Echo quilting
Lines that follow the outline of a shape, ½" apart, repeating it outward like ripples. Around a star or an appliqué it makes the shape stand out; Hawaiian quilts are echoed all over.
By Editorial Staff
How to stitch echo
- Quilt around the shape itself first, in the ditch or just outside it.
- Use the edge of the foot to stitch the next line ½" out, pivoting at the points, then the next.
- Stop when the echoes meet the echoes of the next shape or the edge of the block.
Home machine, longarm or by hand
| Level | How | |
|---|---|---|
| Home machine | Beginner | Walking foot or free motion |
| Longarm | Intermediate | Rulers or freehand |
| By hand | Suits hand quilting | How to hand quilt |
Thread for echo
40 or 50 weight in the background color.
| Size | Quilt | Stitching | Top thread | Bobbin thread |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crib | 45" × 60" | 66 yd | 91 yd | 91 yd |
| Throw | 60" × 72" | 106 yd | 146 yd | 146 yd |
| Twin | 70" × 90" | 154 yd | 212 yd | 212 yd |
| Full | 84" × 96" | 198 yd | 272 yd | 272 yd |
| Queen | 90" × 108" | 238 yd | 328 yd | 328 yd |
| King | 108" × 108" | 286 yd | 393 yd | 393 yd |
Stitching is measured on the drawing above at ½". A lockstitch takes about 1¼" of top thread and 1¼" of bobbin thread for each inch it sews; we add 10% for starts and tails. To check your own machine, sew 12", then measure what came off each spool.
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