Yes I agree with everything you said.. also what helps me have a better experience is my space to be clean and organized. Thank you for all your hard work keep up the amazing job
Your tip to ditch the stitch in the ditch and the alternative you provided is a game changer for me! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I just found you and am adoring your energy and the care you are taking to help us
Omg! I'm two years into quilting, but sewing for 50years. Your tips and tricks are my go to, you make it easy-peasy!!!!! Here is a tip I made up to help me with a bigger quilt- divide your quilt into 2 halfs, with a center line separated by 5 inches, mark across the center line 5 inches out, quilt each half. Then using the quilt as you go stitch the tops together then line your batting and either hand stitch or us batting tape. Then turning and hand stitch (I hate) and turn over, connect your top and bottom lines with quilting! Your fabulous!
Oh my goodness - stitching in the ditch is SO HARD! I don't know why they advocate this for beginner quilters. You nailed this. I wish I had known about echoing my seams when I started. These are great tips.
Thank you so much for your amazing videos I'm a newbie to quilting and found your channel and can't stop watching and learning so much. Your bubbly personality is so infectious 😊 and your tips are so helpful I can't afford to join, so I am grateful for these great videos 🪡🧵
Thank you Christen for all you do! I listened to tips and tricks today. I like the idea of not stitching in the ditch. Also your idea of label your quilt. I just messed up. I am refurbishing a quilt that was in an explosion (received damage from fire). I put a little triangle on top of a damaged triangle. When this whole thing is quilted, you probably wouldn't notice straight stitching. I zigzaged. Rrr
Ha! I'm watching this video as I putting binding on a quilt that I stitched in the ditch. It's not perfect. I also sewed diagonal lines on the blocks. The blanket is for charity, not that I shouldn't make it perfect as possible. Thank you for the tips. 😊 New watcher and subber from East Texas.
Great tips! One thing I would suggest when using masking tape, don’t run your needle along the tape, instead, run your foot along it. I find it easier. The foot is larger and easier to control vs the thin needle that tends to swerve. Hope that makes sense. 😊
My long term goal is to make beautiful king-size quilts for each of my 8 adult children and eventually grandchildren. I decided to get there I would start buy making each of my 15 grandchildren a lap siz quilt for their birthday last year. Along the way I practiced a different quilting technique on each of them to help me learn. The first ones were pretty terrible. But I can see how much my skills improved over the course of last year. And each of my grandkids has a quilt they can drag around and have picnics on or whatever and it doesn't matter.
Wonderful tips, thank you for them. ISeeStarsQuilting got me started quilting not too long ago, during the jelly roll race quilt sew along and I've done probably around 20 since then. Christen is such a kind person and gives such good quilting advice.
Recently found your channel and am currently binge-watching your videos. Thank you so much for the tip to not stitch-in-the-ditch and to echo piecing lines instead! I have a couple of quilt tops that I want to quilt myself (nothing fancy) and have been avoiding because I dreaded that exercise in futility. Echoing is something I think I can do without wanting to rip my hair out.
Great tips! I totally agree! Stitching in the ditch is one of those things that seems easy, but it's actually hard, and I've found that I really don't like the results very much. I never do it anymore; I'm like you, I always think of an alternate way to quilt.
Thank you very much for your helpful tips and information. I stumbled across this video. I hope to learn more from you. You have a new subscriber. Thanks again!
That is a great tip while you're starting out! Don't sell yourself short though. I'm sure you can create some really fun designs with contrasting thread too!
@@ISeeStarsQuilting Of course after some practice one could use contrasting thread, but this was more referring to what you said about NOT doing stitch in the ditch for beginners, you most certainly can as long as you use a thread that will blend for the most part exactly for the “oopsies” you’re gonna have. 😎. Or in my case going too wide on a log cabin block, and quilting a larger square than intended. 😜. Just throwing it out there. 😎. Love your channel and your take on quilting. It’s really nice to see someone taking a more modern approach and thinking outside the box a bit. 😍😍😍
Thank you for this! I got off my rear and finished a quilt myself (instead of sending it out) and did the quilting beside the ditch like suggested and liked it enough to keep going. Nothing is going to solve my issues except practice so thank you for the ideas!
