircle the whole bag. That sucker is heavy.

You've given me something to do on this snowy cold morning... sewing machine research!!

Originally Posted by Foiled Again

Janome makes two small machines - one is "almost a toy" for about $50 and the other I think is the "Jem?" that is about $100. For a plastic fantastic machine, these are actually pretty good ones. The only thing I don't like about the Janomes is that the lever that lifts the presser foot points to right rather than going straight back as the Singers do. I'm left handed and it ticks me off. Hmm. I'm going to pull my machine out and look at it. It might be possible to change it over to a "southpaw sewing machine."

I'll check it out but after the 9410 I'm a bit jaded against plastic machines...

Originally Posted by Foiled Again

Did you know they made a ZigZagger attachment that fitted on the Featherweight 221? Perfect for the Airstream no?

I have the zig zag attachment for the FW. I really wanted it to work for me. However, I use the zig zag for attaching patches to jeans and paper piecing hexes together. The attachment moves the fabric instead of the needle moving. It makes it hard to feed the hexes through straight.

Originally Posted by Foiled Again

BTW I was grazing through ebay and found a very nice looking hand crank machine from the 1920's - now there is a portable suitable for boondocking. IMHO the handcrank is designed for light sewing only just because your right hand is constantly tied up turning it.

Paula

I think you are correct. It would be hard to get much work done one handed... especially if you are a "north paw" and your "north paw" is cranking the machine.

[maxandgeorgia]

I'm hoping we all came through the Blizzard in good shape. I had planned to do lots of sewing, attaching strip and pieced borders to a Thimbleberries quilt, but I've mostly felt restless, wandering window to window, scooping snow, wandering, scooping, scooping...well, it's probably the same for everyone. I think my flock of hens was less disturbed by the weather than I was! Jezibels, I loved the quilt top, and when reflected in the A/s, it's magically made even more impressive. I enjoy the handwork of binding...wish I were there to help you with it I didn't know about the zigzag for the Featherweight. I started getting excited til I read Nikki's comment on how it didn't move the needle but the fabric. Don't think I'd like that either. Ok, you've all put me to shame, so I'm putting my quilt top down onthe floor to start attaching borders. By the way, do any of you have "design boards" or flannel boards hung on a wall to plan graphics? A friend told me that one with grids was available through Fons and Porter but I've not been able to run it down. What do you use for arranging/designing your q tops? ~G

[rebelstand]

Originally Posted by maxandgeorgia

I'm hoping we all came through the Blizzard in good shape. I had planned to do lots of sewing, attaching strip and pieced borders to a Thimbleberries quilt, but I've mostly felt restless, wandering window to window, scooping snow, wandering, scooping, scooping...well, it's probably the same for everyone. I think my flock of hens was less disturbed by the weather than I was!

I forced myself to pick up the baby quilt I'm working on today. I had pretty much buried myself in books to get through the weather.

Originally Posted by maxandgeorgia

I didn't know about the zigzag for the Featherweight. I started getting excited til I read Nikki's comment on how it didn't move the needle but the fabric. Don't think I'd like that either.

In it's defense, it's really cool to see the "technology" of it. If you can master using it, it makes a nice fancy stitch for applying borders and decorative stitches. I however bought it for a specific purpose and it didn't work for it.

Originally Posted by maxandgeorgia

What do you use for arranging/designing your q tops? ~G

Either the floor or the dining room... at least for now.

[summerkid]

Like sewmary, I'm wondering how I've missed this thread. I've quilted for about 20 years and have a couple of Bernina 1260s (one for the living room & one for the studio) plus a 12-foot Gammill longarm that allows me to take in other quilters' tops. Am on my new laptop with no photos available but will post some later today.

[Diego]

I found this kit in my UFO drawer, all cut and ready to sew together, so I got it out and got to work. Not sure what kind of a border I'm going to put on it or what I'm going to do with it when I'm done, but I remember loving the bright colors when I bought the kit.

Hope everyone else is finding projects to enjoy working on over the winter.

Take Care,
Lana

[maxandgeorgia]

Lana, your quilt makes me smile with all its brights! Now, we also have a '78 single axle Minuet Ours is disassembled (lounges and dinette) in our barn waiting for warm weather to be put back together again. We are in the process of replacing the worn stained orange carpet with a floating stone effect hardsurface floor and all the upholstery, plus the old foam. What is yours like on the interior? Do you have front dinette or two lounges? What do you have yours covered in? I'm having an awful time deciding whether to keep the dinette with all the night time and morning rebuilding if used as a bed--as we'd have to do, or having a second lounge built in up front. I also cannot seem to settle on upholstery fabric. I think I'd like a tough stain-hiding chenille--soft to touch but hardy to live with. We had a persistent leak that seems to come from above the door (but who can really tell??) so I will have the spring job of redoing caulking on the outside and windows come spring. Somehow in the middle of all this snow and freezing, spring Argosy work is appealing Please describe how you've done yours inside or post some pics. Much interested...~G

