An archive of sewing tutorials and inspiration

     

FMQ Lesson #8 // Skill Builder BOM

This post is part of a series of posts for the Skill Builder BOM (Block of the Month). To learn more about the block of the month or to see a list of all posts click here.

This post is entitled “FMQ” Lesson, but for the Phoenix and Pixelate blocks I decided to pull out my walking foot and do some straight outline quilting. Both of these blocks have a lot of thick seams which can make free motion quilting much harder. It is possible, but I really wanted to save you all the headache when the walking foot does such a good job.

What is a walking foot?

walkingfoot

A walking foot is a special foot for your sewing machine made for machine quilting. It has feed dogs above your fabric and below so that all layers feed evenly and prevents against puckering. Is it required? No, you can use a basic foot, but make sure your block is basted well so nothing shifts. Do you need to backstitch? Well if you want your quilting to look super clean then I suggest burying your threads just as we have done before, but if you are not too concerned than you can backstitch at the start and finish.

Pixelate Block

pixelate-block-ad

pixelate-block-outline

For the Pixelate block I decided to keep it simple. To quilt your block in the same way…

  • Set your stitch length to 3. Began by first stitching in the ditch around the block/border.

  • While you still have your background color thread in your machine echo ¼” inside each background color square.

  • For the borders quilt random spaced rectangles.

  • Bury threads and trim block down to 14.5”.

Phoenix Block

phoenix-block-ad  

phoenix-block-outline

For the Phoenix block I echoed a few of the inner shapes. To quilt your block in the same way…

  • Start by quilting in the ditch between the borders and block around all 4 sides.

  • Start quilting and echo the innermost square two times with 1/4" spacing.

  • Start quilting and echo the second innermost square one time with 1/4" spacing.

  • Start quilting and echo the plus sign shape with 1/4" spacing.

  • Start quilting and echo the outermost on point square one time with 1/4" spacing.
  • Fill all the borders with diagonal straight lines approx. 1" apart.

  • Bury the threads and trim block down to 14.5”.

Lesson Download

fmq-8-pdf
Alyssa
Alyssa Williams

Alyssa Williams

Creator of Pile O' Fabric

Alyssa Lichner is a graphic designer turned avid sewist. She writes modern quilting tutorials and shares techniques and inspiration on her blog, Pile O’ Fabric. Alyssa has a passion for exploring different techniques and applying them to modern designs. She is thankful to have the opportunity to share these techniques, through her tutorials, patterns, and classes with quilters around the world. She always encourages her readers and students to challenge themselves to try new things and to approach quilting with a fearless attitude.

Questions/Comments