Cross Hatch Hand Quilting | Part Two of MY SISTERS QUILT

Introduction

Hello quilty friends! My name's Rachel, and I create videos about quilting and my creative life. Today's video is part two, where I'll be demonstrating the hand quilting of My Sister's Quilt, which I started last week. For those that wish to keep up with my creative journey, you can find various links in the description box below, including my Instagram, TikTok, and exclusive content on my Patreon page.

I've been hand quilting this project for several days now, and it took me a little while to find my rhythm with the stitching. Initially, it was a bit challenging to achieve consistent stitches in terms of size. When I usually do straight-line quilting, I rely on marking the quilt; however, I thought it would be manageable without markings this time. Unfortunately, I found the stitching a bit bowed in the middle during the early stages. To remedy this, I decided to use a Hera marker and a ruler to mark the straight lines.

In last week's video, I mentioned that this quilt is intended to be a Christmas gift for my sister, which has given me a deadline to work with. I’ve completed about half of the quilting in one direction, which places me at roughly a quarter of the way through the overall quilting process. Once I finish this stage, I plan to go back and add cross-hatch quilting over the whole top.

For this project, I chose to use wool wadding for the first time. I’ve always used 100% cotton before, but I wanted to give wool a try because my sister loves its properties of being warm in the winter and cool in the summer. I've noticed that the stitches appear to pop a bit more with the wool wadding. Additionally, I used pearl eight thread in ecru, which is a slight departure from my usual practice of using two or three strands of DMC embroidery floss. I initially picked up a white thread for quilting but found it was too stark against the fabric, so I stuck with ecru.

While working with the wool wadding, I did notice some organic material embedded in it, which didn’t bother me. Still, if you prefer a perfectly pristine product, keep this in mind. The backing fabric I chose is extra-wide, making the quilting process much smoother without needing complicated cutting and joining for seams. It's also very much my sister's style, and I believe she will love it!

As I mentioned in my previous video, I'm on a time crunch this year. I'm not just making this quilt; I'm also working on another quilt as a joint gift with my sister and one for our mom. So, if you’re interested in more quilting vlogs and updates, please check out my Patreon page. Each method in quilting is unique, and I've found my preference for quilting without a hoop, which I’ll explain more in my older video linked below.

Another quilting experience I wanted to share is about the thread I’m using. I typically utilize a longer piece of thread (twice my arm's span) to minimize the frustration of burying knots, which I dislike. Luckily, I haven’t had too much trouble with knotting using the pearl thread. After finishing the quilting, I plan to perform a “lap of victory” around the whole quilt to ensure everything is held together smoothly before attaching the binding.

This binding will be made from leftover strips from the quilt itself, as I prefer to utilize materials efficiently rather than cutting into my meterage. Additionally, I need to create a quilt label with a sentimental message, which I usually place in a corner of the backing.

As I near completion, I have truly enjoyed the process of hand quilting this project, particularly as it's a perfect cozy activity for winter nights spent watching movies on Netflix. I’ll be completing the binding soon, and although I likely won’t finish it in time to showcase it in this video, I plan on revealing it in the next installment, along with another Christmas project.

Thank you for joining me on this quilting journey! If you’re enjoying my videos, please subscribe to the channel so you won’t miss any updates. Happy stitching, and take care until next time!

Keywords

• Cross-hatch
• Hand quilting
• My Sister's Quilt
• Wool wadding
• Pearl eight thread
• Ecru
• Quilting without a hoop
• Binding
• Quilt label

FAQ

1. What type of wadding did you use for My Sister's Quilt?
I chose to use wool wadding for the first time, which offers warmth in winter and coolness in summer.

2. What thread did you use for quilting?
I used pearl eight thread in the color ecru, which has given the stitches a nice, defined look.

3. Do you mark your quilts before quilting?
Usually, I don't mark my quilts; however, for this project, I used a Hera marker and a ruler to help guide my stitches since they weren't following any seams.

4. How do you manage binding for your quilts?
I prefer using leftover strips from the quilt itself for binding to maximize efficiency and minimize waste.

5. Will you show the finished quilt in the next video?
Yes, I plan to reveal the finished quilt in my next video along with another Christmas make.