I would say if you are going to stich in the ditch, a machine foot just for that helps. At least it did for me. You can also get cheap gardening gloves sometimes that work well.
Never did stitch in the ditch. I have trouble keeping my quilting straight so I use wavy lines or fractured lines. I also work to keep them from crossing since I have pucker problems. Never sweat the little stuff. Your quilts are always appreciated and not scrutinized.
Omg. So true about SITD. Can't be done! Who told us to do that?! I love the look of echoing but thought it would be too hard, I mean, how do you eyeball one line after another? Old but it works! It is easy and looks great. Thanks for the tips and thanks to your commenters too.
Great tips....I'm just begining and found or heard Stitch n ditch... and I laughed because I made a quilt with Ditch stitch..lol not my favorite ... I felt more comfortable stitching the mirror stitch looked way better ..wasn't " WONKY" THANKS again
Such great tips. Awaiting my boarders and backing fabric to come in so I can finish my first quilt. I’ve watched many of you videos. Your just a gem to me, thanks so much.
HI Christen..... I REALLY ENJOYED YOU TUTORIAL ON. MAKING THE FRENCH BRAID BLOCK WITH SCRAPS OR JELLY ROLLS. I'D LOVE TO MAKE A QUILT USING THAT PROCESS. I HOPE TO SEE THAT VIDEO AGAIN, BECAUSE I KINDA GET LOST. ALSO WOULD YOU USE A SASHING TO PUT THE BLOCKS TOGETHER? AND HOW DO I FIND THE VIDEO TO WATCH IT AGAIN? HOPE YOU WILL HELP. I CERTAINLY DO ENJOY YPUR EXPERTISE. GLAD I FOUND YOU. THANKS CHERYL IN OREGON.
Hi Cheryl. I'm glad you enjoyed the video! The video with the scrap braid is here: ruclips.net/video/q6mA8bjlkJI/видео.html&lc=UgzPqrnlqIRVcSirFeJ4AaABAg I like the idea with the sashing in between the blocks. I think it would make a lovely quilt top!
Great videos Christen! Just started to quilt. Made 2 queen size "Round About" quilts. Your tips help to speed things up. I wanted to do the quilting but have a machine with not much room so I am taking them to Quilt Shop to long arm. Q: Is there a machine that has more space between needle AND machine that is not too $$$ so I can do "free style" quilting? 🙂
I'm so glad the tips were helpful! I have seen quilters quilt giant king sized quilts on little bitty domestic machines... the "throat space" is what you would be looking for to have a larger area between your needle and machine. IF you are in the market for a new machine, I would check your local sewing machine repair shop and see what they suggest. Sometimes you can even find a good trade-in deal! They also tend to have several on the floor that you can sit at and see what feels comfortable to use. I really like the Janome brand. My first "step up" machine for quilting purposes was a Janome 3160 QDC and I still use that machine a lot. Its been a dream. Start with the repair shop and see what your budget allows. I would get the absolute most you can possibly afford because all the shiny bells and whistles are worth it 🤩🤩
Oooh…I have never seen gloves like those Velcro ones! My momma always said “once is a mistake, twice is a design decision “ so…you just mess up twice and it suddenly is a “customization”
If I may make a suggestion.....please take a class from an expert in quilting a quilt top. This is how you will learn to quilt like an expert. Their are also books at your local library that can educate you on this subject. I highly recommend anything by Joanie Zeier Poole & Diane Gaudynski as they are experts at quilting a quilt top with a home sewing machine. I took a class from Joanie Zeier Poole and my quilting techniques drastically changed after taking her class. It was an eye opening experience. My quilting now gets into national & international quilt shows plus I am starting to win ribbons at these shows.
A walking foot is all you need! I would make sure you have a sharp needle in your machine just because of the extra wear and tear it can put on your machine. For the super fancy quilting stitches, you may eventually move into a free motion quilting foot, but a walking foot is all you need to get started and do straight quilting stitches
I thought stitch-in-the-ditch would be the easiest, best option without sending it out to be quilted. I even have the foot. Oh how I hated how it turned out even with practice. Ripped it out and not doing that again!
