Boy, is this stuff great.  How many quilt tops do you have lying around because you can’t bear to baste them together?  I have about 10 myself.  Well get them out, because you’re about to have an attitude adjustment. 

I didn’t believe the claims recently made to me by a friend, so I tried a few samples.  I made up three little quilt sandwiches about 10” x 15” each and tried three different machine stitched quilt patterns.  It worked like a charm.  I still didn’t believe it would work on a large quilt.  I thought I would certainly have to pin some of it as I manipulated the quilt under the machine.

But no!  I machine quilted two twin size quilts last week with no problem.  One was quilted in the ditch and the other was free motion quilted.  I did assemble the quilt differently from the manufacturer’s suggestion. 
 

1. Lay out quilt back wrong side up on your working surface smoothing out all wrinkles.

2. Center batting over backing and smooth out all wrinkles working from center out.

3. Flip back half of batting.  Spray both fabric and batting using even sweeping motion.

4. Smooth glued surfaces together making sure there are no wrinkles.

5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for other half of batting.

6. Center quilt top on batting and backing smoothing from center out to edges.

7. Flip back half of quilt top and spray both batting and wrong side of quilt top as in step 3.

8. Smooth glued surfaces together.

9. Repeat steps 7 and 8 for other half of quilt top and batting. 

Although there is an odor when you assemble the quilt, it completely dissipates within 24 hours.  I recommend using a facemask while spraying.  The glue leaves the quilt completely flexible.  You cannot detect its presence.  It washes out completely.  This stuff is great.  I’m going to be buying it by the case. 

These horseshoe-like plastic hoops with handles come in two sizes.  Both are included in the package.  They are for use while free motion quilting.  You need an extension table or flat sewing surface to effectively use the hoops.

This is a handy gadget.  You just lay the hoop on top of the area to be stitched.  The foam bottom grips the quilt and the handles allow you to easily maneuver the quilt under the needle.  I found them equally useful for free motion embroidery as long as the embroidery surface is stabilized.  The hoop eliminates the constant rehooping necessary with traditional free motion designs larger than the hoop. They will not work with a single layer of unstabilized fabric.

These hoops have been around for a while.  If you haven’t tried them, check them out at a local quilt shop.

This soap stone marker is invaluable for marking on dark fabric.  It is easy to use, easy to see and it brushes off the fabric.  The bonus is it seems to last forever.  Run, don’t walk, to your favorite quilt shop and get this handy tool.

I am continually looking for the ideal fabric-marking device.  The chalk markers seem to disappear too quickly.  I hate to have to wash out markings.  That seems like an extra step to waste my time.  The disappearing markers are not effective on dark fabric.

I have three of these – one for my sewing area, one for my cutting table and one in the travel case I take to classes.  It’s a great little gift for one of your sewing friends.