[maxandgeorgia]

Nikki, thanks for your comments. I too am using floors and bed tops as places to work on quilt tops and design, but I'd love to find a large enough piece of flannel, especially one marked with grids to hang on an open wall in my sewing room. Then I could plan, rearrange, just play with colors and pieces of a quilt top to reach a design I like--and it would be up at eye level, easier to visualize. I'll keep looking because I think this is "must" for me.
Summerkid, wow! Your machines put you right in the professional quilters category. I'm amazed at sewers who master those longarm machines. Welcome to our quilting circle--can't wait to learn from you! ~G

[sempi2]

Originally Posted by maxandgeorgia

By the way, do any of you have "design boards" or flannel boards hung on a wall to plan graphics? A friend told me that one with grids was available through Fons and Porter but I've not been able to run it down. What do you use for arranging/designing your q tops? ~G

Hi Georgia
I do have 2 flannel boards. One has a grid with 4" squares. I did the grid myself several years ago when I took a water color quilt class. Hung it on curtains to arrange the squares. Had to pin each 2" square onto the flannel. A few years later took another watercolor class but the instructor had flannel panels with a 2" grid. Made a board out of insulfoam which we got at Home Depot. Cut the foam board in half and reattached it back together with duct tape. Made for easy transportation to class. The other nifty thing about the foam board is that you can just pin you pieces to the board and it makes for easy "fiddling around" placement. If I can figure out how to post pictures I will get a couple of pics here.
Susan

[Diego]

Originally Posted by maxandgeorgia

Lana, your quilt makes me smile with all its brights! Now, we also have a '78 single axle Minuet Ours is disassembled (lounges and dinette) in our barn waiting for warm weather to be put back together again. We are in the process of replacing the worn stained orange carpet with a floating stone effect hardsurface floor and all the upholstery, plus the old foam. What is yours like on the interior? Do you have front dinette or two lounges? What do you have yours covered in? I'm having an awful time deciding whether to keep the dinette with all the night time and morning rebuilding if used as a bed--as we'd have to do, or having a second lounge built in up front. I also cannot seem to settle on upholstery fabric. I think I'd like a tough stain-hiding chenille--soft to touch but hardy to live with. We had a persistent leak that seems to come from above the door (but who can really tell??) so I will have the spring job of redoing caulking on the outside and windows come spring. Somehow in the middle of all this snow and freezing, spring Argosy work is appealing Please describe how you've done yours inside or post some pics. Much interested...~G

Ah, we love our Minuet. We've only had it for a year and a half, but it was in pretty good shape when we got it. I have made new draperies - the old ones were original I think and in shreds - and have upholstery material to recover the cushions. The current upholstery isn't in bad shape, just ugly. Anyway, I'll have to take a pic of the material and post for you. I got it at JoAnn's. Love it. Can't wait to get started on it. That is my project for March and April. We, too, took out the orange carpet and are thinking of Marboleum for the floor. We have the orange countertops. We do have the dinette up front and have been using it for our bed and keep it made up as a bed during the day. There is just the two of us. Then we use the gaucho during the day for a sofa. We have been considering leaving the front made up as a dinette and using the gaucho for a bed because it's easy to push in during the day. I think it would be nice to have the dinette set up during the day. My dream is to have a 25 FB to solve that problem!

[Diego]

Originally Posted by maxandgeorgia

I'm hoping we all came through the Blizzard in good shape. I had planned to do lots of sewing, attaching strip and pieced borders to a Thimbleberries quilt, but I've mostly felt restless, wandering window to window, scooping snow, wandering, scooping, scooping...well, it's probably the same for everyone. I think my flock of hens was less disturbed by the weather than I was! Jezibels, I loved the quilt top, and when reflected in the A/s, it's magically made even more impressive. I enjoy the handwork of binding...wish I were there to help you with it I didn't know about the zigzag for the Featherweight. I started getting excited til I read Nikki's comment on how it didn't move the needle but the fabric. Don't think I'd like that either. Ok, you've all put me to shame, so I'm putting my quilt top down onthe floor to start attaching borders. By the way, do any of you have "design boards" or flannel boards hung on a wall to plan graphics? A friend told me that one with grids was available through Fons and Porter but I've not been able to run it down. What do you use for arranging/designing your q tops? ~G

I bought a flannel design board - I think it's Cheryl Anne's?? at a quilt show. It packs up in it's own bag when not in use, which is handy.