I love your great tips! And really enjoy your channel. About thread….do you change colors for each color block or use the same color thread throughout the quilting? How do you choose the color? Thank you!!!
I think it really depends on the quilt I'm making... I tend to be drawn toward using very contrasting thread colors so that it is decorative as well as functional... but if it is a very busy fabric, I may choose to let my thread blend in so the fabric can shine. So glad you enjoy the videos!
No matter how hard I try, and how many times I measure, my squares just don't turn out exactly the same size, then they don't chain or nest well... I'm not a moron, I can measure, but apparently my quilts can't. Is there anything I can do to help them turn out square and equal sizes? Also, how do you cope with the already sewn side of the quilt that's up against the body of the sewing machine when you are doing the rest of it and there's nowhere to put it out of the way? I'm not new to sewing, I have sewn and smocked for my daughter for years and made many things - I just can't seem to quilt.
I might suggest trimming your blocks down after you sew them. Garment sewing and quilting are vastly different. I couldn't sew any clothes to save my life 😂😂 give yourself some grace and work with your skills instead of against them
Always do what feels good for you! Sometimes its just a skill where you need more practice before you perfect it... sometimes, you just shine somewhere else 🌞😎
I’m a new quilter🙂and you are the best!! Thank you so much!🥰👍🏾
Yay! Thank you! Welcome to the quilting world. I hope you love it as much as I do. 🥰
I know this is an older video but it just popped up for me and you have so many great tips here. Thank you Kristen for sharing with us.!!
Beginner quilter and just found your videos and am really enjoying and learning from them. Thank you very much.
You are so welcome! I'm glad you have enjoyed them. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. 😘😘
Thanks Kristin!
You're welcome! Thanks for watching!
Yes I agree with everything you said.. also what helps me have a better experience is my space to be clean and organized. Thank you for all your hard work keep up the amazing job
So true! A clean space does make for better work.
Your tip to ditch the stitch in the ditch and the alternative you provided is a game changer for me! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I just found you and am adoring your energy and the care you are taking to help us
I'm so glad it was helpful! Thank you for watching 🥰🥰
Omg! I'm two years into quilting, but sewing for 50years. Your tips and tricks are my go to, you make it easy-peasy!!!!! Here is a tip I made up to help me with a bigger quilt- divide your quilt into 2 halfs, with a center line separated by 5 inches, mark across the center line 5 inches out, quilt each half. Then using the quilt as you go stitch the tops together then line your batting and either hand stitch or us batting tape. Then turning and hand stitch (I hate) and turn over, connect your top and bottom lines with quilting! Your fabulous!
Thank you! 🥰🥰 I appreciate you watching!
Oh my goodness - stitching in the ditch is SO HARD! I don't know why they advocate this for beginner quilters. You nailed this. I wish I had known about echoing my seams when I started. These are great tips.
I'm so glad you found it helpful! Thank you for watching 🥰🥰
Thank you so much for your amazing videos
I'm a newbie to quilting and found your channel and can't stop watching and learning so much. Your bubbly personality is so infectious 😊 and your tips are so helpful
I can't afford to join, so I am grateful for these great videos 🪡🧵
You have made my day Susanne! Thank you so much for watching, and for your kind words.
Thank you! Great tips…love your (no) stitch in the ditch tips.
You're so welcome 🥰
I love your video's so informative since I have three quilts to put backing on this really help me a lot. I mean a lot. Thank you Christen!
Glad it was helpful!
awesome , just found your site and I won't lose it . your great .Thank tou
Aw thanks so much. I'm so glad you found me 😘 Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions
OMG how smart you are!!! I never thought about drawing on my quilt! NOW I’m not so afraid of quilting that UFO!!
