Practice is over. David now has a quilt ready for quilting on the longarm machine. The sandwich has been basted together with curved safety pins. It’s rolled up at the back of the machine, then David places a wave fold in front of the roll so there is no tension on the quilting area. The design is an appliqued hydrangea flower and David will stitch one petal at a time. He uses only variegated cotton thread and is always blending and enhancing and adding colors sometimes using as many as 50-60 different colors. Nothing is planned in advance, it develops as the stitching continues and this is what gives the painterly look. This quilt is applique but you won’t see the lines of the applique once the stitching is finished…it becomes the thread. He doesn’t want the viewer to see the fabric but rather the petals of the flower.
