Straight Line Quilting...Hints and Tips

I love straight line quilting. For me it has a clean, modern feel with a simplicity that I love. The possible combinations of straight lines are endless. Many of you have asked for information on straight line quilting, so I've put together a mini tutorial on how I straight line quilt.

I dislike marking quilts. I find that my lines are never quite where I want them to be, so my solution is painter's tape. I have it in sizes from 1/4" up to 3". You can lay sizes next to each other to make whatever distance you choose between your lines. You will also need a walking foot for your machine. The walking foot allows the top and bottom fabrics to feed evenly when you're quilting. With tape, a walking foot and your imagination, you're set to go.
The first step is to place the first piece of tape. For this little quilt I was doing random straight lines, so the placement was pretty easy. If you're crosshatching a large quilt setting that first line can be tricky unless you have another person to help. Making sure that first placement is straight is important because all the lines will build off of that first one.

I usually lay my tape approximately where I want it, then I take out any of the basting pins that are in the way. Then I have a partner (kids work well, dogs, not so much) help me place it and then I press it down securely. The low tack of the painter's tape will stick nicely, but it won't leave a residue on your quilt.
When I first started straight line quilting I sewed with the needle right next to the tape. I found that sometimes I would sew on the tape. (everyone wiggles a bit!) Then when I would move the tape for the next line the tape would rip and remain under the stitches. It's no fun to remove little bits of tape stuck under the stitches. So, now I position my walking foot like you see below with the inner edge running along the tape. This prevents any sewing over the tape and it helps keep your line perfectly straight. Sometimes when you stop to adjust your quilt your quilt will shift a bit and if you just have the needle it's hard to line up your quilt again. With that inner edge of the presser foot you can line up with the tape and keep on sewing.
This is what your line will look like after sewing.
If I was going to do a row of straight lines I would reposition my tape along the stitching line and sew again repeating the process across the quilt. You will have to replace the tape eventually when it isn't sticky enough to maintain a line.
Here are a few examples of some of the straight line quilting I have done. A large crosshatch. These lines are 3 inches apart.

Simple parallel lines. These lines are a half inch apart. Remember to start in the center and work out to the edges. For this I only used tape on the center line. Then I used the outside edge of the walking foot which gives a perfect half inch spacing.
On this quilt the lines are done perpendicular with random widths apart. I did all the vertical lines first and then added the horizontal lines. The spacing ranges from 1/2" to 2" apart.

Have fun playing with lines and if it's Thanksgiving where you are, have a great one! I'm thankful you all come to visit and comment and email. It's great getting to know you and sharing my work with you.