Hi ,

In yesterday's newsletter, I featured the Evolution Hoop Frame and a test I'm doing to find the amount of space you'll have to quilt at the beginning and end of a king sized quilt. But something about my measurements didn't feel right. Why was I losing so much space to the tall back clamps?

Turns out, I made a mistake while doing my test with this frame loaded Hoop Frame Style. This mistake caused me to lose 2 inches of vertical quilting space! 

The actual amount of space you'll have for quilting with the back clamps (hoop frame style) and a Qnique 19X Elite is 14 1/4 inches at the beginning of a quilt and 14 inches at the end of a 108 inch quilt.

(Note - there is a way to get more space at the beginning... keep reading if you'd like to learn how)

So what was the issue that caused such a huge discrepancy in my measurements?

The height of the back rail.

When I was testing the frame in rolling rail mode, I had lifted the back rail so the rolled up quilt didn't press against the longarm bed and stop it from moving. 

I forgot to adjust the back rail back down when testing Hoop Frame Style. The height of the back rail should be 1/4-inch from the machine bed when loading the frame this way.

What happened was a cascade effect - The back rail was 1 1/2 inches higher than it should have been. This lifted the tall back clamps higher so they impacted the back of the longarm and pushed it forward. 

Had I started free motion quilting, most likely my stitches would have skipped or thread broken because of the distance between the quilt and the needle plate.

But it is good to know that the back clamps will limit your quilting space a bit on this frame. 14 inches is a very nice amount of space to have, but what if you could have 16 inches at the beginning of your quilt?

This is why I use Sewtite Magnum Magnets now for the 1st load of my Hoop Frames. These can be used instead of the back clamps until you need to use the clamps to contain the quilted section of the quilt. Here's what it looks like when I loaded with the Magnums:

I'm using these magnets to load all of my hoop frames because they have the power to firmly hold a single piece of fabric. This is makes everything feel easier at the start of a quilt, where I always (no matter how many times I've learned this!) cut my batting too short.

The clamps included with our hoop frames are designed to grip the three layers of the quilt - backing, batting, and quilt top. They work great - once you get into the meat of the quilt - but outside on the edges? It can get pretty fiddly.

This is why Magnum Magnets have become my favorite quilting tool because they click on, hold firmly, and are easy to change position if needed. 

Do keep in mind that the magnets will only improve the spacing for the 1st row of the quilt. Once you have to attach the tall back clamps on the Evolution Hoop Frame, your quilting space (with a 19-inch longarm) will be around 14 1/4-inches x 42 inches.

That's it for this week, my quilting friend. I hope you'll check your quilting frame and see where your back rail is resting. This is a super easy fix to quickly get more creative quilting space to play!

Let's go quilt,

Leah Day