Grace Evolution Hoop Frame - Hybrid Quilt Frame!

Grace Company's Evolution Hoop Frame is the first quilting frame designed to evolve with you as a quilter. This frame is designed to fit into smaller spaces at 66 inches wide, but can be upgraded into a full sized 8 to 12 foot Evolution Elite Quilting Frame anytime.

The Best Small Quilting Frame Grace Company Offers

This smaller hybrid Evolution Frame is the best frame offered by Grace Company because of these features:

• Small Footprint - The Evolution Hoop frame has a minimum size of 45 x 66-inches, and if you attach wheels to the legs, you'll have even more flexibility of where to place your frame.
• Hybrid Quilting - You have two methods of loading this frame! Use Hoop Style loading for large projects and Rolling Rail Style loading for quilts under 42-inches wide. 
• ANY Machine You Want - This is our only hoop frame compatible with all Qnique longarms, including the Qnique 21X Elite.
• Expandability - Purchase upgrade and expansion kits and you'll have an 8-12 foot Evolution Elite rolling rail frame! Click Here to find upgrade kits.

Faster Quilt Loading Means More Quilting Time

The Evolution Hoop Quilt Frame includes taller back clamps that make it faster and easier to load your quilts. The bulky roll of your quilt is designed to nest inside the back clamp, and is held in place securely with a spring loaded clip.

The quilt loaded in the picture below was 108-inches long - king sized - and it still nested comfortably within the tall back clamps on the Evolution Hoop Frame:

The design and function of these back clamps are a great improvement on Grace Company's other hoop frames. No more elastics or clips getting caught on your machine! No more struggling to stuff your quilt into plastic coil!

Faster clamping and quilt management means more time for quilting and less time fiddling with your project.

What size machines will fit on the Evolution Hoop Frame?

Because of the taller back clamps, the Evolution Hoop Frame will be best suited for bigger home sewing machines, like the Little Rebel Sewing Machine or a Qnique Longarm.

If you are planning to use a home sewing machine, make sure the harp space is at least  5 1/2 inches tall  x 8 inches deep as shown in this picture:

A Few More Evolution Hoop Frame Features:

• This frame can extend to work with a longarm machine with up to an 24" throat
• Adjustable height legs so you can work sitting or standing.
• Space-saving size at only 66 inches wide.
• Quilt queen, king, or larger quilts - you are not limited by the length of the frame.
• Hybrid frame - switch between a Hoop Frame and Rolling Rail Frame with the included Handwheel Attachment.

Leah's Advice on Picking Your Frame

It can be really tough to know which sized frame to buy, especially when you're first getting started with longarm quilting. My best advice is to go with the maximum size your quilting space allows. When I set up my first frame, I couldn't imagine ever needing a frame longer than 8 feet. Within 2 years I'd expanded my frame twice to reach 12 feet!

The advantage of this version of the Evolution Frame is the size at 66 inches long. It has a small footprint, but you can load any size quilt from crib to king on this quilting frame.

The disadvantage is that you won't be able to quilt across the entire quilt in one pass. You'll have to load your project, quilt 40 inches or so across, then unclamp and move the quilt to reach the next section. This can get tedious.

If you have the space for an 8, 10, or 12 foot Evolution Elite Frame, you should consider a bigger frame. The process will feel easier because you'll spend more time quilting and less time fiddling with the quilt and frame.

Which machines are compatible?

The Evolution Hoop Hybrid Frame is compatible with the Little Rebel Sewing Machine and all Qnique longarm machines and it can fit most larger home sewing machines too.

We include a Top Carriage, which includes front and back handlebars to hold a sewing machine with this quilting frame at no additional cost. Make sure to select the correct option when adding this quilting frame to your cart.

You can also use off-brand longarms (like the Babylock Tiara or HQ Sweet 16). Unfortunately these machines are not compatible with our stitch regulators so you must use the machine's foot pedal to control the speed. Make sure to set up your Evolution frame low to the floor so you can sit in a chair and use your foot pedal.

Recommendations for this Evolution Quilting Frame

After setting up my Evolution Hoop Frame and quilting both using the rolling rail style and hoop style loading methods, I recommend having a quilting space at least 7 1/2 feet wide x 6 1/2 feet deep.

I love using Sewtite Magnum Magnets with all of my hoop frames. At the beginning of a project, I use the magnets to click the backing fabric to the frame so I can control the quilt and stop it from slipping off my quilting frame.

You can use the magnets instead of the back clamps for the first row of quilting and get more quilting space! I found with my Qnique 19X Elite, I had 16 inches of quilting space with the magnets, verses 14 1/2 inches of vertical space with the tall clamps.

I also set my Evolution Frame on wheels so I can easily roll it around my quilting studio. If you don't have much space, you can push the quilting frame against a wall when you're not using it, then roll it out when you're ready for quilting.

Do you have any questions about the Evolution Hoop Frame? Click Here to get the answer from a quilter who owns and uses this quilting frame!