can you do quilting on a standard sewing machine?

Question

i have some quilt tops that I would like to quilt or do I have to have a professional do it. Also how do you made the pretty designs on the back. Is that what templates are for .

Answer 1

You can quilt on a standard sewing machine. Depending on what you want your quilting to look like, you might need extra attachments. A walking foot, for example, will help keep your layers even when you're doing straight lines. A free motion or darning foot will help you with curves and shapes that require you to move the fabric with your hands, rather than letting the machine's feed dogs move it for you.

There are some challenges to quilting on a standard machine. If you have a very short harp, or arm, there won't be a lot of room for the quilt when you're trying to work at the very center, especially if it's a very large quilt.

If you've never quilted before, be sure to practice on some scrap fabric and batting. Practice a LOT. Trust me, you don't want to start on a "real" quilt and then find out you aren't comfortable doing it. "Unsewing" isn't fun.

I assume by "pretty designs on the back" you mean the quilting. It's usually more visible on the back of quilts, because it's a single piece of fabric. You can use templates - mark the quilt using a special marking pen/pencil/chalk/powder. Or you can just move it around in a simple meander.

If you have to send it out to be quilted, expect to pay quite a bit. It can range anywhere from $25 for a simple pattern on a smaller quilt, on up to over a hundred for a more complicated pattern and/or a large quilt.