[transplant]

hi lana i love the 'puzzle' quilt. i have never seen one b4. is it easy to piece ? i couldn't see where it was pieced. loved the colors. my favorite color is the rainbow!!!!
lana we had a safari 25'fb. i do miss the wonderful view from the dinette area. cannot be beat. we needed more room and a sofa to sit on so we sold it.
i just bought a janome gem machine for the trailer. i don't like to take my elna on the road.
keep the pix coming love to look for ideas. pat

[maxandgeorgia]

Thanks for your responses. If you don't mind, please post pictures of your Argosy interior, upholstery fabric, and flannel boards. I need some help in getting on with these projects! I'll look up "cheryl Anne's" and see if I can find flannel boards. Again, thanks. ~G

[lmgreenfield]

Originally Posted by 62bam

SilverHoot..........When we renovated our 62 Bambi, quilting became an important part of our makeover. Take a look......click on the "Images 8" in our Profile on the left side of this page.

You've done a beautiful job with the restoration, and the quilt theme inside is inspired! Love to see those pictures!

[Diego]

Originally Posted by transplant

hi lana i love the 'puzzle' quilt. i have never seen one b4. is it easy to piece ? i couldn't see where it was pieced. loved the colors. my favorite color is the rainbow!!!!
lana we had a safari 25'fb. i do miss the wonderful view from the dinette area. cannot be beat. we needed more room and a sofa to sit on so we sold it.
i just bought a janome gem machine for the trailer. i don't like to take my elna on the road.
keep the pix coming love to look for ideas. pat

I had never seen one b4, either and that's what fascinated me about it. I couldn't figure out how it was pieced, so I had to buy it to find out. All the squares are the same, but rotated with a square of a piece of fabric from the row above, next to, or beneath it. Kinda hard to explain, but fun to do.

So you found with the 25 fb that the sofa by the dinette was not big enough?

I have a Singer featherweight that I plan on taking with me camping once we get to the point where we can take long enough trips for that. Right now it's a weekend or week at a time.

[Diego]

Originally Posted by maxandgeorgia

Thanks for your responses. If you don't mind, please post pictures of your Argosy interior, upholstery fabric, and flannel boards. I need some help in getting on with these projects! I'll look up "cheryl Anne's" and see if I can find flannel boards. Again, thanks. ~G

Here are some pics of our Minuet when we first got it and I'll also a pic of the new drapery and upholstery material in the next reply. I don't think I have any pics since I hung the new draperies. They are the striped sheer. I wouldn't normally have purchased a sheer, but LOVE the way it goes with the upholstery fabric and I considered it a packaged deal. I lined the draperies and I've gotten a lot of compliments on them. Will post a pic of the upholstery when the project is complete.

Here's a link to my design wall - index.

[Diego]

Originally Posted by 62bam

SilverHoot..........When we renovated our 62 Bambi, quilting became an important part of our makeover. Take a look......click on the "Images 8" in our Profile on the left side of this page.

I just LOVE it. Thanks for sharing!

[Diego]

Originally Posted by maxandgeorgia

Thanks for your responses. If you don't mind, please post pictures of your Argosy interior, upholstery fabric, and flannel boards. I need some help in getting on with these projects! I'll look up "cheryl Anne's" and see if I can find flannel boards. Again, thanks. ~G

Okay, here's the upholstery fabric and striped sheer drapery fabric...

[Diego]

Okay, one more pic and I'll get off of here and get busy. My mom kept my grandpa's pj's (I know - a weird thing to keep, but she kept everything) and so I am making a quilt out of them. Kinda fun 'cause I do remember him wearing them. I tried to get it done before my mom passed away, but didn't make it. Hope to finish it today..

[lmgreenfield]

Awesome fabric - both choices. What a difference that will make to the look of the interior!

[maxandgeorgia]

Diego, those fabrics are gorgeous! I'm having an awful time settling on a fabric for recovering all the orange and striped old stuff and for drapes (shredded and rotten), not to mention that I cannot even decide whether or not to discard the dinette in the front or not. I think I'd like a fairly sedate chenille for sitting portions and trim, and do some quilting to make cushion covers for the backs. Just thinking. I'd like another gaucho in place of it for greater ease of making beds morning and evening. We tend to spend our meal times and cooking outdoors if weather is at all decent. I think if we had two folding tables, we'd be ok or eating indoors when it's necessary--or for end table, craft tables, and so on. I'd miss the dinette, but we'd soon grow to hate all the pieces and work of set up and take down twice a day. I love the sentiment of the pj quilt of your Grandpa's. I'm so sorry that your mom didn't get to see the finished quilt--or, maybe she has I finished a quilt for my mom just before she was hospitalized and came to live with us for her final year under hospice care. She loved that I'd made one for her. You'll love this momento of your grandfather too. Thanks for your help (above posts). ~G