Long time no talk to. That's because there has not been much to tell, just daily life and little bit of fabric folding and scrap cutting. Since finishing my DD and SIL's king sized quilt top, I have been contemplating whether to machine quilt it myself (too little experience and probably too small machines) or to send it to a long-armer (too much money right now, though I do believe they are worth the price), or rent time on a long arm and take the lesson and do it myself (same $$ as having it done, so better to go with a pro) or hand quilt it. I would love to do that, but figured there is no way it will be finished for Christmas.

And just for a chuckle, this pic shows you exactly how much thread was left on my top spool when I stitched the last stitch on the quilt top. As a matter of fact, it was no longer on the spool--it was ready to go through the first little eye hole guide on top of the machine!!

On with my tale... DD asked for the quilt based on a picture she saw on a blog a couple years ago. So, though she doesn't want to see the quilt in progress, she and I can talk about it. She says she doesn't care if it is not finished in time for Christmas, but really would like it to be hand quilted. We agreed upon a quilting design. She also measured their bed to let me know the desired measurements, so now I know how wide the borders need to be. They will get added before I can go any further.

In the meantime, I've been trying to figure out how I am going to wangle a big ol' quilt around to get it sandwiched and basted. I do not see how I could do a really good job of it if I were going to have to crawl around on it laid out on the floor. I know people do it, but it just doesn't sound like something I want to do if I can avoid it. I just know I'd end up with bubbles to work out and wonky edges, and I do not want to crawl around on the floor that long!

I discovered this video on YouTube showing a terrific method of hand basting a quilt on top of a table! It's by Sharon Schamber. It makes sense to me, and I feel like I have a better chance to get a good result.

My dining room table with both leaves in it and card table raised a couple inches by standing it on tuna cans will be just long enough for this project. Woo hoo! I have a workable plan for finishing this quilt. So I'll just keep rolling along, taking one step at a time instead of thinking and planning myself into oblivion.

Until next time!