In the spring, I designed a little sampler quilt for a retreat I’m co-hosting this fall. I did the piecing on the HQ Stitch 510 and then I quilted it on the 710. This is Petit Patchwork.

The idea is to help retreaters learn some new skills and perfect some basic skills by making this quilt.

  • Stitch-and-Flip accurately
  • Dresden Plate (see my video)
  • Flying Geese
  • Rickrack Placement
  • Raw-Edge Fusible Applique
  • Half-Square Triangles
  • Quarter-Square Triangles
  • Mitering
  • Scalloped Edges
  • Machine Quilting Ideas
  • Bias Binding

We won’t be able to cover each of these thoroughly in three days, but we’ll give the most challenging ones a good shot, and I think the quilters will be excited to have a good start on an interesting project. Many of them will try some of these techniques for the first time.

As I made this sample, I was really grateful for the small stitch adjustments I could make on HQ Stitch. When you’re appliqueing Dresden Plates this small—about 5″ across—it’s important that the stitches can be adjusted in tiny increments.

This 6″ applique block came out beautifully because again, I could make tiny adjustments to the zigzag stitch on HQ Stitch.

Don’t you love it when your machine cooperates beautifully and your block turns out just right? This whole project was a joy to make because of HQ Stitch.

I heard a country song last week and it asked this question.

“When was the last time

you did something for the first time?”

I think that idea can apply to quilting. When was the last time you did something for the first time? Tried a new technique? Visited a new retailer? Learned a new technique? Chatted with someone you didn’t know at quilt guild?

Keep your quilting fresh and vital by trying

something for the first time this week.