Free-motion quilting with marking? Follow the patchwork!

Sometimes—maybe more often than not—it’s a quandary choosing a quilting pattern for a quilt top. An all-over pattern with curves, loops, or circles? A combo design of swirls and feathers or double-circles? What to do? 

With this scrappy wreath block quilt top, I decided to “follow the patchwork.”

How to quilt this top? Follow the patchwork!

Free-motion quilting without marking the quilt top

I admit it. I am a “lazy quilter.” If I don’t have to mark a design on a quilt top, I don’t have to 

1. take the time to mark the top, and 
2. I don’t have to remove the marks once I’m finished with the quilting. 

“More free-motion quilting time, less mark time!” is my philosophy for finishing quilts, especially charity quilts.

So, by examining this quilt top, I determined the patchwork was a wonderful candidate for mark-free machine quilting. The wreath blocks were well-defined and the solid setting (no sashing between the blocks) offered an opportunity for a continuous quilting path around the quilt.

Wreath blocks.

A continuous line quilting path: the blocks

For continuous line quilting, first you have to determine a way to quilt each block without tie-offs and having to quilt each block individually. For each wreath, a continuous line of loops could get me around the block. I started in the ditch with the lower part of the loop and continued quilting loops clock-wise (or counter-clockwise) around the block until meeting back at the starting point (see black line below).

The loop pattern (black line) around the wreath and the spiral pattern (green line)
in the center of the block.

Once the stitching line met back at the beginning of the pattern, I stitched in the ditch to travel to the center of the block—the hole of the wreath (see green line above). A spiral of straight lines (rather than circular) started at the perimeter and then spiraled inward to the center. Another stitch-in-the-ditch allowed for a path out of the center and on to the next block.

A continuous line quilting path across the quilt top

Then you have to figure out a way to get from one block to the next to make your way around the quilt.  Working from the middle of the quilt outward, I dropped the needle at the block in the second row in the center column (see black line below). At the bottom of that column, I took a turn and quilted the blocks on the one side of the quilt. Once at the top, I took another turn, quilted across the top and then quilted the remaining side.

Mapping a continuous line quilting path.

Any unquilted intersections (where the corners of four blocks met) were quilted with another pass (green lines above).

Back side of the quilt showing the quilting.

Quilting the borders

The borders were quilted with a continuous zigzag pattern. At the corners, a loop (similar to the loops in the wreath blocks) allowed for the change in direction (quilting path) to the next side. It was another continuous line of free-motion quilting around the perimeter of the quilt.

Quilting pattern at the coreners.

Taller zigzags stretched into the unquilted spaces when needed.

Varying the height of the zigzags around the border.

So, with four quilting passes—three in the center plus the border quilting—this scrappy wreath quilt top is quilted—with no marking needed. The free-motion quilting took 45 minutes!

Quilting view from the back.

Trimmed quilt.

The binding is prepared and will be attached by machine.

Binding for the wreath block quilt.

Take a little time to examine the patchwork and layout of your next quilt top. With a little analysis, a map for the quilting path(s), you can free-motion quilt without marking the quilt top. Just follow the patchwork!

Happy Easter, 2025

Stan Leigh kitty checks out the Bunny Bag.

Enjoy the day!

Gettin’ into the FMQ groove at the cuddle quilt workshop

I had a fun afternoon visiting with the Choo Choo Quilters at their Cuddle Quilt workshop this weekend! With three finished cuddle quilts to turn in, I popped in at the workshop and got four new quilt tops spray basted.

Three cuddle quilts finished.

Quilting designs: finished cuddle quilts

One of the finished quilts was made with this peacock panel. The free-motion quilting pattern was feather variations, with a thread change for the border.

Feathers quilted on the peacock panel quilt.

The second quilt had flowers and loops quilted into it. This design quilts up fast. 

Flower quilting design.

And the third was quilted with swirls and circles.

Swirls and circles quilting on this mix of batiks and cotton prints.

I try to keep the width of cuddle quilts to less than about 42” wide so the backing fits on a standard 44/45” fabric width. The finished sizes of the three cuddle quilts that were turned in:

• (left): 29.5” x 35.5”,
• peacocks (center): 41.5” x 46” 
• tiny florals (right): 34.5” x 36.5”.

