Make Free Motion Quilting Easier with the Supreme Slider

One of the #1 questions I’m asked about quilting is “Don’t you use a longarm? HOW are you able to quilt on a home machine?”

I always answer this question the same way:

Think about it this way: would you consider piecing a New York Beauty block without a ¼” piecing foot? Would you cut out the pieces with an old yardstick and pair of scissors?

Yes, this may have been the way things were done once upon a time, but these days we have rotary cutters, accurate rulers, and an amazing array of specialized feet to make cutting and piecing easier.

So why not invest in tools that will make free motion quilting easier too?

Of course the hardest thing is trying to figure out if a tool will actually work for you or not. In classes, I always have many tools available to play with so everyone can try anything they like and see what works.

Online it’s trickier because you don’t have that personal experience. I know I’ve shelled out lots of money on hoops, grippers, slippery spray stuff, and other tools. Some of it worked and some of it didn’t.

This is why I only carry just those items in the quilt shop that I’ve found really work for free motion quilting and make it easier and aren’t just gimmicky junk.

So when it comes to specifically moving the quilt around there’s one tool that I absolutely can’t live without and that is the Supreme Slider.

This is a slick Teflon sheet that goes on the surface of your machine bed. It covers your feed dogs (a nice bonus if you don’t drop them like me), and turns the surface of your machine bed into a super slick surface that your quilt can glide over easily.

When it comes to quilting on a home sewing machine the biggest thing you’re fighting is gravity and drag. Quilts are heavy and pushing and pulling them through the machine can be very difficult.

Just the idea of fighting to put a big quilt under a machine is enough to make many quilters give up and stop quilting their tops.

But quilting doesn’t have to be this hard! First off, stop using those super thick battings! Try a thinner, high quality polyester batting and see how much this will reduce the bulk of the quilt in your machine.

Then slap on a Supreme Slider and see how much easier it can be to move and position the quilt while free motion quilting. It’s a difference like night and day – without the slider the quilt wants to stick to the table, with the slider on, the quilt moves smoothly and evenly over the surface.

Of course with all new tools, it takes awhile to get used to them. My advice to everyone with a new Supreme Slider is to TAPE IT DOWN.

Use masking tape to secure each corner to the machine or table top. This way the slider will not pull up underneath and get stitched to the back of your quilt.

Trust me, it is VERY easy to stitch through this thing. If you’re not used to using it you may not recognize the slight resistance that means the slider has shifted. It’s always better to be safe than sorry and just tape it down until you get used to how the slider feels underneath your quilt.

So that’s it for this Feature Friday! If you’re interested in learning more about the Supreme Slider you can check it out right here.

We also have an Ultimate Quilting Kit that combines the Supreme Slider with Machingers Quilting Gloves and Little Genie Magic Bobbin Washers – really the three best tools for free motion quilting.

Let’s go quilt,

Leah Day