How many stitches per inch?
Shirley Benoit
I have now finished the basting and have made up my mind to hand stitch
the quilt. What I am puzzled to know is:
How many stitches per inch? Some of my stitches are coming out five
stitches per inch and then some are four stitches per inch.
This is my first try with hand stitching. All my other quilts where
machine stitched. Welcome any tips
thanks,
Shirley
--
"I'm a genealogy nut, looking for my roots!"
Shirley Benoit - ct...@freenet.carleton.ca - Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
Hadleymass
I article: <4msobb$n...@freenet-news.carleton.ca> ct...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA
(Shirley Benoit) writes:
>>I have now finished the basting and have made up my mind to hand stitch
the quilt. What I am puzzled to know is:
How many stitches per inch? Some of my stitches are coming out five
stitches per inch and then some are four stitches per inch.<<
I once heard and experienced quilter say about the size of quilting
stitches, "Small doesn't count. Even doesn't count. Finished counts!"
Words to live by. Still quilters pride take great pride in the size of
their stitches and even discuss endlessly how to count the stitching. I
find that the longer I quilt the smaller my stitches get naturally. My
first quilt of 7 years ago had 5 stitches to the inch on a good day
(counting on the top). Now my stitch are about 8-10 stitches per inch and
I can make myself stitch 12 -14 with thin batting and lots of
concentration.
Julia F N Altshuler
Traditionally tiny tiny stitches were considered the mark of a good
quilter, but these days many of us don't enjoy trying for 16 stitches per
inch. In contests, the judges generally just look for even stitches. In
other words, if it's 5/", that's fine as long as it's 5/" all over the
quilt. Remember that the thicker the bat, the larger the stitch and that
it's hard to get small stitches when going over seam allowances. Also
note that it's easier to get smaller stitches when using a smaller
needle. But it's up to you how large you want the stitches to be. If
you want a fluffy quilt with a thick bat, don't make a flat antique
looking one just because you can get smaller stitches on it.
--
d000...@dcfreenet.seflin.lib.fl.us
Donna Granger
ct...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Shirley Benoit) wrote:
>
>How many stitches per inch? Some of my stitches are coming out five
>stitches per inch and then some are four stitches per inch.
>machine stitched. Welcome any tips
Hi Shirley
get hold of 'How to Improve your Quilting Stitch' by Ann Simms
You can get it from
Clotilde
800-772-2891
2 Sew Smart Way b8031
Stevens Point, Wi, 54481-8031
# for CDN's
Really good instructions.
Donna
Tericloth
In article <4n001n$3...@agate.berkeley.edu>, Donna Granger
<ogra...@garnet.berkeley.edu> writes:
>get hold of 'How to Improve your Quilting Stitch' by Ann Simms
>
>
That's Ami Simms
teri in cold and damp sw michigan (of course, I'm on vacation!!)
Rayna
Shirley, don't worry about it. If you're doing 6-8 per inch that's fine.
It's more important for them to be even than to be small. (I'm still
working on both after 20+ yrs!!).
I am just starting to think about machine quilting. Any tips?
TIA
Rayna
Rayna Gillman
R...@worldnet.att.net
in Livingston, NJ where it is ***still*** cold!
Sonja Carr
Hadleymass wrote:
> I once heard and experienced quilter say about the size of quilting
> stitches, "Small doesn't count. Even doesn't count. Finished counts!"
> Words to live by. Still quilters pride take great pride in the size of
> their stitches and even discuss endlessly how to count the stitching. I
> find that the longer I quilt the smaller my stitches get naturally. My
> first quilt of 7 years ago had 5 stitches to the inch on a good day
> (counting on the top). Now my stitch are about 8-10 stitches per inch and
> I can make myself stitch 12 -14 with thin batting and lots of
> concentration.
