free motion quilting Archives - The Little Mushroom Cap: A Quilting Blog

In Quilt

Quilting Baby Quilt with a Home Machine

March 14, 2022 1 Comment

If you have been wanting to learn how to free-motion quilt with a regular home sewing machine, these tips may be helpful for you!

In this post + video, I’ll take you through the process of quilting a baby quilt with a home sewing machine.

Oftentimes for beginner quilters, the quilting part can be daunting and a little confusing.

How do you quilt a baby quilt?

You can always do it yourself on your home machine. But you can also opt to send it to professional quilters too. Whichever will work. But baby quilts are often small projects that quilters are willing to do the quilting themselves with the regular sewing machine.

What do you quilt a baby quilt with?

You can quilt with your home sewing machine. You can quilt using what you already own to make the quilt top. Your home sewing machine.

Any regular sewing machine can be used to quilt the three-layer sandwich of the quilt top, batting, and backing fabric. You can quilt straight lines using a walking foot or free motion quilt with an allover quilting design.

I love free motion quilting all over design and free motion quilting is easier on smaller-sized quilts like a baby quilt.

If you are planning to quilt a large quilt using your home sewing machine, you should definitely try to quilt a baby-size quilt first beforehand.

It will teach you a lot and you’ll be more experienced to tackle larger quilts with your home sewing machine after quilting a baby quilt with your sewing machine.

Free Motion Quilting a Baby Quilt with a regular sewing machine

In this particular post, I have a video where I’ll be sharing the process and taking you through the process of quilting a baby quilt with an easy all-over free motion quilting on a regular sewing machine.

I am not using a long arm machine, and you won’t need a long-arm machine to finish a baby quilt. You can absolutely do it on your home machine with ease with the right tools and techniques.

Previously, I have shared some of these tips on my blog (which you can find in the following top posts):

but for visual learners, a video might be much more helpful for you. So hopefully, this video will benefit you, and encourage you to start quilting your own quilt with your sewing machine!

If you are a beginner free motion quilter or haven’t yet got the hang of free-motion quilting, I would like to invite you to join my FREE E-course on FREE MOTION QUILTING FOR BEGINNER HERE >>

In Quilt

Top 5 tools for free motion quilting

January 30, 2020 6 Comments

Do you want to quilt free-hand design on your home machine? Wonder what tools you need to do free motion quilting? You’re in the right place! In this post, I will share with you the 5 MUST-HAVE essentials tools for free motion quilting.

I love to free-motion quilt, and I have been loving teaching others to free-motion quilt too!

I would say these items have helped me so much and I would not be free motion quilting without them these days!

What do you need to do free motion quilting on a home sewing machine?

First on the list of tools to free motion quilt on your home machine is of course,

the right free-motion quilting foot.

In Quilt

Boxy Pouch Tutorial

January 2, 2020 No Comments

Small projects make the best practice pieces for free motion quilting. In this post I have a tutorial on how to make a boxy pouch and get you to practice free motion quilting!

This project will not only allow you to make use of your practice sandwich but also allows you to have the option of hiding those stitches, should you feel like they’re not that pretty yet. Everyone was there before they get better. It is a practice piece after all.

If you are interested to learn more about free motion quilting, make sure you check these related posts too:

Also check out to learn how to free motion quilt confidently

I remembered in the early times of my free motion quilting days, I used to get so frustrated with my stitches and was certainly not happy with how they turned out. But I also know that practice is necessary, so I keep making these ‘ugly’ practice sandwiches.

Practice will make it better.

That is what I keep chanting as I move along practice piece after practice piece.

I don’t feel like wasting those practice pieces, so I usually turn them into hotpads and placemats. And that makes me feel a lot better. At least even if the stitches were not as great at that time, I actually get to use the piece.

And in this post I am sharing an even better idea!

A pouch. One can never have enough pouches, And this one is a really useful roomy one, suitable for many of your necessities and perfect for gifting too!

You can also make one following the tutorial in the video below.

Free Motion Quilting Boxy Pouch Tutorial

Start out by free motion quilting a fat quarter size quilt sandwich.

Divide them into two to make two pouches with 2 pieces of fat quarter fabrics.

The size of the rectangle to start with for each pouch is 16.5″ x 10″ and the boxy pouch will end up to be 3″x5″x9″.

Watch the tutorial below on how to make the boxy pouch.

Let me know what you think. Want to keep on practicing now?? Let’s do this.