You can do it Linda! 🥳🥳
I love your video! I have terribly stitched in that ditch enough. Yours looks great. I even like that better. Thanks so much for all your tips
You are so welcome, Pamela!! So glad you were inspired 🥳🥳
Thank you Christen for all you do! I listened to tips and tricks today. I like the idea of not stitching in the ditch. Also your idea of label
your quilt. I just messed up. I am refurbishing a quilt that was in an explosion (received damage from fire). I put a little triangle on top of a damaged triangle. When this whole thing is quilted, you probably wouldn't notice straight stitching. I zigzaged. Rrr
Thank you for sharing Linda. That is so amazing of you to fix that quilt! I'm sure either is fine. 💕
I love your channel so much, you're adorable 😊
You know how to make my day!! Thank you for kind words.
Ha! I'm watching this video as I putting binding on a quilt that I stitched in the ditch. It's not perfect. I also sewed diagonal lines on the blocks. The blanket is for charity, not that I shouldn't make it perfect as possible. Thank you for the tips. 😊 New watcher and subber from East Texas.
I'm so glad that it was helpful. Thank you for subscribing 🥰
Great tips! One thing I would suggest when using masking tape, don’t run your needle along the tape, instead, run your foot along it. I find it easier. The foot is larger and easier to control vs the thin needle that tends to swerve. Hope that makes sense. 😊
Yes is does! That is a good tip. thanks for sharing!
Love your tips and your happy attitude - you make me smile! Your nails are pretty too!
Oh thank you! 🥰 I'm glad you enjoy the videos!
I love your videos. I am a new quilter and I so appreciate you! I’ve made several jelly roll quilts with your help
That's wonderful. Congratulations 👏👏
My long term goal is to make beautiful king-size quilts for each of my 8 adult children and eventually grandchildren. I decided to get there I would start buy making each of my 15 grandchildren a lap siz quilt for their birthday last year. Along the way I practiced a different quilting technique on each of them to help me learn. The first ones were pretty terrible. But I can see how much my skills improved over the course of last year. And each of my grandkids has a quilt they can drag around and have picnics on or whatever and it doesn't matter.
Hi Karen, wow... you've already done so much! I LOVE it... you have some very lucky kids in your family!
Wonderful tips, thank you for them.
ISeeStarsQuilting got me started quilting not too long ago, during the jelly roll race quilt sew along and I've done probably around 20 since then. Christen is such a kind person and gives such good quilting advice.
20?! Wow! That is amazing Mea! You're such an inspiration :)
Recently found your channel and am currently binge-watching your videos. Thank you so much for the tip to not stitch-in-the-ditch and to echo piecing lines instead! I have a couple of quilt tops that I want to quilt myself (nothing fancy) and have been avoiding because I dreaded that exercise in futility. Echoing is something I think I can do without wanting to rip my hair out.
You are so welcome! I hope that your quilting goes smoothly 🥰
Great tips! I totally agree! Stitching in the ditch is one of those things that seems easy, but it's actually hard, and I've found that I really don't like the results very much. I never do it anymore; I'm like you, I always think of an alternate way to quilt.
Yes! I'm glad that others feel the same way
You are so full of joy!
I really enjoy your videos!
Aw thank you so much :) I appreciate the sweet words and am so glad you enjoy the videos!
Very nice thank you
Most welcome, Melanie 😊 Thank you for watching
It shows 10k subscribers!! Congrats 🎉🎉🎉
Thank you! Yes! big big milestone goal for me 😁🥳
Thank you very much for your helpful tips and information. I stumbled across this video. I hope to learn more from you. You have a new subscriber. Thanks again!
Glad it was helpful! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out!
Very helpful
Glad it helped
Here’s another tip….. use thread that BLENDS IN with your fabric, so if you mess up, it’s not very noticeable. 😎
That is a great tip while you're starting out! Don't sell yourself short though. I'm sure you can create some really fun designs with contrasting thread too!
@@ISeeStarsQuilting Of course after some practice one could use contrasting thread, but this was more referring to what you said about NOT doing stitch in the ditch for beginners, you most certainly can as long as you use a thread that will blend for the most part exactly for the “oopsies” you’re gonna have. 😎. Or in my case going too wide on a log cabin block, and quilting a larger square than intended. 😜.
