Quilting Rack

I've always wanted a quilting rack. Nothing fancy, just 4 long pieces of pine to pin quilt layers to and quilt, just like my grandma used to have in her basement when I was little. Over the years I made sad attempts at "racks" in order to hand quilt various small pre-printed quilts, but they never really worked out.

My first attempt at a hand quilting setup (2003)

A couple years ago, I finally got to make myself a quilting rack, just like grandma's!  My dad got the 4 pieces of pine needed and gave me a drill with the proper bits to make the holes on the top and bottom pieces, and to round off the splintery edges.  How exciting! An extra set was made for my mom too.

My dad showing me the drill bit to round off edges

Unfortunately I didn't have room for the rack, or to set it up and quilt right away so it stayed at my dad's for a bit. But finally, the time has come to put it to use! This past weekend I set up my quilting rack!

Quilting rack ready for a quilt

At Fabricland a couple weekends ago I found a neat magnetic tack set on sale at a great price so I picked it up. Turns out it's perfect!

Magnetic tack set

I should probably invest in some clamps to hold the corners in place, but for now it's good enough. After all, this really is my first time hand quilting on such a large scale.

Once I had the quilt rack set up, I wasted no time in pinning up my first quilt. (See "Cat Quilt").

Cat Quilt

So now I am all set! I have a task to work on over the holidays and winter months. I'm very excited and can't wait to start working on my quilt, just like grandma used to!

Keep Crafty Everyone!