How on earth do you get 12-14 stitches per inch? I figure I'm quilting
about 8 stitches per inch on a really good day. I've read previously
about a book by Ami Simms(?) about improving the stitch but have not been
able to find a copy here in Toronto (so far). Any advice for getting more
stitches to the inch?
Sonja
Cmf96
Hi Shirley,
Here are some tips that I have found useful when hand quilting.
1. Don't keep the quilt taut in the hoop. You should be able to lay the
hoop down and out your hand in the center and touch the table. You should
not be able to bounce a dime on it.
2. Make sure that your needle goes straight in......not at an angle.
This will produce the same length stitch on the back as is on the front.
3. Strive first for even stitches then go for smaller stitches.
4. I always take a cheater quilt or sandwhich batting between 2 pieces of
muslin and practive on that for awhile. Then move onto your quilt. I
take these warm up stitches before I pick up my quilting project. This
allows you to keep the tension even and the stitches will look more alike
after you put the quilting down and pick it up again later.
5. Hand quilting will make your underfinger sore. Do not soften the
resulting callus with lotion or water. You want the small callus so that
your finger will be less sore. You might want to limit your quilting time
to an hour the first couple of times.
6. Find a good thimble that fits right...you do not want it to dig into
your finger. I always have several sizes with me because it you are on
your period your hands do swell alittle bit. and also the change of
seasons will affect the thimble size. I also use a finger cot (drug store
or pharmacy type) to help pull the needle through.
7. Make sure the light is behind you to reduce eye strain.
8. If possible....there is a book by Ami Simms that will help you perfect
the quilting stitches....see if your local quilt shop has a copy ($7.95 in
U.S.)
9. Practive, Practice, Practice. When I started hand quilting 4 years
ago I was at 4-5 stitches to the inch....I am now up to 14 stitches to the
inch and the stitches on the back are almost identical in stitch length
to the front. My greatest compliment was when the teacher that taught me
how to hand piece looked at the back of my whole cloth quilt and thought
she was looking at the front of the quilt!!!!!.
10 Have patience.....it takes time...enjoy your quilting. You may find
that it is the most rewarding time that you have. I don't think machine
quilting can compare to this and it is portable. I take my quilting and
piecing everywhere since I do it all be hand.
11. BTW, use beeswax....it coats your thread to make it stronger and
keeps it cleaner since the marking pens cannot penetrate down to the
thread.
Have fun, enjoy and it you have any questions please email me.
Yvonne Hill.........(CM...@AOL.COM)
CME622
In article <3193E1...@toronto.cbc.ca>, Sonja Carr
<natv...@toronto.cbc.ca> writes:
> I've read previously
>about a book by Ami Simms(?) about improving the stitch but have not been
>able to find a copy here in Toronto (so far). Any advice for getting more
>stitches to the inch?
Ami Simms books are available at her Web site. You can order them directly
from there.
Ruth Evans
On Thu 9-May-1996 2:02p, Hadleymass wrote:
[snip]
H> I once heard and experienced quilter say about the size of quilting
H> stitches, "Small doesn't count. Even doesn't count. Finished counts!"
H> Words to live by. Still quilters pride take great pride in the size of
H> their stitches and even discuss endlessly how to count the stitching. I
H> find that the longer I quilt the smaller my stitches get naturally. My
H> first quilt of 7 years ago had 5 stitches to the inch on a good day
H> (counting on the top). Now my stitch are about 8-10 stitches per inch and
H> I can make myself stitch 12 -14 with thin batting and lots of
H> concentration.
Now let me ask a silly question. How do you count a stitch? Is it the number
of threads you can see on the top in an inch. Example |- - -| Is that 3
stitches per inch, or is it 5? I've always wondered.
