Thursday, October 8, 2009

The machine set up

I'm busily quilting quilting quilting much the same thing the last few days.... so rather than a play by play on the movement of my machine needle..... I thought I'd speak to my machine setup. First (poor me) I own a number of machines and keep a separate 'pressure foot/tools box for each.... not the one that came with the machine.... but a smaller semi clear plastic box that will fit on the machine shelf next to the machine ofcourse, and easily viewable thru the acrylic drop down that surrounds my machine. I also keep on the same shelf, my Fons and Porter cushion marked for machine needles as suggested by the ever practical Libby Lehman. Little used, still good but currently not needed machine needle types are stuck in the appropriately marked 'petal' of the cushion. The colored straight pin is placed in whichever 'petal' represents the needle I actually have in my machine (the all look alike without magnifying glasses.)
When I am doing small movement detailed work when the quilt is near done and getting hard to move on my domestic machine, I LOVE the Super Slider placed over the machine tabletop. It helps things 'move' around much better. You'll also note the red and white Take Hold fingertip grip normally used for sorting papers including money. This tip comes from Hollis Chatelain. This fingertip grip represents my quilting gloves. It does not affect/hurt the quilt top surface, and I really can 'get a grip' to move the top in free motion.

To the right of my machine are the essential tools placed on a small piece of gripping material. The arched white rubber weave piece is really the edge of a place mat but a piece of shelf liner would work as well. I cannot quilt without my Fiskar curved tip scissors for clipping, my la cross flat edge tweezers for pulling out seam ripped boo boos.Dang, I failed to photograph the seam ripper, but we all know what THEY look like... DRAT!

1 comment:

Laura T said...

I love the pin cushion idea. Just recently I was working with lots of different needles and was getting totally confused and who can see what size they are? Not me! Thanks for the pictures of the setup. I also use the slider for machine quilting and really like it. In a former life I was a bank teller - I'll have to try the finger sticky stuff again.
Love your blog - I see I'm too late for road 2 california - hope to take a class from you in 2010.
Laura T