Wild Mustang - Part 2

Here is the latest on the Wild Mustang Wall Hanging. My next step was to put the two tops together and baste them. The top that is for the Wild Mustang was laid down first on point right side up.  Then the background top went on top of it right side up and I first pinned the two together then hand basted them together.  Here is what it looks like after I was finished hand basting and I still had some pins to remove. 

Once that was done, I trimmed off the exposed corners of the Wild Mustang top since those portions are not needed.  Then the piece is flipped to the wrong side and the pattern is placed on top, centered and strategically pinned.

I started sewing the larger shapes first.  This is done free motion with the feed dogs down and your quilting or darning foot (which ever one your sewing machine comes with).  Since there is no batting here, just two layers of fabric and 1 layer of paper you will likely have to adjust your tension from your normal free motion quilting tension.  Take 2 scrap pieces of fabric and a piece of paper and run a few test stitchings to see what will give you the best results before you start on your actual quilt.  When you start to stitch a shape make sure that you have pulled out enough lead top and bobbin thread and hold onto it while you start stitching.  After you have stitched part way through your shape make sure that you bring the bottom thread up to the top so that you don't sew over top of the bottom thread.  Once you have finished your shape raise the needle and presser foot and cut your thread leaving about 4 " attached to the quilt.  Bring the one thread from the right side (currently underneath) to the top and I just took a small piece of tape and taped the ends out of the way.  Later once you remove the paper, these ends need to be tied and trimmed.

I stitched the shape twice around since my machine does not have a stitch regulator and even though my free motion stitching has improved there are times when I have longer stitches than I would like.  Since the insides of the shapes will be cut out to reveal the bottom layer of fabric, I don't want the fabric fraying because of the longer stitches.  This is what it looks like with two lines of stitching.  After I'm done cutting out all the shapes I will be finishing all the edges with a buttonhole stitch so where my two lines don't quite meet, the buttonhole stitch should take care of that very nicely.

To remove the paper, I use this tool to first score all the lines so that the paper will rip easier from the stitching.  I think it's called an embosser tool.  I find it works best if the quilt is on a softer surface or if it is just folded into quarters. You don't have to worry about getting out any of the little bits that may be stuck in a seam since this side will be inside the finished quilt beween the batting and the back.

Finally I also have made a little test piece from the 1 1/2" square test I did earlier.  I will use this first to test out cutting the first layer of fabric so I get the hang of that before I tackle the Wild Mustang.  Also the test piece will be used to try out the buttonhole stitch to figure out the right size in terms of width and length before I start stitching on the Wild Mustang.

Well time to start ripping out paper.