Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Quilting the Grid with Christina Cameli

I recently finished the Craftsy Class by Christina Cameli called Quilting the Grid:  Structured Free Motion and thought I would do a class review about it.  I have no affiliation with Craftsy, just sharing my opinion.   I'll just start by saying this opened up a whole new world of possibilities!  Loved this class!

Christina suggested that this method of quilting is very good for someone just starting out with free motion quilting because it is much less intimidating to break down huge open spaces into smaller bites at a time.  I would agree with that!

Another advantage Christina points out is having a grid keeps the scale of whatever pattern you are using from drifting and getting smaller than you started out or larger than you started out.  Most of her samples are done on solid fabrics so they are more easily shown, but these motifs will work well on prints as well.
This is a way of doing free motion quilting with a little more structure.  You create a grid with your walking foot:  square, on point, diamond, triangle, radiant, and whatever your imagination can come up with.  This class introduces you to (as Christina says) the magic of geometry!

Here is one of my favorite patterns.  This particular grid starts out by using your walking foot to quilt 60 degree diamonds.  She explains how to do this accurately.  I made my grid lines on this practice piece 1 1/2 inches apart.

Next, quilt across the slimmest part of the diamond to create triangles like this:

Next comes the free motion part.  Quilt an arc on the inside of each triangle and you end up with a kind of floral pattern.    Notice that I am not very consistent with the size of my arcs yet, but even so, the pattern created is beautiful and once you see the overall effect, you won't even notice this.  Loving this texture!

Christina also gives very good instructions about the most efficient way to travel from space to space so you don't get stuck in a corner with no way out.

Here is another practice sandwich experimenting with a variety of patterns inside the grid.  This grid is 2 inches.  I used contrasting thread on this one so I could see what I was doing better.  When you want the texture to be the star, you should probably use thread close to the same color of the fabric you are quilting.   If you want the thread to be the star, then you would chose thread that contrasts more.  Christina shows many, many more patterns to try than I have shown here.  


You can see the texture a little bit better on the back of this practice sandwich:

You can make your grids any size you want using the guide on your walking foot but it gets difficult once you get larger than 3 inches unless you mark the grid on your fabric before you sew.

Here is a word of advice, make some practice sandwiches ahead of time before you take the class so you can put what you're learning into practice as you watch.  I did not do this.  I watched all of the lessons and was eager to try it out but I had to go back and listen to parts again because I couldn't remember how to do it.  Much more efficient to pause the video and practice right then.

I plan to use this method on Ashley's quilt and do a different motif on each different colored strip.  I see that on the orange strip with circles, there is already a natural grid created!  Hmm!  What can I put in those circles?  

I have to say I enjoyed this class very much and if you haven't watched a class by Christina before, I highly recommend her.  She has such a pleasant teaching style and personality.   I loved her Wild Quilting class as well.

I hope this review has encouraged you to try Quilting the Grid!

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14 comments:

  1. Very interesting - many thanks for sharing your class ideas.

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  2. Love this post and your comprehensive review Janice. I have some of Christina's other classes and I love her teaching style. FMQ is something I would love to do more of but I don't practice enough and it makes me nervous, this class looks like something I could manage. I treat myself to a Craftsy class now and again and always at Christmas, I won't need to look for what I want this year, this class is going straight to the top of my list.

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  3. That looks like something I could actually do. Thank you for sharing your experience with the class.

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  4. That was very interesting! Thank you for sharing.
    One day I will FMQ but I think I need a new sewing machine first as mine has fixed feed dogs. I do have a cover plate but haven’t been successful with my practice pieces.
    Barbara xx

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  5. Happy Thanksgiving! I love Christina's classes/books, she is a very sweet talented person. So fun to see you jump right in and give her designs a try right away. Have a great weekend.

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  6. that is interesting. I have signed on for quite a few classes and then I never watch them all it seems. Happy Thanksgiving

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  7. Nice review! I took another of her Craftsy classes - Wild Quilting - and really got a lot out of it too. In that one she does a technique with layering that was really cool, and I've already used it a few times. Thanks for the review on this class!

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  8. Hi Janice, thank you so much for the review. I've taken her Wild quilting class and loved it. This one is also on my wish list - I guess I'll get it next sale. Thanks for sharing.

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  9. Great review Janice! I'd be tempted to buy but I've already got a few free motion quilting classes that I either haven't watched or haven't done any practice on. I might just add it to my wishlist though. I like your tip about having the quilt sandwiches ready to go. What size do you use? I'm most impressed by your practice samples!

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  10. Janice, I think your arcs look amazing! Your doing a great job - keep up the practice!

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  11. now wasn't that fun? I like your style Janice. Great explanation. I want to go try it now. LeeAnna

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  12. Thanks for this very useful review, Janice. Your quilting samples really look great! You're ready to tackle Ashley's quilt for sure :)

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  13. This review is super helpful Janice, thanks! I haven't taken any of Christina's classes but will look through her offerings on Craftsy. Your quilting looks fabulous!

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  14. Thanks for the review. I saw that class and wondered what it was like.

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