Not usually Lila. Part of it depends on how good you are, how much use/washing etc, the quilt will get, the design itself - for instance, with an appliqued quilt, one might want to echo quilt around the designs. Grids work well for many quilts, meandering or stipple are great for filling in backgrounds or all over. It's probably the hardest part of making a quilt!! And unfortunately, most designers of quilt patterns do not give you any ideas. Quilt Maker is the only magazine (I think!) that gives suggestions for quilting. Sometimes a quilt will "tell" you what it needs. It is a good idea, I think, to borrow quilt pattern books from the library - there are several out there (you can buy them too) with designs to trace and stitch. I like to borrow them and get ideas, but so far, all I've done is grids! Oh, except OKNana's spring wall hanging - there I traced lots of little flower motifs from www.quiltmaker.com and stitched them. It worked well and looked pretty! They have a free motif published each Monday - they used to archive them, but have been publishing them in books this past year - I think they are up to 4 books, so far.

I'm sure there are many other opinions! those are just mine!

Looks like your quilt is comingright along can't wait to see if finished?

I am curious if anyone uses those invisible marking pens? You know the kind that if you moisten it with water it will go away or sometimes certain ones of my pens, the marks are gone by the time I get them stitched the purples seem to just fade away quicker. Don't know if that is the brand they are or what but I do need to purchase me some more of them, I perfer the walmart ones.

Debo - I use the blue washout pen quite often but you have to test it on a piece of fabric (I don't always ) because although it says that it washes out, it will sometimes come back when ironed. The purples are sort of over-night markers they fade as you use them. Had a friend who marked her whole quilt before going on holiday and when she unpacked and wanted to sit and quilt her design was gone - most frustrating. Lead pencil can be temperamental as well - I use a very soft lead and test for washing out.

Mary

Deb, I use both the blue (water soluble) and purple (air soluble) pens and have never had a problem with either coming out. The purple has always disappeared for me completely (sometimes in mere minutes which is frustrating, and sometimes it takes a day or two, but mostly within a few hours of marking) and the blue has always washed out completely for me. When I use the blue pen, I always soak my finished quilt in cool water for five minutes or so in the washer before giving it a very gentle wash with mild detergent. Never had a problem or marks that reappeared. And I use the double sided markers (blue on one side, purple on the other) that you can get at Walmart and Joanns.

I've heard that if you iron over these marks (blue or purple) you'll set them - I don't have first hand knowledge about that since I'm careful never to do it, but I thought I'd pass that info along too....

Gerda,
Thank you so much for all that information. And I went to the website for quiltmaker magazine.....looks like I need to find that right away.
Thanks, Lila

You're welcome, Lila!! Anytime!

Gerda

On dark quilts I use my white chalk pencil. And on light color quilts I use a disappear or water resovet marker.

I was told not use a regular pencil cause it won't wash out. Is that true?