Hey hey! Who wants to talk quilting today? How about we talk quilting with the queen of machine quilting, Angela Walters? Angela is truly a master at what she does. Each time I see a quilt that Angela has quilted, I am in awe of the depth and the beauty that her complementary quilting designs add to a quilt (this Tula Pink Stacked quilt quilted by Angela might be my current favorite…).

I’m sure you’ve heard by now about Angela’s wonderful first book, Free-Motion Quilting with Angela Walters. If you haven’t seen it yet, do check it out! I think it is endlessly inspiring. Angela shows many different quilting techniques, all displayed on gorgeous modern quilts, but then she shows you step by step how to create these designs on your own. I’ve tried out several of her techniques and have been pleasantly pleased with the results! I’m anxiously awaiting her upcoming second book!

Additionally, Angela has recently completed the taping of a Craftsy course, Machine Quilting Negative Space. I’ve only had a chance to watch the previews thus far, but boy, I’m excited about this! I think watching how Angela quilts will really help me understand the kinds of motions I need to make. (Be sure to read all the way to the end for your chance to view this course for free!)

I thought it would be fun to see what types of quilting designs Angela would suggest for a few of the quilts on my unfinished list. And here’s what she had to say!
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Thanks so much for letting me drop in on your blog, Ashley! One of my favorite parts of machine quilting is picking out the designs. I love contemplating the many options available. Here are a few of my suggestions for the quilt tops that you have!

Improv solids –

When I first started quilting modern quilts, I had to figure out how to handle quilts with a lot of small and irregular pieces. In most quilts, I tend to like to quilt each block differently. But to do that in this type of quilt could easily overwhelm the quilt top. So instead,  I like to quilt a single design allover the quilt and then highlight random pieces with a different design. It doesn’t take that much longer but adds a lot to the quilt!

Here is an example of this on a different quilt.

In the middle of the block, I quilted a swirl allover design. Then in a couple of different pieces I quilted a figure 8 design.  You can find out more about the quilting on this quilt here.

Next up, Ashley’s perfectly perched quilt –

When I am quilting any quilt, I love to use the quilt pattern as a guide for the design. I call it “Dot to Dot” quilting. I recently quilted a similar quilt using a design that uses the  block to quilt the design.

Here is a link to a step by step illustration on how to quilt the design.

Another quilt that I love a lot is the swoon quilt. I love it so much that I devoted a whole blog post to ideas on how to quilt a swoon quilt.

If you click on the link above you can see several different options for quilting a swoon quilt. They range from easier designs to a little more complex. With so many people making swoon quilts, chances are you can find some ideas for you to use on your quilt.

Last up, one of Ashley’s quilts that I really wish that I could keep for myself. Her Swirling Swans quilt –

This quilt pattern is from the book, Quilting Modern by Jacquie Gering and Katie Pederson. I quilted a lot of quilts in the book, but not this one. I love the layout of this quilt and it’s just another example of the great patterns in the book.

When I first looked at this quilt, I immediately thought of several different straight line quilting designs. but when I spied the two pieces of wood fabric, my mind headed a different direction. I think that a woodgrain design in the large white negative space would look great.

This design works well in large areas and adds a lot of texture to a quilt!!!

Like I said, these are just my suggestions! I would love to see or hear what you think!

Happy Quilting!
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Thanks, Angela, for all those wonderful quilting ideas! I love your suggestions and I think they’d complement these quilts quite nicely. I particularly love your ideas for my improv solids quilt (though if I’m being honest, now I’m tempted to send it your way instead!) and I love the way that woodgrain quilting looks! I will get practicing!

Want to do a little practicing of your own? Angela has kindly offered up her Craftsy course to one lucky commenter! Leave a comment here telling me your favorite type of quilting, or let me know what type of quilting you’d most like to master (or feel free to ask a question about quilting – maybe we can get Angela back to answer them!). I’ll select and post a winner on Friday. (oops, how about Sunday?)

Winner, winner!! Random.org selected #260, Kelley, who said “I would love to master free-form feathers. They can be so beautiful! But really I need to master machine quilting in general, not just feathers. Thanks for the giveaway!”