Machine Quilting: Flying Geese

Nancy is this super sweet lady that brought me this quilt to work my magic on. The second I saw it, my mind started racing and I couldn't wait to get started!

 This was Nancy's first time making Flying Geese and she went at it with gusto! What I was told was she just went into her scraps and kept sewing and making rows with no pattern or anything, just kept sewing and laying it out until it felt right.

I had this idea to quilt in some "phantom" geese in the less dense areas of the quilt to add in a little pop of something and balance out the quilting. Trust me, when I see this much background I can't wait to jump in and play. This much negative space is truly like a playground to a long arm quilter.

 Here you can see the "phantom" geese I quilted in a bit better. There's a small grouping at the top center of the picture and another small group just above my logo at the edge of the quilt.

 Here's an even better shot! All of the geese were quilted the same, the actual pieced geese and the "phantom" ones alike. Then I just filled in the background with swirls. When the swirls are quilted this densely and fill such a large area, they act as texture and not another element. It's a great pattern to fill in awkward areas like working in and around these flying geese and soften the lines and points of the overall feel of the piecing.

 I just can't get enough. I really want to make a quilt like this now.

 I had several clients swing by while I had this quilt on the frame. Each and every single one stopped dead in their tracks and drooled over this quilt. It's so funny because when Nancy brought it to me I had the same reaction and she was playing it cool with a "Oh you mean this old thing? It's just something I threw together" attitude.

I just wish you all could see the smile on her face when she saw it! I love my job!

The quilting really stands out on the back of the quilt too, especially since Nancy chose a simple white on white print. You can see the "stained glass window effect" from the sun shining through the quilt to the back in the top half or so of this picture.

I really enjoy working on quilts like this (if you couldn't tell already) where the design holds up from the front to the back and it becomes almost two quilts. You can flip it over from time to time and use it as a whole cloth quilt if you'd like!

Well, Nancy, I had such a blast working on this quilt and I can't wait to see what you work on next!