If you haven’t checked out Free Motion Quilting Bootcamp, I would love to invite you to join in. I teach you how to master various designs and the exact steps on how you can free-motion quilt any design with your regular sewing machine.

We have gotten great reviews of the program and I am sure you will be on your way to great success with free motion quilting if you joined in too!

In Quilt

Three of 3 on A Tuesday | 32|

November 12, 2019 2 Comments

Welcome to another “Three of 3 on A Tuesday”. I will have THREE things or links of 3 topics for you to visit/read on Tuesday to either showcase tutorials, inspirations, random daily thoughts or it could be any fabric/notion sales running that particular week. So for today, here are the THREE of 3 things:

It has been a while since I last posted three of 3, but you can always visit the archives HERE>

In Quilt

Three of 3 on A Tuesday | 31 |

October 29, 2019 No Comments

Welcome to another “Three of 3 on A Tuesday”. I will have THREE things or links of 3 topics for you to visit/read on Tuesday to either showcase tutorials, inspirations, random daily thoughts or it could be any fabric/notion sales running that particular week. So for today, here are the THREE of 3 things:

It has been a while since I last posted three of 3, but you can always visit the archives HERE>

In Quilt

Can you quilt with a regular sewing machine?

September 3, 2019 45 Comments

The short answer to the question is YES you can. You can quilt with a regular sewing machine.

With the machine you already own;

Provided, you have the tools and are eager to learn.

There are two ways you can do so: straight-line quilting with a walking foot or you may also quilt any design you wish with a free motion quilting foot.

Envy those beautiful swirly quilting you see?

Join my FREE E-course on FREE MOTION QUILTING FOR BEGINNERS HERE >>

Yes, you can quilt like this on a regular sewing machine too!

When I started quilting, this was my question too. Can this type of quilting be done on a regular sewing machine? On my small Janome at that time?

Is it possible?

In Quilt

Three of 3 on A Tuesday | 30 |

May 28, 2019 2 Comments

Welcome to another “Three of 3 on A Tuesday”. I will have THREE things or links of 3 topics for you to visit/read on Tuesday to either showcase tutorials, inspirations, random daily thoughts or it could be any fabric/notion sales running that particular week. So for today, here are the THREE of 3 things:

It has been a while since I last posted three of 3, but you can always visit the archives HERE>

In Quilt

Rocket Star Quilt Along is here!

May 3, 2019 No Comments

Another finished quilt of the year! Yeay, this one came together so quickly, part of the reason why I love accountability and due dates!

This is a part of the quilt-along that is hosted by one of favourite shop, the Fat Quarter Shop.

If you are up to play around with a gorgeous block – come and join us!

There are affiliate links within the post for your convenience. Please find the full disclosure here.

Rocket Star Quilt Along (3rd May) prep:

Rocket Star Quilt Pattern
Starburst Ruler – highly recommend this, there’ll be a template in the pattern, but I sliced through my homemade template twice!
Stripology Ruler – I am recommending this as I used mine for all those sashing. So, so useful.
Rocket Star Quilt Kit (Exclude backing) featuring a new line by Basic Grey – NOVA. I love Basic Grey, and this one is no exception! Just gorgeous!
You can also check out NOVA by Basic Grey HERE. Tell me what do you think of the line? I love florals and geometric – so I am definitely in love with it!

In Quilt

Three of 3 on A Tuesday | 29 |

October 30, 2018 No Comments

.Welcome to another “Three of 3 on A Tuesday”. I will have THREE things or links of 3 topics for you to visit/read on Tuesday to either showcase tutorials, inspirations, random daily thoughts or it could be any fabric/notion sales running that particular week. So for today, here are the THREE of 3 things:

In Quilt

3 all-over free motion quilting design for a quick finish + free printable templates!

September 19, 2018 7 Comments

Whether that is just to quilt by stitching in the ditch, to stitch straight lines or even free motion quilting it. Or hand quilting it (which I believe will take even longer).

In the end, it will depend mostly on two factors.

One, the final outcome.

Whether you want it densely quilted, the overall fluffiness of the quilt, the look you are targetting for etc.

Two, the time it will take to complete the quilting.

Time will vary for different people depending on their capabilities. However, I do believe that with enough practice and motivation, one can master all type of design motif easily.

Though, they’ll still have to think about the time for some quilting designs are denser and requires a longer time to get it done.