Beach scene fabrics

This particular type of mess can mean only one thing...

I'm working on a new beach scene. For the last few days, I've been carefully auditioning, positioning, selecting and cutting each piece of fabric for this quilt. Its the slowest part, because each piece needs choosing separately, then has to be cut to the right shape, and they all have to work together. It got a whole lot worse before it got better, too! I kept running out of space to see all my fabric options!
 

Now all the pieces are pinned roughly to their foundations (the water has 13 sections, the beach 5 and the sun and sky are all one), and tomorrow I will start sewing them together. This is a really satisfying stage, because it's where I get to see how seamlessly they blend together. This time I've pinned the whole thing up on the foam sheets I use for photographing my quilts, which has enabled me to spot and correct a few errant pieces early - even if the lighting doesn't show the colours too accurately here. On the left are some prepared appliques I'll add once the piecing is done.

I've been building my stash of reef, ocean, water, sand, beach and sky fabrics since my first beach scene about 8 years ago. Since then, I've made nine more, and this is the tenth. Most are quite different. These quilts always involve a lot of fabric handing, and I've now refolded and tidied them, ready to go away. Except, I've just had some good news which means I'll need to be making the eleventh one soon - so I might just leave them out!

Out of interest's sake, once the piecing is done, I'm actually going to count up how many different fabrics have gone into the quilt. I estimate under a third of what I got out. While I have a few prints which I use in almost every beach scene, the selection varies almost by chance every time, largely depending on the first piece I choose.

Thread choices

Sometimes choosing the threads for a quilt is as much fun as choosing the fabrics. It can also be a pain sometimes, especially when it comes to finding one thread which will work over the entire quilt. But for this one I got to tip out all my Aurifil threads and pick a rainbow.

I needed one thread to match each fabric, so I could quilt and applique the pieces in place, and quilt in the ditch of the flange (in progress below).

Here is my selection:

Next  problem? I've run out of bobbins - again!

I've finished all the pretty coloured quilting now, and am filling in the background using an ivory BottomLine thread, which blends in and just leaves the gorgeous texture of the McTavishing - and the extra feather plumes in the quilting to match the applique. I'm on track to have this finished tomorrow.

New toy

About a month ago I came across the Brother Scan'n'Cut, and it intrigued me. I'd never been tempted by the die-cutters on the market for quilters, since I want to cut my own shapes - and different ones for every quilt. But the idea of this machine is pretty evident in its name; scan a shape and cut (or draw) it. It also has lots of other tricks; once a shape is scanned, you can duplicate it, rotate it (in 1-degree increments), accurately position it, resize it and so on. This has potential!


They're not cheap though. Here it's AU$700, or there's a $600 Spotlight-only version which is internally the same, but comes with fewer accessories (they're all available separately, and none of those 'missing' were ones I especially wanted) and fewer inbuilt designs (again, not an issue for me). Here's a US comparison chart. Then I just happened to receive a Spotlight (I think the US equivalent is probably Joann) voucher, for 40% off a single item. No more convincing required!


It sat unused for a few weeks while I finished off the landscape quilt, but this weekend (it's a long weekend here, plus with my lovely part-time days, that translates into a wonderful 5-day weekend for me!) I was able to try it out, and used it to cut the applique shapes for my next quilt. My design uses nine different shapes, and nine fabrics, with each shape cut five times from one fabric.

I printed my original templates straight from EQ7 where I designed the quilt, and it was easy and intuitive to scan and manipulate the shapes. But I'm still playing with setting options to get it to cut perfectly. There's a choice of 2 mats, 'standard' and 'low tack'. In this context, low tack means lower tack than the standard mat, which is really quite sticky. You can adjust the cutting pressure, and the depth of the blade, as well as the cutting speed.


My only problem is that while the paper-backed fusible web stabilises the fabric for cutting, the fusing process also ever-so-slightly warps it, which stops it from sticking (and holding) to the tacky cutting mat. This means it can buckle, and then the cut is wrong. My imperfect solution so far is to remove the paper backing. This allows it to stick much better, and though it seems to peel off the mat well enough, there is a risk of the fusible web coming off the fabric and remaining on the mat. In future, I'll try fusing more carefully, and I'll test out mirroring my image (I think the machine will do that for me) and cutting the pieces the other way up. Brother does also produce a fusible product which may stay flatter, but I admit I'm not keen to swap from my preferred Lite Steam-a-seam2. (As an aside, this product is temporarily hard to obtain - story here - so it's fortunate I have a roll.)


