Ruler Quilting workshop with Gill Towell from GillyMac Designs - by Chrissie

It was a gloriously sunny day as we set up for our workshop on Ruler Quilting with Gill Towell.

Gill started by checking that we all had our machines set up correctly for free motion quilting with rulers. We were provided with extensive notes that explained in detail the process of ruler quilting and also showed layouts of many different patterns for us to try out. My understanding is that Gill will also be providing us with a video link that shows demos of all the patterns shown in the notes.

Gill then demonstrated how to use the ruler to create the “Crackle” pattern (rather like free motion meander quilting but with straight lines) and then it was time for us to have a go. Gill made it look supremely easy but it felt very strange to do free motion quilting with the ruler held tight against the ruler foot so that you could produce perfect straight lines in any direction without having to shift the fabric round. There were many wobbles along the way but as the day progressed it gradually started to make more sense. Fortified with tea/coffee and lunch we gradually got more confidant as we progressed on to more complex patterns. Gill was constantly on hand to provide excellent advice and encouragement as necessary.

As well as individual sample squares Gill also showed us full size quilts that incorporated ruler quilting as well as regular free motion quilting. She explained the importance of stabilising large areas before moving on to more detailed quilting.

We all had many samples completed by the end of the day that I’m sure will provide inspiration for future projects. Many thanks to everyone involved in setting up the workshop and huge thanks to Gill for her expertise and encouragement - it was a hugely enjoyable day.