I am so happy to be part of the BERNINA family! In exchange for sharing my love of this amazing brand of machines, I have been provided the use of a new Q16 Sit-down long arm machine!
I have previously worked on a Babylock Coronet long arm machine, but I've taken it out of my studio to make room for fabric. Additionally, I learned pretty quickly that I actually don't love standing at a long arm machine to quilt my projects. So I began just using my Bernina 790 QE to free-motion quilt anything that requires quilting.
When I became a BERNINA ambassador, I was thrilled to begin using the new BERNINA Q16 machine because it's the same type of quilting that I like to do on my domestic machine (moving the fabric under the needle, as opposed to moving the needle on a traditional long-arm machine).
Here are other the things that I REALLY like about this machine:
•The simplicity of use: it's a one-purpose machine, and it's very easy to use. The digital interface is easy to understand and the machine is a workhorse! It was so easy to use that even Amelia was able to quilt her very first quilt on the machine. Her quilt is almost a queen size, and she used rulers rather than free-motion quilting-it was simple enough for a beginner to use!
•The size of the table is perfect for a studio that is short on space! As I mentioned, I disassembled my previous long arm machine to make room for more fabric. The BERNINA Q16 table is a great size (36" deep x 47" wide x 33" tall) and easy to have next to my domestic machine.
•I can use the same needles I use in my domestic machine. This is very important to me because I need to use needles that work with textile collage-- gliding through multiple layers of fabric and adhesive. My needle of choice is the Schmetz Super Nonstick Needle
As a BERNINA ambassador, I submit occasional projects and tutorials to the WeAllSew blog (on the BERNINA website). Here are the posts that I've contributed and which you might find interesting and helpful:
Collage Quilting Tutorial
Chinoiserie Hot Pad Project
