2011 My HQ Story: Susan Price
Me with my HQ18 Avante

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I resisted quilting for two years while my close decorative painting friends embarked on their new hobby. I swore I would not start a new hobby—I have a collection of paints, brushes, books and wood to last a lifetime. I remember telling my friends, “Quilts! What do I need a quilt for? I live in South Louisiana! It’s never cold enough for a quilt!” Once I was bitten by the quilting bug, there was no turning back! My first purchase was a new sewing machine. After making a set of blocks that were supposed to be 12 ½ inches unfinished, I convinced my husband that it was the machine… not me. I needed a new machine that would sew a precise ¼ inch seam. Plus, while I was getting a new machine, I would also need one with stitch regulation so I would be able to quilt my own quilts! After making my second quilt, with puckers in the backing, my next purchase was a frame for my new sewing machine to travel on so I could easily quilt without pleats and puckers in the backing. Again, I was not satisfied. I could only quilt about 3 inches of the quilt at a time; the bobbin thread ran out half way through each row; and I could only do meanders and loops! My search for the solution to all my quilting problems began with a trip to the Houston International Quilt Festival. My husband (aka technical advisor) went along with me. As I tried all the brands of long arm machines, my husband checked the nuts and bolts, wires and cables, and thingamajigs and doodads that were the guts of the machine. I wanted a “clean “ look to the machine—one with as few tension dials and thread loops as possible, as well as a computerized system that I did not need to have a separate dedicated laptop attached to in order to run the quilting program. The HQ18 Avante along with the HQ Pro-Stitcher and HQ Studio Frame fit my requirements perfectly! I’ve only had my HQ18 Avante for 18 months. In that time I’ve pieced and quilted 10 quilts for my family along with an additional 8 quilts for my granddaughter. I’ve quilted over 40 quilts for customers as well as 5 charity/raffle quilts for my guild. Eighteen quilts I quilted on my HQ18 Avante were donated to the “Downy Quilts for Kids” program. Did I mention that I have a full time job? The greatest satisfaction from my new hobby is not only the friendships I’ve made with fellow quilters, but knowing that two pieces of fabric, some batting and thread can create something that can not only provide warmth, but security and hope to someone in need.

I own the following HQ machines: HQ18 Avante, HQ Pro-Stitcher

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