The positioning function prevents you from positioning the shapes too close to the edge, but you can get them economically-spaced. (The hot pink piece in the photo shows the minimal wastage - the extra at the lower edge was intentional - it was the selvedge.) However, it does make it harder - though not impossible - to use up the smaller scraps of fusible web left from other projects. There is a way to scan in what you're cutting from (e.g. the fused fabric) and position the shape to be cut directly onto it - I just haven't tried it yet.

When held in place properly, the cut is smooth and accurate. I don't think it saved me much time this first time, but in future it probably will. And anyway, I bought it more for saving my wrist when cutting, rather than saving time.


There are a number of consumables and accessories available. As well as the mats which do need replacing eventually, there are larger mats (which take the scanning and cutting area from just under 12in x 12in to almost 24in x 12in) as well as replacement blades, blade holders, coloured and erasable pens, and so on. I definitely want to get the bigger mats, and at some point will also try the erasable markers.


Disclaimer: I have no connection with either the manufacturer or retailer; I bought my Scan'n'cut machine with my own funds (yes, and the discount voucher!) and the views expressed here are simply a summary of my first experiences using it; I receive nothing for my review.

Strawberry Mousse in AP&Q

In the last couple of days, my quilt Strawberry Mousse was returned from the editor, along with my copy of the magazine. If you want to make your own version, the full instructions are in Australian Patchwork & Quilting vol 23 no 7. It's the applique special and should be available any day now.

Speaking of which, the publisher is launching digital versions of their magazines, and if you go here, there are some free issues of a few craft magazines to try.


The main post for Strawberry Mousse (with lots of photos) was back here.

Lions in the Window

After finally finishing the big landscape quilt, the following evening I turned my attention to this flannel baby quilt, which had been waiting only for binding - since shortly after Christmas!

It was about time I finished it since the baby it's for is, umm, well on his way to his first birthday!

I've been making more baby quilts from my flannel stash recently. The need to keep flannel quilts simply-pieced is part of the reason, but mostly it's the cute fabrics and the softness. The fact that I can piece them fairly quickly (even if it takes several months to bind them) is a bonus.

I chose to quilt it with a blue variegated King Tut thread. It was the perfect colour, and I chose the thicker (40wt) thread because I haven't used it much since getting my 820 which quilts nicely with it. But it perhaps wasn't the smartest thread choice, since a fine thread would have shown much less over the lions. Never mind, it's finished, soft and snuggly, and after forking out a fortune at the post office, is on its way around the world to a very cute little boy.

Nature's Gift

I finished my Australian landscape quilt and sent it to its new home this week. I was a bit stuck for a name, and while I was running my fingers over the textured ground, wracking my brains for a name, the national anthem happened to be playing for some televised sport. The phrase 'nature's gifts' stuck, and seemed particularly appropriate as this quilt was commissioned as a gift.

The ground is one of my favourite parts of this quilt; the curved piecing comes together in the most surprisingly easy way to create the rolling patchwork countryside, and I just love the texture of the quilting.

Hidden to varying degrees on the ground are a selection of Australian creatures. While it is intended to be an Australian quilt, I wanted to avoid making it cliché, so you'll find no emus, kangaroos or koalas here. The only mammal is the platypus, lurking near the billabong:

On special request, there's also an eastern water dragon:

This one was great fun to quilt; here it is a bit closer:

There's also a green tree frog up near the trees. Yes, it's obviously way out of scale, but because (like the other creatures) it's not obvious, it doesn't matter!

Towards the bottom at the centre, there's a lyrebird. This is the only creature which used two threads; a brown for most of it, and a fine white for the white tail plumes. I places this one on a branch:

The final bird on the ground is off to the left; it's a bush stone curlew. It looks rather like a water bird, but it lives in grassland:

The trees are solid black and were fused, then appliqued at the quilting stage. They took forever to cut out (and almost as long to applique - twice each!) but I love the way they finished.

The sky was unexpectedly the biggest challenge. Where the HST seams meet the joins were bulkier than I'd expected (next time I'd press the seams open when joining one block to another) and this made for difficult quilting. Admittedly this was probably linked to the new batting I'm using. I've decided to try a wool/poly blend, which has a slightly higher loft than the wool/cotton I've used for years. The combination of the bulk and loft made it hard to quilt the sky smoothly - and I think the batting also meant the quilting caused more shrinkage than usual. I'll have to remember that.


