Rhonda Bracey: At Random

Red, white, pink/apricot, and aqua — not colours I’d think to put together, but I think they worked well in this quilt. I started by stitching in the ditch around the blocks (in red), then did a large meandering stipple in the border (also in red thread). For the main top, I stitched an ‘open headband‘ motif in a soft aqua thread.

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Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Cardinal’ (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour 70001); Robison-Anton ‘Sprite’ (40 wt, rayon, colour 2313)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (candy apple red, white)

Someone spent a lot of time making blocks from tiny scraps — the finished squares were only about 1″. How to quilt it? As usual I started by stitching in the ditch around the main blocks and borders. Then I decided to do something simple because the scrap fabrics were so ‘busy’ — I free-motion stitched lines through the centre of each row of squares, in a checkboard pattern. I didn’t use a ruler, but even with wonky lines, the illusion is of straight lines. I left the sashing strips unquilted and did a line of straight stitching (this time with a ruler) in the border, a half inch from the seam line.

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Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Navy’ (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour 32965)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (black)

I think was my first tumbling blocks quilt! I started by stitching in the ditch around the borders and across some of the blocks, following the seam lines. Then I did a cathedral windows motif in the diamond shapes, in a pale blue thread.

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Threads used:

• Top: Robison-Anton ‘Paris Blue’ (40 wt, rayon, colour 2283)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (white)

How to quilt this small quilt, which had all sorts of elements — appliqued pieces, pieced blocks, etc. — in it? I started by stitching in the ditch around all the main elements, then did some straight stitching in the centre block, some free-motion curved lines in the curved applique pieces and in the border, some stippling in the white space, and some cathedral windows in the corner blocks. I left the remainder unquilted.

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Threads used:

• Top: Floriani (40 wt, rayon, colour PF129); Isacord (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour Fb 6650)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (candy apple red, white)

This big quilt had all sorts of Australian birds on it — budgerigars, fairy wrens, and I think even some parrots. I started by stitching in the ditch around all main elements of the quilt, then did an open headband motif in the main top, finishing with uneven ‘n’ shapes in the border.

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Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Sea Foam’ (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour 97494)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (white)

This quilt was very similar (the same as?) quilt #358 I did a few weeks ago. But this time I stitched large curves inside the blocks (using a soft mint green thread), with the overall result looking like some large flowers. In the border, I stitched half cathedral windows. No rulers.

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Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Sea Foam’ (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour 97494)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (white)

How to quilt this sunny applique quilt? Well, first I stitched in the ditch around all the blocks and the main applique elements, then did an echo stitch around each applique motif, followed by a medium stipple. I stitched ribbon candy in the yellow border and left the green border unquilted.

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Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Cream’ (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour 20001)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (light tan)

Someone had fun making a jelly roll race quilt top! Again, lots of busy fabrics in a wide variety of colours so a simple stipple was all that was required.

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Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Chestnut’ (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour 27521)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (light tan)

The busy-ness of the floral fabric lent itself to something simple in those blocks, so I opted for a free-motion ‘flower’, with a large meandering stipple in the border. I left the white blocks unquilted except for stitching around each of the embroidered flowers.

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Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Chestnut’ and ‘White’ (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour 27521 and 10000)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Magna Glide Classic pre-wound bobbin (light tan and white)