MQResource

frog (frôg, frŏg) verb:  to take out stitches from a quilt top.  named for the sound a frog makes:  rip-it, rip-it, rip-it

It's a fact of life:  if you are a machine quilter, you have had to frog some stitches.  Maybe lots of stitches.  Maybe an entire quilt full of stitches. Having to do some heavy frogging over the weekend, I got to thinking about the Art of Frogging, and thought I'd share some of my tips and tricks for successful frogging.  Unfortunately, these pearls of wisdom have been gained over a long and unfortunate career of having to frog an awful lot of stitches.

 No matter what you call it -- frogging, ripping, unsewing -- the chore is an unpleasant (but occasionally necessary) undertaking.   Before you get started with your frogging, though, you need to ask yourself a question.

Why are you going to frog? 

Is it because the tension is terrible?  Or you have a pleat in the back of your quilt?  If the reason you are frogging is a technical one, related to the integrity of the quilt or the stitches, then you absolutely must proceed with frogging.  The good news, at least with bad tension is that the stitches will come out easily. I find, though, that if I've quilted a pleat in the back of my quilt, my tension is usually lovely and the quilting will be a bear to get out.

 

 

Is it because the design isn't turning out the way you would like? Before you go any further, you need to stop, take a break and then come back to the decision of whether or not to frog at a later time.  Sometimes that break needs to be overnight before you are clear-headed enough to make a rational decision.

 Frogging for Design

If you feel like you really need to frog because of the design, here are some things to think about after you have had a break.

Is the design you are trying to execute beyond your skill level?  If so, you are probably right, you probably need to take it out and try for something else that you can do and be happy with.  There is no shame in this, it is better to admit it now, rather than trying to justify quilting that you are not happy with later.  This quilt is from quite a few years ago.  It is still waiting for me to frog it.  White thread on green fabric?  Terrible backtracking skills?  What was I thinking!

Is the design not turning out the way you thought it would?  This happens to me all the time.  It sounds good on paper, but when I actually stitch it on the quilt, it looks terrible.  Sometimes I can tell right away that it isn't going to look good, but I keep quilting anyway.  Somehow I think it's going to look better when I've done more, but usually, my gut instinct is right.  I should have listened to the little voice that had suggested stopping earlier.

Can you call the problem a design opportunity?  Feathers that flow in a different direction than you intended, plumes that curve left instead of right, lines closer (or further) than you had meant.  Can you figure out a way to continue the imperfection such that it looks like you meant to do it?  Sometimes you have to think outside of the box.  Maybe the design going in the wrong direction will only be noticeable to you, and to no one else (as long as you don't point it out).

Can you see it from a galloping horse?  Seriously.  Take a step backwards. Literally. Take another step backwards.  Go on and take a 3rd step away from your quilt.  Can you still see the problem?  When we are machine quilting we almost have our noses touching the quilt top and we can't see the forest for the trees.  Stepping away from your quilt, to a distance at which it will actually be viewed will often give you a different perspective on the issue.  If you could see these feathers up close and personal, you'd probably notice some backtracking that isn't quite on track, but you know what?  Most people will never see it that closely.

What is the purpose of the quilt?   If you are quilting for hire, you do need to take your job seriously, and give each quilt the proper attention.  However.  If the quilt is going to be dragged around by a kid, the level of perfection needed in the quilting job is slightly different than if the quilt in question is going to hang at a major quilt show and be scrutinized by a judge.  

What do others think?  Call in a second set of eyes.  Or even a third or fourth.  Can they even find the error? Ask people that you trust to give you an honest answer.  This isn't the time for your yes-men to cheerlead and pat you on the back.   And remember, they aren't judging you, they are just judging the quilting.  Separate your personality from your quilting, you'll be a lot better off.

No Choice

You've decided that you do need to frog something on your quilt.   If you ask a group of quilters how they frog, you are likely to get as many answers as there are quilters.  What follows is a short explanation of how I frog.  I'm sure that readers will likely have their own ways of doing this, and everyone will get an opportunity to join the conversation in the forum (look for the link to the discussion page at the end of the article).

First, though, you need some supplies.