All this meant that I used a slightly easier quilting pattern for the sky than intended, and that the blocks got more distorted than I'd like. However, I do like the overall effect of the sky. Into the sky I quilted a sulphur-crested cockatoo (while James and Eleanor were picking out the hidden creatures, we discovered that Eleanor thought they were 'softer-crested' cockatoos!):

And more hidden is this whistling kite:

To  add a bit more interest (and another Australian touch) to the sky, there are stars in the form of the Southern Cross. As on our flag, the larger of the pointer stars (on the left) has seven points (these represent the seven states and territories). To keep the constellation form appearing too overt, I made sure to place some of the stars on lighter fabrics. The stars are also fused applique; I used an iridescent pearly white fairy frost to give them a bit of a glow.

I've discovered that, since James and Eleanor love to get involved while photographing my quilts, the best solution is to supply them with cameras while I'm doing the detail images, and by the time I want to capture the whole quilt, they've lost interest and are out of the way! James takes it seriously...

The finished quilt is close to 83in square.

Landscape quilting

I decided to fill the land part of this quilt with irregular lengths of nested Cs between wavy lines. I chose to separate them more by quilting three sets of wavy lines together, deliberately varying the gap between them. I'm using a taupe-coloured BottomLine thread top and bottom; it blends quite well with all the fabrics. It shows on the navy batik backing, but not as starkly as it appears in the photos.

To give you an idea of scale, the Cs are 1/2 to 3/4in apart; the photo below shows an area about 10in wide.

This works quite nicely around the quilted wildlife, and gives a nice land effect and good texture. I didn't want anything too fussy, since much of it isn't obvious among all the prints (hence the photo fro the back) and there's a lot of space to cover! The Cs aren't all the same, and they're not identically-spaced - I didn't bother trying; the natural variation gives it a more organic look.

This somewhat ugly creature is an Eastern Water Dragon - he was fun to quilt! I used a variegated brown/tan King Tut; the outline and some of the other lines (where necessary for continuous quilting) are quilted twice for definition.

Animal quilting

I've been busily quilting the big landscape quilt. I started by quilting the birds and other wildlife I'd marked prior to sandwiching. They're not all easy to see from the front in photographs, so I've shown the lyrebird below from the back as well:

And here's the platypus, near the little waterhole:

You can still see some of the blue pen markings; I'll get that out later, rather than work on a wet quilt.

Catastrophic

Yesterday didn't go quite as planned. We're having a very hot summer, and the awful heat (42C) combined with the wind, especially low humidity and dry undergrowth combined for a catastrophic fire rating. For those of you outside of Australia, this is an official rating; the highest level of a new system instigated after the dreadful fires through Victoria a few years back. It basically means that if a fire breaks out, it's unlikely to be able to be contained, spread quickly, act unpredictably and be ferocious. Even well-prepared and defended properties are unlikely to be able to provide safe shelter. Not good.


A fire was started around 8.30am perhaps 6km from us, in a National Park which comes as close as 1km from our home. And when we received emergency SMS messages on our mobiles and an automated call to our home phone, starting with, "Emergency, emergency...." we decided to heed advice and leave before it might be too late, even though I wasn't overly concerned about the safety of out home. So we grabbed a few essential items and went with the dogs to my parents-in-law for the day.

For me, my current quilt and my machine were essentials - mostly because I really need to get the quilt finished soon, and didn't want to lose more time than necessary! So I made a start on the quilting at their dining table. These smaller trees don't take too long to FMQ around twice (I'm appliqueing them in place at the same time), but the bigger ones take ages!


Luckily the fire was spotted early by fire patrols and heavily attended by crews and aerial attack, and though it did get out of hand for a while, the it was contained by mid afternoon, and the fire threat reduced, so we came home after dinner. luckily it's (relatively) cool today, but will be back up around and into the 40s by mid-week. While people in North America are experiencing the cold and having snow-days, we're likely to have a day or two this week where the school is closed due to catastrophic fire danger!


Because of where we're located (in the lower part of hills surrounding the city) we're at greater risk. While the majority of the 1m+ people in Adelaide who live, work and go to school on the plains are largely unaffected, up here we're in a separate fire-danger zone, with usually higher ratings, and on catastrophic days the schools and various other services close. The risk is a trade-off for the lovely tree-filled suburbs, greater space and, ironically, the slightly cooler temperatures.


Today I'm back to quilting at home, working through the bigger tree appliques. Perhaps I should add some flames into the quilting somewhere...

Hot and cold

Today James finished his fifth quilt. He designed it with me, painted all the fabric for the top, did some of the cutting, most of the pinning, all of the piecing, pressed under supervision and helped with the basting and quilting. You can see the lovely soft contrast minkee backing he chose.

