Quilting ideas for your Curiosity Quilt
"Quilt as desired." Isn’t this the most annoying instruction in a quilt pattern?! (I put it in my patterns, too... guilty as charged!) Choosing a quilting design can be an intimidating part of the quilt making process, and I think it’s why a lot of people just let their quilt tops pile up without finishing their quilts. With the release of my Curiosity quilt pattern (find the free pattern here), I wanted to share some of my ideas for quilting this particular quilt design.
Hand Quilting
This quilt pattern is perfect for hand quilting. It’s not a huge quilt, so it won’t take the rest of your life. It’s all long, straight lines, so it’s good for a beginner hand quilter. You could just quilt a line down the center of each fabric strip, and I think it would look amazing.
Domestic Machine Quilting
This is another great choice for this quilt. Again, since it’s not huge, most people can wrestle a quilt of this size through their domestic machine, no matter how small the machine’s throat may be. Here are some simple straight line quilting design ideas:
Follow the Lines
Using your walking foot, simply stitch either 1/4" or 1/2" on either side of each seam. This is my preferred method to stitching in the ditch, as it is a bit more forgiving if your lines aren't absolutely straight. It doesn't get much simpler than this, but this would be a perfect way to quilt this pattern.
Radiate
Using the points where the fabrics meet in the design, quilt straight lines that radiate into the center of the diamonds. Tip: start from the left where the red dot is, then straight line quilt to the next red dot, across the quilt. Then reverse direction and quilt the purple dot line.
Starburst
Start by drawing diagonal lines to both corners of the quilt using your choice of chalk, hera marker, or water/heat soluble pen, and also draw diagonal lines that intersect each center diamond (see the grey lines above. Use these lines as guides to quilt 4 point stars on each of the diamonds. I love this one, may have to do this on my next Curiosity quilt...
Longarm Quilting
This is the method I use to quilt almost all my quilts. I usually choose an all over (edge to edge) pantograph design. If you are working with a longarmer, they will probably have a nice selection of designs for you to choose from, or perhaps will purchase a design that you find elsewhere. When choosing a design, listen to your longarmer! Some designs look cool, but may not stitch out well or may not be ideal for your quilt.
I generally start with two ideas when looking for a pantograph: the geometric design of the quilt, and the fabric itself. I often choose something that echoes one of these two elements.
For my Curiosity Quilt, I used this design: Squared by Leisha Farnsworth at Quilting It. It echoes the quilt design, complementing without distracting.
Another pantograph designs that I think would look great is Glasswings by Megan Haun for Urban Elementz - it mimics the butterflies in the fabric without being too on the nose.
I also really like Marbled Glaze by Barbie Mills at The Quilting Mill,
I hope this sparks your creativity for quilting your Curiosity Quilt! If you have any about these techniques or want suggestions for your own Curiosity, please comment below, and happy quilting!
