I was very lucky recently to win a set of Straight Fine Line Quilting Rulers. Linda from Flourishing Palms hosted this amazing giveaway, sponsored by Carol from Accents In Design. Originally there was a set of straight, which I won, and a set of curved Fine Line Quilting Rulers up for grabs. I was so surprised and happy to have won! A big, HUGE thank you to both Linda and Carol (hugs).
I was especially intrigued by these rulers as they are made not only for long arm quilters, but because of the handles for extra grip, it has made straight line quilting on domestic sewing machine possible too. I was so excited and eager to try them out!
When looking back at my Asymmetrical Diamond Quilt I made last year, I think having those rulers would have made straight line quilting using a free motion quilting foot a breeze. I wish I had these rulers then, not so much for the short straight lines, but for those longer lines.
I love the look of straight line quilting together with some other filler/meander designs.
I even combined quite a bit of straight line quilting in my Summer Solstice Quilt. So there is no doubt how much I like the look of it, and the amount of interest it adds to a quilt.
So today I set out some time to try them out and to play with my new set of rulers. I won a set of 6 inch, 8 inch and 12 inch rulers... I know, LUCKY ME!!!
When visiting the Accents in Designs website, there is a section that discusses the features of these rulers, but if there is ONE feature I love most about these rulers, it has to be the resistance strip on the underside of the ruler. If you have a good enough hold on the ruler it does not glide or slip over the surface of your quilt. Because I don't own a long arm machine I have to do all my quilting on my little Bernina, and that is a huge bonus not having to worry about the ruler moving around while quilting those straight lines. For the first time I got a 'long arm' look on my home sewing machine...
So here is what I did today;
What you'll notice, is that I placed the ruler to the right of the fmq foot. I did start out by holding the ruler in my left hand, but found I had better control holding it with my right. The accuracy of the lines are much more visible in the diamond variation I quilted in the image below. The only thing I had to keep in mind was that the needle (obviously) is not right up to the edge of the ruler, there is a gap... I just eye balled and aimed where I wanted to go. It worked out beautifully!
...and because I just love to free motion quilt, I played around with some designs I was familiar with.
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Wow! I can't believe you've done any of that on your home machine. That's amazing! Very nice work.
ReplyDeleteIt is such a joy to look at your quilting :)
ReplyDeleteThat's great work Marelize! I looked at those rulers but hadn't made any decisions. Very interesting! Well done!
ReplyDeleteКрасиво и полезно, впрочем, как всегда) Благодарю!
ReplyDeleteI am impressed with what you do on your DSM-nice work!
ReplyDeletegreat quilting and lucky you
ReplyDeletewow perfection!. I must say your free motion quilting was amazing before but anything that makes your life easier is a good thing.
ReplyDeleteDo you do anything in particular to get good stretch / placement of your material - pins, basting, spray? what is your preference for FMQ on a small machine?
Beautiful work once again
This is really interesting Marelize. I have never heard of these rulers for fmq on a DSM - and you've got great results. Humm, maybe I am going to have to rethink my - don't mark and embrace the wobble philosophy and have straight lines on some designs. Thanks
ReplyDeleteThat is so impressive. I love the results you are getting. I don't know how easy it would be if you had lots of bulk stuffed into the harp space (esp. if you use the rulers on the R side.) but it looks amazing on smaller works.
ReplyDeleteVery cool! Your quilting is gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteI was so happy to see your progress pics shared to your facebook page this morning, Marelize. I know you are a perfectionist and that using these rulers would have you in your happy place. Looks like you were certainly enjoying your stitching. Fabulous!
ReplyDeleteSo lucky! I saw that post as well! I will be buying them soon! So what size do you think is the most user friendly? I don't think you need all three but curious on that. It looks amazing I so want to play with them and see how they work! Thanks for sharing how you used them!
ReplyDeleteWow! Those rulers look amazing! Thanks for sharing your view of them.
ReplyDeleteI have had my eye on those rulers for awhile. . . Thank you for the review! I also quilt on my domestic. I have even tried regular rulers to make my lines straight. . . I don't recommend ;)
ReplyDeletethose are awesome! your quilting is absolutely breathtaking, Marelize!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for showing this off at Needle and Thread Thursday!
:) Kelly @ My Quilt Infatuation
Thanks for the great review Marelize. I'm putting the rulers on my wish list!! Karen
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful post, Marelize! It's so great that you won the rulers, and now that you've taken time to share them with your readers. I love what you did to test them. It's a beautifully quilted piece! Do you have a plan for it? Your work is gorgeous. Keep up the excellent work!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful work! I do all my quilting on a regular sewing machine, too, and it's amazing what can be done with a few small, useful tools!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing those rulers, Marelize! I struggle with straight lines and fmq, and you make it looks so easy. I'll have to try them now!
ReplyDeleteWow, this is fascinating. I am terrible at this kind of precision, but it is wonderful to know it can be done on a home sewing machine!
ReplyDeleteWow your quilting is so pretty and beautifully done. Thanks for the review on the rulers. I have seen them mentioned and now I may try them. Congrats on winning them!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing this! I had heard of them before but am so glad you can do it on the Bernina! I just ordered the 8" size :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing this! I had heard of them before but am so glad you can do it on the Bernina! I just ordered the 8" size :-)
ReplyDeleteJust now seeing this. Very interesting and I want to learn more. By chance have you written a tutorial on using rulers for FMQ on a domestic machine?
ReplyDeleteSewCalGal
www.sewcalgal.blogspot.com
I came over from Amys FMQ blog....am amazed at your quilting. I am new to machine quilting...long time hand quilter. learning to relax, just finished a king size quilt.
ReplyDeletebut I am very limited to my designed yet...lol.
Hope to try my versa tool soon, and maybe get more adventurous!!!
Beautiful work Marelize! I am going to check out those rulers!
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I just purchased these rulers and you have motivated me to sit right down and run them through their paces!
ReplyDelete