Not that he needs to be bundled up in a quilt. As I sit up late watching the start of the Winter Olympics and we look forward to 2 weeks of ice and snow sports, we're in the middle of a very hot summer, and anticipating 42C (108F) tomorrow!

I just need him to name the quilt, and you should be able to see it in full as a project (instructions written by me!) in Australian Patchwork & Quilting in May (I think it's the children's issue).

Landscape progress

I had a very long and productive weekend, and the landscape quilt is now all pieced, with the appliques fused in place. Here it is with a selection of line drawings of some atypical Australian fauna while I positioned them for tracing prior to sandwiching:

The birds, amphibian, reptile and monotreme will be added in the quilting, so they'll be quite subtle. It's now sandwiched and ready to quilt, but currently James and I are finishing the quilting on his latest quilt, and the stretchy minkee backing on that is fussy on settings and slow going, and I don't want to muck around with things until that's done - hopefully in a day or two, since we're already late with it.

Australian landscape

Today is Australia Day, and appropriately I've been working on and Australian landscape quilt. Below is the bottom half of the quilt, which I pieced a few weeks ago. It's 84in wide and 40in high.

I started cutting out the intricate appliques, silhouettes of eucalypts and other Australian bush plants while watching the final stage of the Tour Down Under in our beautiful city.

By the time they were done, it was onto the cricket, also in Adelaide today. There's nothing better than listening to the cricket on the radio; it's the sound of summer.

Here are the most of the appliques. The tallest tree is almost 26in.

Next it's time to join the sky to the background and start fusing the trees.

Oh, and speaking of Australian, have a look at yesterday's visitor:

From where I'd been on the sofa, it was about 1m from me; it was right in the corner of the patio, climbing up the lattice and trying to get out. Cocoa, sitting on the back of the sofa of course, started barking at it, which set off Shadow. I went out with the camera and was about 2m away for this photo. Then I opened the gate. It eventually figured the way out, then went to climb a tree near our shed – but it’s a stump only about 2m tall. So it climbed back down and went around near the front door (at some speed) and tried climbing a post supporting some lattice-work and an arch on the front path. Foiled again! Then across some garden beds, down the driveway, and up a native frangipani. It sat up there a short while, but that obviously wasn’t satisfactory either, so it made its way back down, out the driveway, across the road (under my supervision!) and to a clump of big eucalypts.

2013 at Sampaguita Quilts

Now that I seem able to post photos again, here's an overdue wrap-up of my 2013 quilts. It was a relatively quiet year, with a long mid-year break where I worked on photos, read lots, and didn't quilt much!

I started by finishing the small, long-dormant piece I started in a class with Adds several years ago:

Bogong Bower

Next was a single bed quilt for Australian Patchwork and Quilting. I'd been wanting an excuse to make this ever since I first designed it, and it uses some of my own hand-painted fabrics:

Cherry Sunset

I then joined round 13 of the Flickr Doll Quilt Swap and made a wholecloth linen quilt. It's entirely free-motion quilted (with mostly white thread, plus a little cherry and sea-green) to look like lace:

Crystallised

I followed this up with a table-runner version, using different highlight colours, for the 2013 machine quilting issue of Australian Patchwork & Quilting:

Linen & Lace

Mediterranean Tiles in beachy colours came next, with a shift to focus on the piecing, also for AP&Q and currently available for sale in my Etsy shop:

Mediterranean Tiles

Then came a shift to flannels and simpler piecing for this cute baby quilt, again published in AP&Q and also available for sale in my Etsy shop:

Covent Garden

My next quilt was a red and white lap quilt, simply pieced from equilateral triangles and made as a gift:

Dziekuje

The next quilt was a commissioned version of my beach scenes, this time single bed size, and probably my favourite of the series to date:

Along the Jetty

I then got to make a different version of another series - my tree quilts. This time it was a Christmas version on a dark background with several hundred twinkly swarovski crystals. This one was hung in our living room over Christmas:

Maligayang Pasko

This next quilt is a strong contender for my favourite of the year. It's a commissioned single bed quilt representing the solar system, and I got to include loads of fun details:

Volare

After that I was back to making quilts for AP&Q; Magic Carpet has the appearance of a scrap quilt, but the spicy jewel toned fabrics pieces were all very carefully selected from my stash and some pieces fussy-cut. It's also available in my Etsy shop:

