What is longarm quilting?
You’ve pieced your quilt top and now it’s time to sandwich your layers and quilt the whole thing together. A few different options lay in front of you.
Quilting by hand. Quilting on your home sewing machine. Or longarm quilting.
Quilting by hand creates a beautiful effect, but it can be a tedious and time-consuming process. Similarly, quilting on a standard sewing machine is an option, but when working with larger quilts, it can become unwieldy. This is where longarm quilting machines step in.
What is longarm quilting and how can it help me?
Quilts come in all shapes and sizes. Table runners and hot pads can be very small, while a king-size quilt can be over 100 inches in both length and width. Longarm machines are extra large sewing machines which are designed to accommodate these larger quilt sizes. (Named as such because of their long arm.) They are a brilliantly convenient option for large quilts in terms of time and cost.
How does longarm quilting work?
The most important parts on a longarm quilting machine are the frame and the sewing machine. The layers of the quilt are fed through rollers onto the frame. The rollers keep the fabric unwrinkled. Then, the sewing machine arm moves on a track to stitch a pattern into the quilt.
This is the particular machine that I use. It is a Gammill Statler and its frame can work with a quilt up to 10 feet in width.
What is a computer guided system?
Longarm quilting machines can be guided either by hand or by a computerized system. Using a computer guided system, you can instruct the machine to stitch a specific pattern. Then, the machine will stitch that pattern throughout the entire quilt! Here’s why that is beneficial:
Saves time and money. The machine can work much faster than any human can. So, that means that you can have your quilts quilted together in less time (if you’re planning on doing it yourself) or less cost (f you’re going to hire someone else to finish the quilt for you).
Intricate designs. Because the machine is handling all the difficult labor for you, you’re free to pick more intricate designs. You can have confidence that the computer will be able to flawlessly execute those designs, no matter how complex.
Precision and uniformity. By eliminating human error, you can also rest easy knowing that the quality at the end of the quilt will be just as high as the quality at the start.
What are my design options?
Most longarm quilting services have two options: edge-to-edge and custom designs.
Edge-to-edge designs are a repeating pattern that the machine will follow across the entire quilt. There are countless numbers of edge-to-edge designs available online for you to choose from, so you can pick a design that complements the personality of your quilt! For example, this quilt below has a daisy-themed pattern to match the flower imagery it has on the front. Edge-to-edge is an elegant solution at an affordable price point.
Daisies edge-to-edge longarm quilting
Meanwhile, custom computerized quilting uses different patterns throughout the quilt in different areas. For example, you can have a separate quilting pattern for the center, borders, and corners of your quilt! Custom quilting is a little more complicated than pantographs, but it adds an extra level of specialness to your quilt.
How do I get started with longarm quilting?
One of the drawbacks of longarm quilting machines is that they are expensive and take up a tremendous amount of floorspace. However, fear not! Many small businesses exist offering longarm quilting services. At Serendipity Stitching, I love being able to help out fellow quilters with their longarm quilting needs!
Check out this page to learn more about the longarm quilting process. Or, if you have any specific questions or would like to receive a quote, please message me via the link below! I’m looking forward to collaborating with you on your quilt!
Leslie Vidler
