Quilting Trend: Straight Line Quilting

Have you tried quilting with straight lines? This technique can be used in many different ways—from evenly spaced lines to echoed outlines and even random lines. You can see some amazing examples of straight line quilting in many of the award winning quilts from this year’s QuiltCon 2017 show. Below is a stunning example of evenly spaced straight line quilting in Katherine Jones’ quilt, Bling, the Best in Show award winner at QuiltCon 2017 (photo by Lauren Hunt, courtesy of the Modern Quilt Guild).

I’ve used straight line quilting in most of my own work, like the Triangles quilt below.

In this quilt the straight lines follows the movement of the triangular shapes through the center of the quilt.

And in my Heart quilt, the straight lines echo the shape of the heart while random straight lines radiate out from the center of the heart.

Want to give straight line quilting a try? It’s really not as hard as it looks, especially using these tips and tricks! Grab your Walking foot #50, make a practice quilt sandwich, and get ready to quilt some straight lines.

Start practicing some straight line quilting with a few of the most basic techniques following this post on Quilting in a Straight Line using the Walking foot #50.

You might be wondering how to make perfect starts-and-stops when straight line quilting shapes in a quilt, or quilting a design that doesn’t go from edge-to-edge. Watch this video tutorial to learn exactly How to Secure Quilting Stitches with the Walking Foot #50.

Jacquie Gering of Tallgrass Prairie Studio is the Jedi Master of straight line quilting, and she shared some of her favorite Quilting Tips with the Walking Foot with us here at WeAllSew. Jacquie has also just published a book focused solely on straight line quilting with her BERNINA Walking foot #50, titled WALK!

If you aren’t sure exactly how to add straight lines to your quilt, this tip will help you to audition different patterns before you even start to stitch. Get this Straight Line Quilting Tip from quilter Melody Crust here on WeAllSew.

Straight line quilting spaced very close together is called matchstick quilting. If you haven’t seen a quilt with matchstick quilting before, let me tell you that the effect can be stunning! It does not add extra bulk or stiffness to the quilt as some might think, and depending on which thread color you choose the stitching can add another layer of dimension to your quilt. Learn all about Matchstick Quilting in this tip post from WeAllSew.

I hope you are inspired to try some straight line quilting on your next project. If you have learned a tip or two for helping you stitch great straight lines that I didn’t cover, please share it in the comments below!