Must Haves for Longarm Quilters
Hey Quilters!
Remember me, Enjoli? I’m still here.. just working away, lost in all the quilty goodness! The last few weeks I have been to Nashville, Paducah and Boise for Bernina! It has been so fun to meet other quilters - new and experienced long armers and those shopping for a machine!
BUT, today I want to chat with you about some MUST HAVES once you have made that longarm purchase! I’ll even share a few things that you think you might need right away but probably don’t!
So, the MUST HAVES:
pins (or other loading system - such as magnets or red snappers) and pin bowl; these are of course vital in order to actually load your frame and start quilting. Pins are probably the most accessible way to get started, as you can find the “corsage” pins quite a few places. My favorite pins are actually the “longarm quilting pins” from Handi Quilter. I also love my magnetic pin bowl for holding my pins - and BIG bonus it magnets to my frame rails so it will hold there while I load my fabric onto my frame.
My extra bobbin storage system - I even labeled the boxes with my Cricut so I knew what thread was on them at a quick glance.
basic selection of thread; so I do mean basic, like a few spools of a few different types of thread (different weights, substrates, etc.) that you can test out and try to see how they run through your machine and if/how much you’ll need to adjust tension for different kinds of thread. I recommend getting shades of grey, white and/or beige. These colors are typically the most versatile so they won’t be wasted by you never using them again.
ruler work foot/tray (if you want to do ruler work); this is a serious MUST HAVE if you want to do ruler work - as in it is very dangerous to try ruler work with out them. The ruler foot is specially designed to ride along the thick ruler work rulers, and the tray give you the extra surface you need to lay down the rulers.
small snips; these will be your best friend for clipping thread tails. I hang these on one of my spool pins so that I can just reach up and grab them whenever I need them.
extra bobbins; let’s be honest these are going to save you time from having to empty bobbins (so this is mostly a must have due to the sanity saving factor)
laser light (if not included with your purchase); this is for pinpointing the needle placement, so it will show you exactly where your needle is going to land into your fabric. This is super helpful whether you’re doing free motion quilting or quilting with automation.
Freemotion application: knowing where to drop your needle to bring up your bobbin thread - start a design, etc.
Qmatic (automation) application: helping you find a point when realigning to advance your quilt or dropping markers, marking boundaries, etc.
The Big Book of Longarm Quilting from Bernina; this is going to be an amazing resource whether you're doing free motion or automated quilting. This book will be that resource that you can always look back to to remember all the little details while learning your new machine.
The ruler work foot I’m using here is the #72 Foot, but you can also use the #96. The required tray is clipped onto the machine underneath the quilt. Plus a portion of my rulers here!
This book is going to be such a great reference for you as you get started on your longer journey. It has information on free motion, computerized, rulerwork, etc.
and the Nice to Have but Not Required (right away):
These are the Tula brand tweezers - so not only are they helpful, but they’re pretty!
batting (by-the-roll) and batting scissors; ok to be honest this is going to be nice to have whether you’re quilting for yourself or as a business BUT especially if you’re running a business. Batting on the roll is going to have way less creases than packaged batting - and is typically a little cheaper. You’re not pay for packaging right? And batting scissors - ok so what are those? Those are special scissors that come down from the handle to a flat edge - this means they don’t snag on your batting as you’re trying to cut through it.
a variety of different threads to experiment with; when you’re first getting going with a new longarm machine it can be tempting to buy all the threads and all the colors! Trust me I get that (and still have threads that I bought early one that I’m not using) and don’t want to stop you from buying the pretty colors! So, it is nice to have a variety of threads to play with - but what I mean is different weights of thread (and ok, pretty colors too) so that you can get a feel of how your machines runs them all.
Plus - download this AMAZING resource to use with your Bernina QSeries Longarm: Home Machine Thread Reference Guide
batting bar for your frame; this will allow you to store your batting up off the floor under your machine which will keep it clean(er) and out of the way.
tweezers; these are great for when you have a thread stuck somwhere in your machine, or even on your quilt. I have even use them to pull thread tails if I’ve had to take stitches out.
natural fiber paintbrush; you can pick this up at any hardware store, but this is great for doing a quick dust and clean out of your machine - especially the hook area. I like to get a nice wide 2-3” brush so that it will catch everything in one pass.
Super Nice & Kinda Splurgy, but also worth every dollar:
The Daylight Quilta light, mounted to my front handlebars - it has 3 settings so you can dim if needed.
Quilta-light from Daylight; I LOVE this lamp! I have it on two of my machines and the only reason I don’t have it on the other two is because one has a custom made light bar and the other is right under a huge bay of windows!
Laura Star Lift; ok so this is a a higher dollar splurge BUT if you hate ironing large quilt backs on your regular ironing board… LET. ME. TELL. YOU! This is a GAME CHANGER!! Like seriously, no joke you will be happy to spent your money on this. Ok.. so what is it?!
This system is a high power steam iron (basic description, but basically what you need to know for this purpose) that will save you SO much time getting those deep creases out of your wide backs.
Check it out here (and keep an eye out for a video from me on how I use this very soon).
I hope this list helps you gather some helpful supplies for your longarm journey! If you have any other things you found you couldn’t live without or were just helpful, let me know in the comments so I can update my list!
Happy Quilting,
Enjoli :)