This week the goal was to finish picking out the unsatisfactory pattern I had made. I’m happy to report that not only did I finish picking out the offending stitches, but I also FINISHED quilting the entire quilt!

I repeat.

I FINISHED quilting the entire quilt!

There was a small moment of hesitation once the stitches were out and I had to start on the new pattern. I knew that what I had planned would look great IF the lines were actually spaced evenly and stayed straight. Keeping the lines straight wouldn’t be a problem because I have the Ideal Seam Guide for that, but I was extremely nervous about the spacing.

After a few minutes of deliberation I came to a wonderful realization. My Ideal Quilt Guide is see through. I hadn’t really thought about why that would be until now but it’s absolutely perfect for what I was trying to accomplish.

All I had to do was make one starting line. From there, I just lined up part of my Ideal Quilt Guide on top of the stitches and it created the perfect spacer AND it guided my stitch into a perfect line.

It’s not easy to see in the picture, but just to the left of the typed letters there is a light line. It is resting on top of my stitches that I had previously sewn. So perfect.

Once it was lined up I kept the Guide just to the left of my presser foot.

I could not believe how quickly I was able to sew the patched pattern I had envisioned. It didn’t require any sort of measuring or marking and yet I still achieved perfectly spaced squares. The best part? I knew that the lines would match up even though they appear to disappear behind the middle section and then reappear again.

I’m not gonna lie, it makes me happy to look at the completed pattern. There are slight imperfections and small issues that will get better with experience. For example, I had to start and stop new threadlines more than I would have liked because I wasn’t confident that I could make sure I hit ever pattern if I did one continuous stitch. I know as I get more practice and experience I’ll be able to start and stop less. And honestly, the biggest problem with starting and stopping a lot is the fact that I use a back stitch instead of a locking stitch, because it’s a pain to raise and lower my walking feet, so the stitches appear slightly bulky when I don’t want them to. You only really notice it from the back though.

I’ve started on the binding and have it sewn onto the quilt, but I haven’t finished hand stitching the back side yet. I should finish it and post a completed picture, front and back, next Friday. I’m so excited to see how it looks completely finished. In the meantime, here is a picture after I trimmed the excess batting and backing but before I applied the binding. My son LOVES this blanket, can you tell?

I would never have attempted to quilt this without my Ideal Quilt Guide. What a convenient tool to have.  It’s made such a difference in my ability to quilt.

I’ll post a closer shot with more detail of the patterned stitches once it’s all finished.