How Long ?

[redcaboose1717]

This might be a crazy question, but how long does it take most of you "experienced " quilters to make a quilt top ?
I think I have also asked this second question, but do you tend to have more than one quilt going at a time ? My DH thinks I am "nuts" for wanting to start another quilt at the same time....his reasoning ? "Are you sure you are going to finish the first one you started ?" Well, of course I think I am going to finish the first one....( I didn't tell him that a couple of friends of mine who quilt have unfinished quilts that are several years old....( LOL ...) and I don't think I will mention that ( ??? )

[auntiemern]

Re: How Long ?

I would say it depends on the size of the quilt, the pattern, and how much time you have to devote to it. Also on how fast you sew. If I have an entire day, with no kids to watch, I can get a simple baby quilt completed in a day. Usually no more than a couple for any of the baby quilts I have finished this year. Don't worry about what 'experienced' quilters do. Do it at your own pace, in your own time. We all have different time lines.

[Simply Quilting]

Re: How Long ?

I think a lot of how long does it take depends upon what the pattern is and the size of the quilt. When I just do a basic sew 4 pack of 5 inch charms or a 10 inch layer cake, I can easily have the top done from planning to sewn in a day. But when it is more complicated pattern, it could take a while. There are a couple of quilts that I want to make knowing that it will take me several months or years to complete.

As far as having more than one quilt going at a time, I have a couple going on right now. Some of that is due to waiting for fabric or a tool. Usually if I am to the point of handwork, I will start another project. I have spent the last couple of days finishing up some quilts. I know some ladies who have a quilt they are working and also keep some sort of handwork that they can have when they are waiting somewhere or watching TV to work on.

There is no right or wrong way as far as how long it takes to complete a project or how many you have in progress.

[brook]

Re: How Long ?

Well, my first quilt took 3 months. I am happy to say I have improved on my time. I don't have interruptions when making quilts, so that means I can get one done in fewer days. From start to finish (doing throws) I've timed myself at 36 hrs. The only reason I know it by hours is because I am needing to figure out hourly rates so that I can sell them.
But the main thing with making quilts is to enjoy the process. That's part of the fun.

[Granny Judy]

Re: How Long ?

I'm going with the others... depends on the pattern and size of quilt I am making. I set aside an hour or two each day to sew and that is about it as far as keeping track of how long it takes me to make a quilt.. from start to finish.

I'll average about 4 to 6 months to make a double bed size quilt... Never get in a hurry... this is a hobby and not a race. Relax and enjoy the process. (I esp love the part of gathering fabric!!!)

[snippet]

Re: How Long ?

I've got a bunch of quilts in the making. The Farmer's Wife quilt is over a year old and I've got only half of the blocks done. I put it aside when I got bored of the colors. I've got a t-shirt quilt ready to be sashed, but I'm waiting on the okay by DD. I just finished the blocks from the Sugar Block Club and the other BOM class I took; I need to buy material to sash them. So that's four that I can remember off the top of my head.

At first I was bound and determined to have just ONE project going at a time. I was amused that so many people had a bunch of quilts going on at one time, and I really didn't understand why they operated that way. It didn't take long for me to see what happens.... I soon found myself wanting to try another pattern or fabric before I had finished with the first. It's like potato chips, you can't have just one. For me, it's easy to deal with. I have one project I work on at home, one that I take to my quilting circle, one that I work on at the church group.

It doesn't take me long to make a quilt when I've got everything I need. If it is an easy pattern, it can be done in a day.

[shermur]

Re: How Long ?

I agree with what everyone else is saying, Jacqueline! Sometimes regardless of the level or experience, I will speak for myself. I will admit I can overwhelm myself quite easily getting too many UFOs going at the same time. I see a new design/pattern I want to try, or I an imaginative image will pop in my head and I go to my sewing room to try and create what I envision.
Dear husbands may not always understand a quilter's ingenuity and process; yes, many would think, start a project and complete the project. One at a time.....that's not been me over the past several years. Baby showers pop up, weddings of close people come into play, and gifts for the family members we love so much? I give what I create to those instances because I care and I want that gift to be something special.
I don't always get the uninterrupted time I would like, nor have the tools of the trade that would make it faster for me. So, I do what I can and work on what makes me happy for the amount of time it takes!!!!

[mary3100]

Re: How Long ?

I make many quilt tops in one day. El Burns quilt in a day really do work. Right now I have 2 tops done ready to quilt and I am working on a baby top and a wall quilt top. The longest I have taken to make a quilt top probably 6 months. Sometimes I get bored doing the same thing and take a break for something else.

[JoJoT]

Re: How Long ?

I " " (ditto) everyone else. I track my hours on each quilt I work on and 36 hours is approximately a good time for something not fancy, however, it takes longer to finish a larger, more complex pieced project. I do very well until I get to the quilting part. I usually finish the top, prepare the backing and put together with the appropriate backing and then put in the quilting room with other projects waiting to be finished.

I do confess however, that I sometimes get bored working with a particularly complex block and put it aside for awhile, but that's the project I pick up again before the next one.

[starlover]

Re: How Long ?

Mine also depend on size and difficulty of the quilt. I've finished some in a week, and others took months. I do like to have two quilts going at the same time. Tend to get bored with the same blocks over and over again, so it helps having two projects to switch between.

[Claire Hallman]

Re: How Long ?

I like to have a second [or third] quilt cut out so that I can use some of the fabric as "starters and enders". It is surprising how often I have to stop and iron a step when chain piecing and I love to use that stop to put through a next project piece instead of just wasting the thread.
Our guild is having a UFO finish challenge this year and it made me cut out a bunch of things and I did not like having 10 projects started. I am whittling it down little by little and working on #6 so the pressure is lessening. Two or three at once is enough for me.

[lourixe]

Re: How Long ?

There are too many things in everyday life to be stressed with! I intend patchwork and quilting to help me AGAINST stress. So, I purposely take my time and enjoy every step. Of course, in my case it is a hobby and not a paying job. I always have a few projects going on at the same time, so that depending on the means and the mood, I may choose to do some cutting, or piecing, or machine quilting, or hand quilting, or appliquéing... I don't think of my UFO's as UFO's, for none of them has been forgotten and packed away: every now and then (a few days, a couple of weeks) I work a little in any of them, so I am slowly coming closer to the FINISH. Once in a while, though, I may need to speed a little for a specific deadline (a birthday present, for example) but they usually are small projects so that the pressure is controllable.

[lilmouse]

Re: How Long ?

I have done some in a few hours and others have taken months...depends on the difficulty factor and time management on my part.....have completed a quilt from start to finish in a day but not very often! LOL

[AuntieVic]

Re: How Long ?

The time it takes depends on how complicated the piecing is. And yes, I have more than one quilt top in the works at a time.

[carrie liz]

Re: How Long ?

There was a thread awhile back about cleaning up the sewing area and it really made me change my ways. I am now putting my tools away after I use them and it has saved lots of time I used to use looking for a lost tool. Last year I collected a large number of tops that needed something...a border, backing, or just to be quilted. I still have a pile that needs work, but slowly the UFOs are being whittled down to something manageable. I am determined to do a better job of staying focused on one or two projects instead of starting so many. I love Jenny's precuts and simple directions as it cuts the time it takes to actually finish a quilt. Still because of arthritis in my hands and fingers that are frozen, I am grateful I can sew at all and try to focus on the doing, not the time it takes to finish each project.