Don Linn - Free-Motion Machine Quilting: From Practice to Perfection • Troubleshooting Guide • 50+ Designs

Text copyright 2011 by Don Linn

Artwork copyright 2011 by C&T Publishing, Inc.

Publisher: Amy Marson

Creative Director: Gailen Runge

Acquisitions Editor: Susanne Woods

Editor: Liz Aneloski

Technical Editor: Carolyn Aune

Copyeditor/Proofreader: Wordfirm Inc.

Cover Designer: Kristen Yenche

Book Designer: Christina D. Jarumay

Production Coordinator: Zinnia Heinzmann

Production Editor: Julia Cianci

Illustrator: Tim Manibusan

Photography by Christina Carty-Francis and Diane Pedersen of C&T Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted

Published by C&T Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 1456, Lafayette, CA 94549

All rights reserved. No part of this work covered by the copyright hereon may be used in any form or reproduced by any meansgraphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or information storage and retrieval systemswithout written permission from the publisher. The copyrights on individual artworks are retained by the artists as noted in Free-Motion Machine Quilting. These designs may be used to make items only for personal use or donation to nonprofit groups for sale. Each piece of finished merchandise for sale must carry a conspicuous label with the following information: Designs copyright 2011 by Don Linn from the book Free-Motion Machine Quilting from C&T Publishing, Inc.

Attention Copy Shops: Please note the following exceptionpublisher and author give permission to photocopy for personal use only.

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We take great care to ensure that the information included in our products is accurate and presented in good faith, but no warranty is provided nor are results guaranteed. Having no control over the choices of materials or procedures used, neither the author nor C&T Publishing, Inc., shall have any liability to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused directly or indirectly by the information contained in this book. For your convenience, we post an up-to-date listing of corrections on our website (www.ctpub.com). If a correction is not already noted, please contact our customer service department at ctinfo@ctpub.com or at P.O. Box 1456, Lafayette, CA 94549.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Linn, Don, 1945 Aug. 16

Free-motion machine quilting : from practice to perfection, troubleshooting guide, 50+ designs / Don Linn.

p. cm.

ISBN 978-1-60705-193-0

1. Patchwork--Patterns. 2. Machine quilting--Patterns. I. Title.

TT835.L5497 2011

746.46--dc22

2010019009

Printed in China

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

I would like to dedicate this book to my high school sweetheart and wonderful wife, Donna. You have continued to support me and my crazy, insane ideas for over 44 years, and for that I will be eternally grateful. You are the best!

First and most important, I would like to thank the students I have had over the many years I have been teaching. You continually inspire me with your accomplishments and creativity.

I also want to thank Susanne Woods for encouraging me to submit the proposal for this book.

To Liz Aneloski, my editor extraordinaire, a special thankyou for taking a machine quilter and making him look like an author (no easy task).

Hello, machine quilters and would-be machine quilters. I would like to say a few words about the idea behind and the reason for this book.

In the time since I began machine quilting, I have seen a radical evolution in the quilting world. Machine quilting has gone from a dirty word to an accepted art form.

There are a lot of true artists doing amazing commercial machine quilting. The downside to having one of these artists do your quilting for you is that the cost is going to be much, much higher than if you do it yourself. Good work takes time, and time is money for those in the business.

The other downside is that you also run the risk of not getting the design or quality that you expected when you turned your pride and joy over to someone else. Along with the quality machine-quilting artists, as in any industry, there are also those who produce substandard results. You would not believe the horror stories I have heard from unhappy customers who have had their quilts ruined by someone else, and they still had to pay for shoddy work.

I have long felt that for a piece of work to be truly the owners, he or she should create it from start to finish. That way, the piece is unique to the person who created it.

It is my goal with this book to present in text and pictures the machine-quilting class I have taught to hundreds of people for over ten years. Rather than just present the techniques, which many others before me have done, I want to address the problems students continually have when learning to machine quilt and provide solutions to those problems.

In addition, it is my feeling that if quilters begin to complete more of their own machine-quilted projects, they will have more money to make more quilts.

I hope this book inspires you and helps you develop the necessary skills to create the next blue-ribbon winner at your local and then national quilt show. The only thing holding you back is you.

The following is a list of some of my favorite products that have worked well for me over the years. Do not be afraid to try other products and to begin your own list of favorite products.

Hobbs Heirloom Cotton 80/20 batting

Superior Threads

Mettler Thread

Aurifil Thread

Collins Washable Wonder Marker #C48

Collins Vanishing Fabric Marker #C28

Generals Chalk Pencils #4473

Machingers gloves

SewEzi extension table

Bendable Bright Light

Just about any sewing machine can be used to machine quilt if it is set up correctly and operates properly. You certainly do not need the latest, greatest machine that comes out. There are features that may make the process easier, but that doesnt mean that they are essential.