Ruth
__ ___ __
__ ////\ /\/\ /\/ _//\ __ /// | Posted by Ruth Evans - rev...@ccubb.com|
\\\//// '\/ \/ / /\/ '\\\\/// | Princess: Cutest Wiggle Tail Ever! |
\xx/ \/\/\/\/\/\/\__/\/\/ \xx/ | Anne McCaffrey: Master Word Crafter |
Irene Trifts
Sonja
If you remember the author and the title of the book--order it through
any book store. World's Biggest Bookstore might have the book in stock,
but I'm sure they can find out if it is still in print and order one for
you.
Irene
>
> How on earth do you get 12-14 stitches per inch? I figure I'm quilting
> about 8 stitches per inch on a really good day. I've read previously
> about a book by Ami Simms(?) about improving the stitch but have not been
> able to find a copy here in Toronto (so far). Any advice for getting more
> stitches to the inch?
>
> Sonja
Valerie McRae
Well, I read all the `rules' about small (size 12 betweens) and dutifully started
quilting with intense concentration, and found that I kept bending the needles.
Then I tried a large (8 between) and discovered I really liked the look of
stitches a bit bigger. Someone on this group told me - if you like it then that
is the most important thing! (even stitches are more important than small
stitches)
On another note, I finished a `mystery' quilt this weekend and gave it as a
birthday present - my first complete gift of a full size quilt. It sure gave me
and the receiver a warm feeling!
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Valerie McRae ~
Secretary for the ~
Laboratory for Computational Intelligence ~
University of British Columbia ~
Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4 ~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Let there be peace on earth
tel: (604) 822-6281 ~ and let it begin with me ..
fax: (604) 822-5485 ~
email: mc...@cs.ubc.ca "
~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DDuperault
In article <19960511.7...@ccubb.com>, rev...@ccubb.com (Ruth
Evans) writes:
>Now let me ask a silly question. How do you count a stitch? Is it the
>number
>of threads you can see on the top in an inch. Example |- - -| Is that 3
>stitches per inch, or is it 5? I've always wondered.
I'm under the impression it's what you see on top times two. So your
example would be 3 visible= six stitches per inch.
Dawn
Batgirl was a Librarian, too.
http://www.he.net/~dduperal/
BRBJPB
I have always had the impression that anyone who worried and fretted about
the size of their stitches is someone who is not enjoying the quilting,
but are trying to compete. I only concern myself with the neatness and
consistency of size, not the number per inches. And somedays are better
than others.
BRB...@aol.com
Eileen Lucas
In <4n8ijq$c...@newsbf02.news.aol.com> ddupe...@aol.com (DDuperault)
writes:
>In article <19960511.7...@ccubb.com>, rev...@ccubb.com (Ruth
>Evans) writes:
>
>>Now let me ask a silly question. How do you count a stitch? Is it
the
>>number
>>of threads you can see on the top in an inch. Example |- - -| Is
that 3
>>stitches per inch, or is it 5? I've always wondered.
>
>I'm under the impression it's what you see on top times two. So your
>example would be 3 visible= six stitches per inch.
>
>
> Dawn
my "8 st.to the inch" quilting would really by 16.
Eileen
jjo...@netins.net
In article <4n8ijq$c...@newsbf02.news.aol.com>, ddupe...@aol.com (DDuperault) writes:
>In article <19960511.7...@ccubb.com>, rev...@ccubb.com (Ruth
>Evans) writes:
>
>>Now let me ask a silly question. How do you count a stitch? Is it the
>>number
>>of threads you can see on the top in an inch. Example |- - -| Is that 3
>>stitches per inch, or is it 5? I've always wondered.
>
>I'm under the impression it's what you see on top times two. So your
>example would be 3 visible= six stitches per inch.
>
>
> Dawn
>
>
>
>http://www.he.net/~dduperal/
Gee, I had never heard it that way. I always heard, and it's accepted in
my area, that you only count the stitches on top. If you stick your needle
in and then out, have you taken one stitch or two? :-)
For what it's worth, when we have quilt ID day, our documentors count the
stitches on top.
I wonder if the way stitches are counted is a regional thing?