Magic Carpet

Also for AP&Q (and also in my Etsy shop) is the quick summer project, Melted Icecream, which I made using a roll of 2.5in pastel batik strips I won in a blog giveaway:

Melted Icecream

Next up was another commission, another large version of my tree with another possum and some other cute, personalised details:

Hiding in the Sycamore

Coming out in AP&Q in a few months, my next quilt is entirely machine appliqued and embellished, and probably my second favourite of 2013. I think this one will find a home on a wall in my house:

Strawberry Mousse

The final finish for the year was another gift, made from solid fabrics and enhanced with wholecloth details:

Star Gazing

I already have another quilt quilted and ready to bind (in fact, I got it to that stage between Christmas and New Year) and have been working on a large commission which I'll start sharing soon. I've also been busy helping James to finish his next quilt which is due to AP&Q urgently and therefore my current priority.

2014 isn't shaping up to be too busy just yet (though there are a few baby quilts on the horizon). Once again I'm hoping that will mean I get to tackle a few quilts I've been wanting to make for a while.

Bernina 820 Review

I've been meaning to do this for a very long time - provide an update on how I feel about my machine. I've had it now for 22 months, done over 6 million stitches, made and quilted over 30 of my own quilts, and quilted about a dozen customer quilts on it. Without reservation or hesitation (and with a fair amount of relief), I can say that I love it - it's definitely the sewing machine for me. This post has been written over a long period (literally months), but I've probably still forgotten things.

(Warning: long and comprehensive and contains no quilt progress, though I did sneak in a photo at the bottom!)

It pieces and appliques well. Better than well. I expected nothing less, so I won't bother saying more about that.

Where it comes into its own is the free-motion quilting. My previous machine had been purchased specifically for FMQ (having been marketed as such) and was a disappointment for the full 3 years I had it. You simply wouldn't believe the number of broken needles I experienced - and in the small gaps between broken needles, I had birds' nests and broken and shredded thread. It was awful, and made worse by the fact that I'd expected to love that machine.

I'm very happy to say that the Bernina 820 FMQs beautifully for me. Since I've had the machine, I've only broken a single needle - and that was due to me not attaching the presser-foot firmly, and the needle hit it when it slipped (although I should mention, I would feel more confident if there was a way to actually 'click' the foot into position on the shank). The 'down' side of no broken needles, is I actually need to remember to replace them, and tend to leave them in a bit too long. (I almost always use an 80/12 titanium topstitch needle form Superior.) I do clean out the bobbin area after every couple of bobbins and oil when reminded (probably about every 3rd or 4th bobbin, and the reminder conveniently pops up when you have the bobbin open).

Put simply, it does what it should and what I expect. It allows me to quilt as I'd like, instead of being a hindrance. A good machine won't automatically make you quilt well - but it can allow you to be and become your best.

I regularly quilt with a range of threads including Superior BottomLine (60wt poly), Aurifil 50wt cotton, Superior King Tut (40wt cotton), Superior Rainbows (40wt trilobal poly), FilTec Glide (40wt trilobal poly) and Superior Glitter (metallic ribbon thread). I use them in all sorts of top/bobbin combinations, and all without a single problem. It stitches smoothly, neatly and evenly in all directions. I keep my bobbin tension set permanently one click to the right of centre, which seems to be its natural balance. I didn't even change that when I did some bobbinwork with heavy 12wt Razzle Dazzle (Superior).

Fast or slow, sweeping curves or sharp points, dense thread build-up, bulky seams, multiple layers of fused applique, clear thread, bobbinwork, 100wt silk, metallic, double-threaded (single) needles, double batting.... it really does handle anything I ask.  I do very occasionally find the top thread shreds, but it is rare and not enough to be of concern or a nuisance.

One feature which I use a LOT is the top thread tension adjustment. The default setting is 4, but I automatically reduce it to between 2.5 or 2.75 for most thread combinations. If the stitch isn't quite right, a fractional change is usually all I need to fix it, and it's so easy.

Despite how happy I am with the machine, I acknowledge it's not perfect - but I'm more than happy to accept it how it is. So here are the few things that aren't quite right. The automatic needle threader is not as accurate as it could be and misses a bit too often (however, I've just been shown how to clear it of fluff from using so much cotton thread, and I think that will alleviate the problem - we shall see). The clear foot (34D) has a weak point and the plastic cracked after very little use - I use it only for attaching bindings and a very small amount of applique. It takes a bit too long 'thinking' before the needle starts to move up or down. I'd like a single-touch reverse button that stays 'on'. And it needs more than 11 needle positions. That's pretty much it!

