Remember when we would cut paper snowflakes from folded paper? Living in the desert - those paper doilies were the only snowflakes we ever saw.
1. Cut a square of freezer paper the size of space to fill with free motion quilting. Fold it in half, half again, and again until you have tails - cut off the tails. This will give you a rough circle.
2. Unfold paper and refold into 4-8 equal segments - start cutting. This is the fun part. Be sure to snip a wedge out of the center so you can line it up with the center of your space.
3. Fuse the freezer paper to the fabric with the iron. You can then cut more detail without losing the position if you are careful. I just nudge the point of the scissors under an edge.
4. Quilt around the motif, add as much detail as desired. You may wish to stop and start more than once to get the effect you want. When you are done, if you have been careful you may pull up the freezer paper and use it again, but I prefer to cut a new motif.
This is also a great way to practice your FMQ-ing. Set the machine speed at the slowest, and quilt with a mindfulness of the length of stitches in relation to the speed. Speed the machine up a little if it feels more comfortable. I wear rubber (latex) gloves when FMQ-ing If my hands are dry, I may apply lotion before putting on the gloves. When I cook, I use gloves frequently, and after using them on a food product, I will let them dry and stash them by the sewing machine for double duty. Just can't stand waste.
I wanted to practice stitching feathers - so I folded the paper square in half on the diagonal, and in half again. I drew a feather shape on the folded edge and cut it out. This gave me two feathers, which I used, re-positioned and used again to make a cross shaped feather. Echo quilting is also an option.
I am having so much fun with this alternative to tracing patterns, and marking the fabric. I'd rather be sewing, wouldn't you?
If you want a more detailed "pattern" you can make a double bladed cutter by taping two hobby knife blades to a popsicle stick. With extremely simple shapes you can sew, and move the shape numerous times for complex looking quilting motifs. Squares, circles and triangles give you endless design possibilities. The simpler the shape, the more creative possibilities there are.
About that cotton quilting thread - even expensive 100% cotton will rot eventually. When your machine acts up - check your thread. If a gentle tug on it breaks the thread, chances are it is too old.
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