Jeanne (jjo...@netins.net)
Irene Trifts
I have a "How to do" dictionary on quilting and in it counts only one
side of the quilt. And in your example it would indeed be only three
stitches.
Sonja Carr
I think your impression is generally false, to be frank. I for one am
really just curious, rather than competetive, and wondering about
what others are accomplishing is not the same as worrying and fretting.
I also think that smaller stitches do look better so that would be why
I aiming for smaller stitches. Tho' my main goal is to finish a quilt, I
do want to be personally satisfied with the results.
Cheers
Sonja
C F Mast
rev...@ccubb.com (Ruth Evans) wrote:
>
>Now let me ask a silly question. How do you count a stitch? Is it the number
>of threads you can see on the top in an inch. Example |- - -| Is that 3
>stitches per inch, or is it 5? I've always wondered.
>
> __ ___ __
>__ ////\ /\/\ /\/ _//\ __ /// | Posted by Ruth Evans - rev...@ccubb.com|
>\\\//// '\/ \/ / /\/ '\\\\/// | Princess: Cutest Wiggle Tail Ever! |
> \xx/ \/\/\/\/\/\/\__/\/\/ \xx/ | Anne McCaffrey: Master Word Crafter |
In every book I've seen where it was mentioned, they always count just
the stitches on the top. Your example is three stitches per inch.
CF Mast
C F Mast
mc...@cs.ubc.ca (Valerie McRae) wrote:
>Well, I read all the `rules' about small (size 12 betweens) and dutifully started
>quilting with intense concentration, and found that I kept bending the needles.
>Then I tried a large (8 between) and discovered I really liked the look of
>stitches a bit bigger. Someone on this group told me - if you like it then that
>is the most important thing! (even stitches are more important than small
>stitches)
>
>
Using a larger needle to quilt with doesn't mean you *have* to settle
for larger stitches. It just means your needle isn't as likely to snap
or bend.
I also bend needles -- anything smaller than a 7 between, which is sturdy
enough to take on anything (even cotton batting, or two layers of
pants-weight cotton sheeting sandwiched with extra-loft batting).
I'm personally convinced that the size of the needle doesn't have much to
do with the size of the stitches. It's all in the technique (allowing
for the restrictions inherent in the materials).
I tried the smaller needles, even the platinum-coated needles (my
platinum 8 got a 30 degree bend in the first three stitches; I reserve my
platinum 10 for hand piecing only,where a smaller needle does make a
difference when you get in tight quarters.)
Nothing made any significant difference until I changed the way I held
the needle. A couple of days steady practice in the techniques in Ami
Simms book let me do twice as many stitches per inch as before -- and
without all that intense concentration :). Her methods give you more
control of the needle, no matter how many stitches per inch you want to
have.
CF Mast
MsHawii
In article <31992A...@toronto.cbc.ca>, Sonja Carr
<natv...@toronto.cbc.ca> writes:
>a
I am more interested that my stitches are all even and 10-12 per inch than
I am about being a record holder on how many to the inch. also, the judges
usually are more interested in even stitches. Of course they don't want
basting size either.
Jan S.
Jason K. Watson
:I wonder if the way stitches are counted is a regional thing?
Well, I think that would be interesting to find out. I've just started to
learn to hand quilt and the only discussion I've heard of abouth the
number is here on the net. I've heard people discuss the number as either
what you see, or that times two. I'm at here in Nevada, so at our next
guild meeting next week, I'll ask some of the ladies how they count and
maybe we can all share responses!
--Christa Watson
CME622
All of this talking has made me curious, so I took a ruler and measured
the stitches in all of the quilts I have made. They started out at 4 or 5
to the inch (talk about basting stitches!) and on the quilt I'm making now
there are 10 per inch. This one looks much better, but I never noticed
the difference until all of you started this thread! Thanks, I guess my
quilting skills HAVE improved! Not that I could give up quilting if they
hadn't! <VBG>
Carolyn