Feather Talk


I have received several comments on my feather sampler quilt and want to thank each of you for being so kind. Feathers weren't easy for me to learn, but once I did they have become my favorite quilting pattern.


The first feathers I learned were what I call "longarm feathers". This is where you quilt in the spine of the feather and then quilt the feathers one on top of the other backtracking along the long edge of the feather. I could never get those feathers to look nice and neat and consistant. So I turned to stencils and transferred the pattern onto the quilt top with an air soluble or water soluble pen, or chalk pencil or pounce pad. They were much better, but it was difficult to find stencils to fit the spaces where I wanted to quilt feathers. So I kept practicing.


Then I took a class from Karen McTavish at MQS back in 2003. Her method of backtracking over the tops of the feathers instead of the long side of the feathers made a huge difference in the way my feathers looked. They were much more traditional looking - "victorian feathers", more consistant and prettier than the "longarm feathers".


The problem remained of fitting feathers into spaces that stencils weren't made for. I just needed to learn to do the traditional "victorian feathers" freehand. I had already designed a group of "Filigree" quilting patterns that I used in my quilts as well as customer quilts and played around with them and turned some of them into "Filigree Feathers" patterns, using the "filigree" as the spine for the feather. This was after purchasing Ricky Tims DVD "Grand Finale". He has a section in that DVD that shows you how to draw feathers.


I also purchased "Fancy Formal Feathers" by Sherry Rogers-Harrison, "Infinite Feathers Quilting Designs" by Anita Shackelford, and "Quilting for Show" by Karen McTavish. I also view the videos put out by Sharon Schamber on her feathers.


Practice, Practice, Practice is the key to quilting feathers for me. Studying how other quilters make their feathers is also an invaluable learning tool. I am very thankful that so many quilters are willing to share their talent with the quilting world.


Susan

Comments

Julia said…
Beautiful work!.
I would love to be able to do feathers...
Hugs
November 19, 2008 at 5:23 PM
Jennifer said…
I must tell you, as a quilting newbie I never realized how important the final stitching was. I am still trying to master stitching in the ditch! My greatest challenge (besides lining up the squares) is making sure the two sides come together without ripples or puckers! Now I am beginning to see that the final stitching can add simple beauty to the quilt and really complete it. Your feathers are beautiful, completely compliment the quilt top as well as make the back just as interesting and unique. Thanks for sharing with us!
November 21, 2008 at 2:18 PM
Susan said…
I felt the same way about feathers, but after 6 months of longarming, I took a class from Alice Furrey, and that made it ever so simple to freehand them. It became *my* favorite thing to do, too, especially in circles and hearts.

The ones shown here are beautiful!
November 26, 2008 at 4:32 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Log Cabin

Image
I don't know the title of this quilt, but it is a Log Cabin Variation that I just completed for a customer. I love the soft blues and browns in this quilt.  It just begged for feathers. See what I mean? I did add a few leaves in the small border, though.
Read more

Zipper Leader Tutorial - Part 1

Image
I removed my old zippers yesterday and completed attaching my new zippers. Along the way I made 2 additional sets of zipper leaders so I have the ability to have 3 quilts ready to zip on if I need to. As promised, I took photos of the steps and will post them in stages. These directions are my own and you may be able to find other instructions out the internet. This is something I came up with on trial and error. The first set of zipper leaders I made were with garment zipper that you buy by the yard at a fabric store. They didn't work out the way I wanted. They kept separating on their own. So now I have 8 yards of zipper to use in other projects. First off you'll need some materials and supplies. 1. Canvas Duck - I purchased 4 yards of 60" wide canvas so I wouldn't have to seam the leaders. This is enough to make 5 sets of 2 leaders. Buy the length to match the length of your zippers. 2. Separating Zippers in the size of your choice - I purchased 144" long zippe
Read more

First Things First

Image
Here is the first step in remodeling my quilting studio. We bought a folding table and a student chair on wheels so I now have a place for my sewing machine! I'm so excited. No more running up and down the stairs to sew, press, quilt, etc. Everything can now be done in the studio. My youngest can also play with her playdough on the table instead of on the cloth cover of my ironing board :o Of course I still don't have finished walls, but I can work in comfort all in one room until we get to that point. My DH and I priced drywall and other options for the walls this afternoon. Drywall is still our number 1 choice at this moment, but I wanted to see if we could find something that I could handle by myself and yet still be cost effective. Drywall sheets are too heavy for me to lift on my own and hang on the walls. Hubby's job is too hectic these days for him to take any time off to hang drywall and I'm getting anxious to complete the studio, so I thought we should try to f
Read more