In this section of approx 4″ x 6″, some of the quilting progress can be seen. I am very happy with this fine polyester thread which looks like rayon but is stronger, and a joy to sew with.
I do not normally mark out quilting lines in advance – then of course I can’t go ‘wrong’ , but it also gives me freedom to wander with my needle, which is how I like to quilt.

I start with a general directional line that I decide is an overlay to the whole. As I go run the blunt end of a needle along the fabric to either lay a foundation line or connect one part of a quilting section to another, and here an example is the line that comes down from the upper left side to join the edge of the applied waxed silver leather piece. It will follow the edge of that shape until it heads out into plain open free fabric again, where its shape will again be influenced bythe next shape. Upper right segment is how the infill quilting looks, and in time all the infill will re-state the shapes and lines of the whole design.

The two straight grey machine stitched lines intersecting over near the right hand side are guidelines only, for the placement of shapes and some of the quilting development, and will eventually be pulled out. The thread I use for this is Gutermann’s Skala, a multi polyester filament( many in the free machine quilting world refer to this and several similar threads as bobbinfill or bobbinfiller ) which I find wonderfully useful BECAUSE it is so easily removed, and because when piecing it gives a very fine, strong line of stitching.