Just throwing it out there. 😎. Love your channel and your take on quilting. It’s really nice to see someone taking a more modern approach and thinking outside the box a bit. 😍😍😍
You are an inspiration. I've been waffling getting started with my first quilt. Your channel has provided the encouragement I've needed.
Thank you! I'm so glad I can help. feel free to reach out if you have any questions. I also have lots of tips on my website too.
Thank you for this! I got off my rear and finished a quilt myself (instead of sending it out) and did the quilting beside the ditch like suggested and liked it enough to keep going. Nothing is going to solve my issues except practice so thank you for the ideas!
Wonderful! Thats amazing that you did it yourself! :)
Cross crossing squiggles along each side is my favorite way to quilt a quilt. I love the way it looks! 💜💜
Yes! I love when you find a way that works for you. That is adorable too!
I just found your channel. I am so impressed!
Wow, thank you! I appreciate such sweet words 🥰🥰
OMG!!!! you are absolutely RIGHT!!! on #1… I’m a beginner and it sucked!
Thank you for alternative.
You are so welcome! You've got this :)
I would say if you are going to stich in the ditch, a machine foot just for that helps. At least it did for me.
You can also get cheap gardening gloves sometimes that work well.
Never did stitch in the ditch. I have trouble keeping my quilting straight so I use wavy lines or fractured lines. I also work to keep them from crossing since I have pucker problems. Never sweat the little stuff. Your quilts are always appreciated and not scrutinized.
yes, never sweat the small stuff. I love that!
Great tips and thank you. A new person.
You are so welcome! Glad it was helpful!
Omg. So true about SITD. Can't be done! Who told us to do that?!
I love the look of echoing but thought it would be too hard, I mean, how do you eyeball one line after another? Old but it works! It is easy and looks great.
Thanks for the tips and thanks to your commenters too.
So glad you got some good advice from the video! Keep practicing. It will become easier and easier the more you do it
Love the tip, Ditch stitch in the Ditch. Thank you. Very inspiring!
You are so welcome! Glad it was helpful!
Great tips....I'm just begining and found or heard Stitch n ditch... and I laughed because I made a quilt with Ditch stitch..lol not my favorite ... I felt more comfortable stitching the mirror stitch looked way better ..wasn't " WONKY"
THANKS again
lol so awesome! I'm glad you enjoyed the video!
Such great tips. Awaiting my boarders and backing fabric to come in so I can finish my first quilt. I’ve watched many of you videos. Your just a gem to me, thanks so much.
Aw Hi Melissa! I'm so glad that you're enjoying the videos. Congrats on your first quilt. I'd love to see a picture when you have it all finished
Great tips!!! Thank you.
You are so welcome!
HI Christen..... I REALLY ENJOYED YOU TUTORIAL ON. MAKING THE FRENCH BRAID BLOCK WITH SCRAPS OR JELLY ROLLS. I'D LOVE TO MAKE A QUILT USING THAT PROCESS. I HOPE TO SEE THAT VIDEO AGAIN, BECAUSE I KINDA GET LOST. ALSO WOULD YOU USE A SASHING TO PUT THE BLOCKS TOGETHER? AND HOW DO I FIND THE VIDEO TO WATCH IT AGAIN? HOPE YOU WILL HELP. I CERTAINLY DO ENJOY YPUR EXPERTISE. GLAD I FOUND YOU. THANKS CHERYL IN OREGON.
Hi Cheryl. I'm glad you enjoyed the video! The video with the scrap braid is here: ruclips.net/video/q6mA8bjlkJI/видео.html&lc=UgzPqrnlqIRVcSirFeJ4AaABAg I like the idea with the sashing in between the blocks. I think it would make a lovely quilt top!
Great videos Christen! Just started to quilt. Made 2 queen size "Round About" quilts. Your tips help to speed things up. I wanted to do the quilting but have a machine with not much room so I am taking them to Quilt Shop to long arm.
