Day 88 – Stomach Lining

This design is also featured in the DVD Beginner Free Motion Quilting Fillers, as well as the ebook From Daisy to Paisley.

Yeah, yeah, I know the name of this one is absolutely disgusting, but the Biology major in me just has to have some fun sometimes!

free motion quilting design stomach lining

I’m still searching for easier ways to use Stippling so that it won’t be such a trial for beginners to learn. I think spiraling with it in this way has a very neat effect, plus it’s fast to stitch which helps to cover large surface areas very quickly.

Inspiration – I’ve been playing with more center fill designs and I like how this one works quite a bit. It was inspired by a wooden coaster that had wood rings radiating out from the center.

Whenever I look at objects or pictures these days I try to imagine what it would look like if the lines were wiggly, straight, or jagged. This imagining leads to more quilting designs every time!

Design Family – Center Fill. You’re going to break thread, then start from the center with this design. Because of the way it’s created, this design will work well in open areas like quilt blocks and circles.

It probably wouldn’t be the best choice for complicated areas because of the amount of traveling required to keep the spiral consistent.

Difficulty Level – Beginner. This wiggly spiral is so much easier than stippling! Play with having the lines interlock for a more stipple type of look or separate them for a definite stomach lining effect.

Directional Texture – Center Focused. If you interlock the wiggly lines, you won’t have quite as much center focused attention, but if they’re separate you’re definitely going to see the spiral and your eyes will be drawn within it.

Suggestions for Use – Need a cool way to practice this design? Sandwich some 6″ squares and quilt 4″ squares within them. Cut it out and pillowcase line the back with another piece of fabric to finish the ends.

The end result? Quilted coasters perfect for gift giving this holiday season!

let’s go quilt,

Leah Day

LeahDay

Leah Day has been teaching online since 2009. She's the creator of the Free Motion Quilting Project, a blog filled with thousands of quilting tutorial videos. Leah has written several books including 365 Free Motion Quilting Designs, Explore Walking Foot Quilting with Leah Day, and Mally the Maker and the Queen in the Quilt.

8 Responses

  1. Corrie says:

    great blog! I've just finished my 2nd quilt with free motion and I'm still a beginner but just threw myself into it and it's soooo addictive. I dream of my hands gliding around with the quilt under the machine!!!!

    adding it to my favourites right now!

    corrie:)
    http://www.retromummy.blogspot.com

  2. Oh my, oh my, oh my, this design in particular sets my imagination on fire. Thanks, also, for your notes on the inspiration of this design- very instructional for a newcomer to free-motion like myself!

  3. Fiesta says:

    Leah I tried to email you but it is not working for me. could you email me?

  4. kreachr says:

    I love this one! It's awesome 🙂 And the name is perfect, even if it's a little ew

  5. Mel says:

    Tripe! Menudo! I'm enjoying this adventure with you so much that my mind is super-stimulated. You are so inspiring to this stale ol' lady. Thanks.

  6. Marion says:

    my husband, an electronics engineer, suggested the name "brain coral".

  7. Leah Day says:

    Sorry Marion, we already have a Brain Coral!

    Check out day 16 at:

    http://freemotionquilting.blogspot.com/2009/08/day-16-brain-coral.html

  8. Vivian says:

    thanks for shareing!
    your samples are great for practice

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