Thursday, October 18, 2012

Long Arm Quilting Ladies

This is Chris! 

At the recent Austin Quilt Fest, I met two gals by the name of Susan and Chris. They own Over the Top Quilting Studio here in Austin. I had the opportunity to go to their studio and interview them! WoW!! Just WOW! 
                                         

These dynamic sisters have been long arm quilting for about 11 years, so they really know their stuff. For those of you new to the idea of long arm quilting, it is a different kind of sewing machine that really facilitates free-motion quilting. You give your pieced top to these gals, and they finish it for ya. 



I have experienced first hand trying to quilt a queen size quilt on my little sewing machine and just sweating through it. What I like about Susan and Chris is the spirit of collaboration they have with me. They really want your vision to shine through. When I asked them what to look for in a long armist, they said that the client should feel safe and respected by the quilter. The client should ask to see a preview of the design and other examples of work. Susan and Chris also mentioned that the long armist should have a good variety of color in threads as well. 


I used to think that hiring a long arm quilter was kind of like cheating, but now I see how amazing it is! I could finish so many more quilt tops by working with them. I also learned that collaborating with long armist does not disqualify me from entering competitions! 


I can't say enough good things about these ladies. Seriously. I had such a good time interviewing them and watching them work. Susan and Chris have INCREDIBLE skill and creativity. I feel like we've been friends for ages after just two visits with them. I hope you'll look them up. 


                                            
This is Susan working on my celtic quilt!!!! She is totally my hero. 



By Cassie Grace

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Cassie has made a real impression on our lives too, here at Over The Top Quilting Studio. She has graciously taught us so much about social media and photographing in just two short sessions. Her Celtic quilt is amazingly made up of 1" squares, strategically placed following a cross stitch pattern! Very impressive work from a very impressive woman.