Q: Is there a machine that has more space between needle AND machine that is not too $$$ so I can do "free style" quilting? 🙂
I'm so glad the tips were helpful! I have seen quilters quilt giant king sized quilts on little bitty domestic machines... the "throat space" is what you would be looking for to have a larger area between your needle and machine. IF you are in the market for a new machine, I would check your local sewing machine repair shop and see what they suggest. Sometimes you can even find a good trade-in deal! They also tend to have several on the floor that you can sit at and see what feels comfortable to use. I really like the Janome brand. My first "step up" machine for quilting purposes was a Janome 3160 QDC and I still use that machine a lot. Its been a dream. Start with the repair shop and see what your budget allows. I would get the absolute most you can possibly afford because all the shiny bells and whistles are worth it 🤩🤩
Great advice: I always forget to put the walking foot on
Oooh…I have never seen gloves like those Velcro ones! My momma always said “once is a mistake, twice is a design decision “ so…you just mess up twice and it suddenly is a “customization”
I'm totally stealing that phrase from your momma! I love it!
@@ISeeStarsQuilting definitely! She would love that others find it useful
If I may make a suggestion.....please take a class from an expert in quilting a quilt top. This is how you will learn to quilt like an expert. Their are also books at your local library that can educate you on this subject. I highly recommend anything by Joanie Zeier Poole & Diane Gaudynski as they are experts at quilting a quilt top with a home sewing machine. I took a class from Joanie Zeier Poole and my quilting techniques drastically changed after taking her class. It was an eye opening experience. My quilting now gets into national & international quilt shows plus I am starting to win ribbons at these shows.
Congratulations on all of your hard work to get to where you are in your quilting journey! And ribbons! How fun and rewarding is that!
@@ISeeStarsQuilting Thank you.
Do you have to have a special machine to quilt or can I use my domestic machine? I have a walking foot for it.
A walking foot is all you need! I would make sure you have a sharp needle in your machine just because of the extra wear and tear it can put on your machine. For the super fancy quilting stitches, you may eventually move into a free motion quilting foot, but a walking foot is all you need to get started and do straight quilting stitches
I thought stitch-in-the-ditch would be the easiest, best option without sending it out to be quilted. I even have the foot. Oh how I hated how it turned out even with practice. Ripped it out and not doing that again!
It is something tons of new quilters fall for... I'm glad you've found another way that works for you and continued on! 🥰🥰
I love your great tips! And really enjoy your channel. About thread….do you change colors for each color block or use the same color thread throughout the quilting? How do you choose the color? Thank you!!!
I think it really depends on the quilt I'm making... I tend to be drawn toward using very contrasting thread colors so that it is decorative as well as functional... but if it is a very busy fabric, I may choose to let my thread blend in so the fabric can shine. So glad you enjoy the videos!
No matter how hard I try, and how many times I measure, my squares just don't turn out exactly the same size, then they don't chain or nest well... I'm not a moron, I can measure, but apparently my quilts can't. Is there anything I can do to help them turn out square and equal sizes? Also, how do you cope with the already sewn side of the quilt that's up against the body of the sewing machine when you are doing the rest of it and there's nowhere to put it out of the way? I'm not new to sewing, I have sewn and smocked for my daughter for years and made many things - I just can't seem to quilt.
I might suggest trimming your blocks down after you sew them. Garment sewing and quilting are vastly different. I couldn't sew any clothes to save my life 😂😂 give yourself some grace and work with your skills instead of against them
I don't know if I should tear that zig-zag out & straight stitch instead.
That is totally up to you. If it's not to much you could try taking it out?
I cannot sew a straight seam...period. Tried stitch in the ditch...awful. Feels good to hear someone say dont do that!!!
Always do what feels good for you! Sometimes its just a skill where you need more practice before you perfect it... sometimes, you just shine somewhere else 🌞😎
Why does some of your talk to text come up in Chinese or Korean or something?
I have no idea. RUclips might be having glitches at the moment? 🤷♀️🤷♀️
Hi do you have an email address ? Send you a pic of my first quilt!
Ahhh! Congratulations 🎉🎉 yes, please! christen@iseestarsquilting.com 🥰
Thanks for the great tips!!
You are so welcome!