There were more things I didn't like to start with, but familiarity with the machine has eased those. While some of them still could have been designed better (e.g. the visibility of the buttons on the machine's head), they really have become non-issues.

Whenever I review anything, I always find its the few less-than-perfect things that stick out in my mind, so I also want to list some of the things I really love. This can be hard, because these are often the things that become second nature, and we stop noticing them, but here are a few. The stitch counter just makes me happy (I passed 6 million around New Year). I love the clock. The lighting is fabulous. The curved front to the 'table' is really comfortable - it allows me to drop and relax my shoulders. And the little window to the bobbin area is extremely useful. The head shape gives great needle visibility. Threading is easy. Cleaning the bobbin area is easy. The oiling reminders are brilliant (especially as the oil is quite thin - but it makes a huge difference). The thread stand works really well. I love the ease and precision available for adjusting the height/pressure of the presser-foot. The eco setting - wow! - perfect for leaving the needle in position mid-FMQ when necessary. The 'stitch-only-every-second-stitch-in-the-pattern' feature is genius. If you tell it which foot you have, it automatically adjusts some settings - when I'm ready to FMQ, the feed dogs just drop - no forgetting!

There are some features I've chosen not to use, as a matter of personal preference or just because I don't need to. In particular, I don't use the knee-lift or the tie-off functions, have never used the thread cutters on many machine, and early on I determined my preference for FMQing without the BSR, having already had substantial FMQ experience. And I've only scratched the surface when it comes to lots of the fancy tricks and stitches - I use only a handful of stitches on a regular basis and haven't needed to tray many others, either!

There's also the weight. It's not light. But I have no problem with that. I very rarely need to take my machine anywhere, or even move it. And when I do, I'm young and healthy enough to manage.

Oh, and the cost. Bernina's 8-series don't come cheaply. The 3-year 'wait' through my previous machine was long, but makes me appreciate the 820 all the more. My perspective is that I've made an excellent investment (not least in happiness), and am definitely getting my money's worth. When buying it, I intended to keep the 820 for a long time. I still do, because it does everything I want. Quilting on the Bernina 820 makes me happy.

And my dealer and tech Otto gave me a really great deal. He also provides impeccable service and really knows the machine. Shhh, don't tell him, but knowing what I know now - I'd buy from Otto & Penny's in Walkerville (South Australia) even if they were the more expensive option! Yes, the price was the initial drawcard, but I was made to feel welcome and valued, allowed to test the machine extensively, given all the answers I needed, and made confident that my machine was in capable hands. Otto's excellent reputation is thoroughly deserved, and that makes him invaluable. He goes the extra mile to minimise the interruption to my sewing (e.g. instead of having to wait a week with the machine in for a service like elsewhere, when I took it in for something to be fixed, I was given the floor model in the interim, and even them, it was a mere 24h before it was ready - and he serviced it at the same time, without being asked, because it was about due!)

Until I had the 820, I dreamed of one day owning a longarm. But now I'm not so sure. There are some lovely all over patterns which I'd love to use sometimes, but are too awkward and slow without a pantograph - but I'm not sure that following pantographs wouldn't take the fun out of quilting for me anyway. On the other hand, ruler-work is something I'm often wanting to do, but haven't found a satisfactory method on a domestic sewing machine. And I hate basting, and suspect a long-arm would make that process much easier and faster. I'd still like to try actually quilting a quilt on one, but I no longer covet them.

Here are my reviews on day 1, and after 1 week, 2 weeks and 2 months for comparison. Looking back, I can see that I definitely experienced some teething problems - which I now attribute almost wholly to my lack of familiarity with the machine. Apart from the fact that you need time to become attuned to any machine, this was not only a change in brand for me, but a machine quite unlike others.

Many of the features I loved at first I still love; others I do take for granted and use every day. Many of the problems I experienced have simply vanished - as has the awkwardness of the unfamiliar - so bear in mind that these were indeed early impressions. As I found the rhythm of the machine, the few thread breakages, skipped stitches and birds' nests ceased naturally - any quickly, I've also found ways to address other things. The too-short bobbin thread is easily fixed by not pulling it through the thread cutter after threading the bobbin.

I have come to the conclusion that every machine is just a little different, and what suits one quilter may not work for another. But my Bernina 820 and I have settled easily into a very comfortable partnership, and I see many years of happy quilting ahead of us. It was the right choice for me.

I'd be happy to read your comments/experiences and answer any questions.

This is a block made for my current quilt. It gives no indication whatsoever of the actual quilt though...