I'm still getting acquainted with my new sewing machine, the Eversewn Sparrow 20, and this week I screwed on a darning foot and decided to have some fun. Check out some free motion quilting play in this new quilting video:
Prepare to Play!
It sounds silly that you need to prep anything to play, but sometimes it helps to have a clear idea of what you're doing so you don't feel like time is being wasted. I set out to create a mini hoop quilt so I pulled out fabric that was only a bit bigger than the hoop and made a list of free motion quilting designs I wanted to play with.
It can be overwhelming to start with a really big piece of fabric, especially when you're quilting on a micro scale (really really dense) as I was in this video. It took around 3 hours to free motion quilt this design big enough to fill this 6 inch hoop. That is a LOT of time for very little space!
Quick reminder on the settings I use for free motion quilting on the Eversewn Sparrow 20 - I set the machine to Stitch #1 and set the length to 0.0 mm. This effectively stops the feed dogs from feeding the quilt forward.
No, I don't drop my feed dogs.
I just change my stitch length and place a Queen Supreme Slider on top of the machine and begin quilting. That's it!
Once I quilted the design and double checked the quilting extended far enough all around so it would fit the hoop perfectly, I tied off and buried my thread tails, then pushed the frame around the mini quilt. I cut off the excess quilt around the edge with a pair of scissors and tightened the screw on the top.
Ta da! Finished, fun hoop quilt!
I hope you enjoyed this free motion quilting play! If you have any questions or suggestions for more videos, please share in the comments below.
Let's go quilt,
Leah Day
13 comments
Hi Trudy – Yes! You can find this foot here: https://leahday.com/products/darning-foot
This foot is not open toe, but modified to have an opening. Make sure to check out that page linked above so you can learn how to modify your foot so it’s open and doesn’t hop as you see in this video.
Can the open foot you are using be purchased seprately?
Hi Heather – I’m using the Affordable Sewing Table we offer on our website! The insert can be custom cut to fit the machine and it will look slightly different from mine in the video.
Leah,
I just purchased this machine, but was wondering what table and insert are you using for this?
Hi Debra,
I’m honestly still trying to source a good walking foot. It’s been hard to find a quality foot that also comes with guides so you can quilt designs easily without marking. As soon as I find a new foot, I’ll definitely be sharing new videos!
I really appreciate your demos on the sparrow 20 since there’s not much information out there yet. Would you consider demoing a walking foot quilting also with your Sparrow 20?
leah, I just used an ever sewn at a new shop in town. Love it for straight stitching. & plan to try the free motion. I took a class with Nancy Prince. Her technique requires switching back and forth between a straight stitch and a zigzag. I took my Viking SE/.. Wonderful machine, but because of it’s automatic features when switching stitches, It made me crazy as it automatically reverted to its preset features for straight stitch or back to zigzag. Made me crazy. ?Took about 4 clicks to return it to where I wanted it! I purchased their tp of the line… the epic! I Call it my monster. Love it but it still has the same issues. Was thinking abou purchasing it to take to classes & now am intrigued with it as a free motion. Any drawbacks??? I would purchase from them.. since they are in my town.
I love this project
Fantastic! This is the first time I’ve watched someone do free motion quilting and I learned that there are named free motion quilt designs! You make it look so easy. Thanks, Leah.
Love it!💖
This was great! Thanks
Hi Leah,
How fun. Thank you. Sue Walter
Wonderfull.