Longarm Quilter of the Month: Teresa Silva

Longarm Quilting. This has been one of our most requested topic to talk about on our social media channels and we are finally doing it! We recently stocked a lot of new longarm quilting supplies and who better to give you a bit of insight than some of our longarm quilty friends!

We are starting a blog series where we will be featuring one of our longarm quilter friends every month. They will be giving all of you their tips and tricks for longarm quilting, what materials they use, advice if you need to get a longarm quilter, and much more! We are kicking off this spotlight series feature with our first longarm quilty friend, Teresa Silva of Quilting is my Bliss!

Here is the interview we did with her about longarm quilting:

1. How long have you been longarm quilting?

8 years

2. What made you get into longarm quilting?

I had so many quilt tops that needed quilting. Decided one day I needed a longarm to finish them. Asked my husband what he thought and he said go for it. Next thing I knew, I was teaching myself to longarm quilt and taking customer quilts in 6 months later to help pay for my machine.

Quilt: Snowflake Sampler by Threaded Quilting (Made and Quilted by Teresa)

3. What is your favorite technique to use when longarm quilting?

Love to create designs on quilts with rulers mainly straight and curved rulers. It’s easy to create secondary designs and shapes with the use of rulers.

Quilt: Russell Quilt by Carolyn Freidlander (Quilted by Teresa)

4. Any tips for people who would like to start longarm quilting?

Doodle! Doodling helps give you the muscle memory you need to navigate designs without thinking about what you are doing. So you are able to move freely without actually having to stop and think where should I go next.

5. What are your go-to longarm materials?

Thread and batting are probably the most important things to me. You don’t want to use cheap materials to finish a quilt that already has a ton of money in it with gorgeous fabrics. You get such a great result just by using the right supplies.

6. What is the scariest/most exciting part of the process?

Sometimes just starting on a quilt is the scariest. Once I figure out the design I can quilt freely but taking that first stitch on a customer quilt is probably them scariest moment for me. I love when I take the quilt off the frame and lay it out on the floor to see how it looks. Best thing ever. I have a photo shoot for every quilt I finish.

Quilt: Summerville Quilt by Thimble Blossoms (Quilted by Teresa)

7. How would you describe your style of longarm quilting?

My longarm quilting style is definitely modern. I love the modern fabrics and the creativity that comes with modern quitling.

8. What is your favorite motif to quilt?

Swirls and ribbon candy!

Quilt: Designed and Quilted by Teresa

9. How do you select your thread?

I like a thread that blends. I usually match the thread to the fabric and I switch out threads as I go. I generally use a 50 weight poly/cotton thread. It’s strong and it sinks into the quilt and makes awesome texture. I always like the texture to be the focus on the quilt not the thread color. If you use a colored thread I think it takes away from the piecing of the quilt. Quilting should accent the quilt not be the showcase.

10. What advice would you give someone who is using a professional longarm quilter for the first time?

Always ask how they like you to prepare the quilt for quilting. I like to have 3-4 inches larger all the way around a quilt for the backing and batting. I also love when my customers send me a nice pressed top and backing free of wrinkles.

Big thanks to Teresa for taking time out to do this interview and sending all the photos of her work! To see more of Teresa’s work, be sure to check out her Instagram (@quiltingismybliss) and Facebook page!

Happy Quilting!

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