The cuddle quilts for the guild’s community service project.

Quilting the new quilt tops

At the workshop, I reconnected with guild members I hadn’t seen in a while and I met some of the new members. It was a lovely visit! The weather was cooperative for outside spray basting and the four tops I brought got basted.

Four spray basted quilt sandwiches.

I was so inspired from the workshop, I sat down at the sewing machine and quilted two of the basted tops immediately.

Two cuddle quilts quilted in an afternoon.

A swirls and feathers quilting motif for this one.

Swirls and feathers. FMQ: 45 minutes.

Double circles for this one.

Double circles. FMQ: 1 hour.

After dinner, the third one—with several small floral prints—was quilted with flower motifs.

Small floral prints mixed with stripes and blenders.

Flower motifs quilted on the quilt. FMQ: 30 minutes.

The last cuddle quilt top is from the Make Do wreath blocks that I pieced back in December. I haven’t decided on a quilting motif yet… and all-over pattern? or msybe something that follows the patchwork?

Wreath block quilt top.

I’ve got bindings picked out for these quilts. And from the leftover backing fabrics, I cut several binding strips to add to my binding inventory.

Binding strips from backing fabric after trimming to size.

My third Make Nine finish: mending a vintage quilt

In 2023, I put a new binding on this vintage quilt. During the recent Winter of Care and Repair Challenge, it received a few more patches and mends. I’m certain it won’t be the last time this vintage quilt gets an appliqué over a worn area.

Vintage quilt.

Collaborating with Anonymous

I have a fondness for this quilt! It’s been on the bed for several years. I like its scrappy, make-do, improvisational nature—and that of its maker. While I don’t know who made the quilt, I’m happy to care for it, mend it, keep it in good condition, and preserve the original maker’s work. A happy collaboration with an anonymous quilter!

The quiltmaker had an interesting stash of fabrics to work with for this scrappy quilt.

The original quiltmaker evidently had an eclectic stash of scraps and apparently some yardage (the red and blue prints used for the alternate blocks) for this project. I’m guessing the prints are probably from the 1940s and 1950s. Some fabrics (especially the stripes) appear to be from shirts. The feed sack backing could possibly be from an earlier time. 

Feed sack backing of a vintage quilt.

I came to find out through making a few of the repairs, that the middle layer is not a batting. It is some sort of woven textile or a blanket. Another make-do attribute of this quilt! So even though this quilt is thin, it’s heavier than one with a cotton batting.

Mixing in new fabrics

On a sales call earlier this year, I saw a quilt displayed in a quilt shop. Several of the fabrics had a retro vibe to them… which reminded me of my vintage quilt. Walking the aisles of the shop, I perused all the bolts of fabrics and purchased several prints that I thought had similar colors and patterns reflective of the fabrics in my vintage quilt.

Purchased new fabrics (left). The tiny floral (far right) is from my stash.

Several of the fabrics I chose are from fabric collections that I rep. It was interesting to focus on individual prints and pull them away from the other coordinating fabrics. Taken out of their original context, they took on a new meaning for me.

The mends

Here are photos of the worn and torn places of my vintage quilt, along with the mends that were made.

Holes and worn areas.

I actually had to unpick part of the binding to make the repair to this area.

Preparing the appliqué patches and the unpicked portion of the  binding.

Patched and mended.

Worn area.

Appliquéd patch with new hand quilting.

After appliquéing the patches, I followed the existing lines of hand quilting to quilt, secure, and blend in the new patches.

A Make Nine 2025 finish

2025 Make Nine tracker with the Mend/Upcycle prompt. March 30, 2025.

One of my Make Nine 2025 prompts is a Mend/Upcycle prompt. I’m counting the mends on this quilt, as well as my participation in the Winter of Care and Repair, to fulfill this prompt. 

Now that I have a curated bundle of vintage-inspired fabrics, however, I’m itching to follow Anonymous’ block pattern and make a few blocks of my own. Maybe coordinating pillowcases with a scrappy cuff are in my future. That would be a fun, easy, and purposeful project.