An adult beverage of your choice  If you don't drink adult beverages, your favorite cold beverage will suffice.  Heck, your favorite hot beverage is good, too.  Just make sure you are well-hydrated.

Oh, and make sure you don't actually get your beverage near the quilt you are frogging.  This article is about removing quilting stitches, not about removing red wine, coffee or Pepsi stains.

Chocolate Plain M&Ms are my favorite, but you need to go with whatever chocolate you prefer. 

Ditto about keeping it away from the quilt top. Chocolate stains are bad, too.

Entertainment of your choice  This could be music, audiobooks, movie, TV show -- whatever floats your boat.  You can even make a game of timing your frogging by how many episodes of a TV show it takes, or how many songs you listen too.  Or not.  That might depress you.

Frogging implements I have a wide assortment, and I actually use all of them in the course of a really serious frogging session.  I do have to admit that one of the reasons I own so many seam rippers is that I'm always losing them.  I will say, though, that I find that mixing up the tool I'm using and the technique helps keep me a little more interested in the job at hand.

Lint Brush I have tried the masking tape lint brushes, but have never really liked them.  My brush of choice is this one:

They are pretty ubiquitous -- check your grocery store, or local discount shopping emporium.

Getting down to business

You've got your refreshments, you've got entertainment, you are now ready to frog.  

Oh, but first, you have to decide WHERE you are going to frog.  Now, if it's not going to take me that long, I'll leave the quilt attached to the rollers, but I'll loosen everything up so that I have enough slack to pull the quilt out from around rollers.  That way I can easily get to both the top and back of the section I'm working on.  I have a hydraulic lift on my table, so I will lower my table far enough down that I can actually sit up on the quilt table to do my frogging.  If you don't want to (or can't...) haul yourself up on the table, you'll want to pull up a chair.

If it's really bad, though, you should probably take the quilt off the frame and find yourself a really comfortable couch, chair or bed on which to sit while you work on your frogging. 

Frogging Techniques

These are not the only ways to frog stitching, but these are just some of the ways in which I will attack the threads I'm trying to remove.

Break stitches on one side  In this technique you use your seam ripper (or curved snippers, or other sharp cutting tool) to break the thread at intervals along the line of stitching you are removing.  I usually break about every 4th or 6th stitch.  Or more.  Or less.  Experiment to see what works best.  You do need to be careful not to snag the fabric.  It is probably wise to do this on the BACK of the quilt, but depending on the thread you have used, it might work better to break the top thread.  Again, experimentation is the key.

I usually break stitches for awhile until I can't stand it any longer, and then I flip to the other side of the quilt and start yanking on the thread that will now be loose.  It won't all come out, you'll probably have to use your seam ripper to pull out stitches that hang on.You will also have lots of little loose threads that will be stuck all of the place.  Use your lint brush to pick up the loose ones, using your fingernails or your seam ripper to coax out the little bits that are still partly stuck in the quilt.

Work back and forth from one side of the quilt to the other. Eventually you'll finish.  Eventually.

Pop, snip, pull  This doesn't always work, but sometimes I can work on one side of the quilt and get a hold of the loose end of thread and use it to pop the thread from the other side up into a loop that I can see -- and snip.  Pull on the thread (experiment with how hard you pull on the thread, if you pull it too hard you'll break it and not have anything to pull on anymore).  If you pull it just right, you'll actually pop out several stitches (about 3-6).  When you get too much resistance, pop the the thread up into a loop again, snip it, and pull some more.

This works best on stitching that is in a straight or gently curving line.  It typically won't work for me if I'm going in and out of points or around tight curves.

Brute Force  Sometimes there is nothing for it but to use your seam ripper and gently pull out each stitch, one at a time. Sometimes the stitches are stubborn, particularly if they get tiny going into and out of a point. 

 No matter how you get the thread out, use your lint brush often to sweep away the loose threads, getting them out of your way so you can see which stitches are still attached.

Cautionary Tales

I'm sure I don't need to say this, but...I'm going to say it anyway.  Seam rippers are sharp.   Extremely sharp, they couldn't do their job if they weren't sharp.  Please be careful with your seam ripper.  Watch out for your other body parts so that you don't accidentally stab yourself. Although, if you do too much frogging, you might start considering stabbing yourself to get out of it.  But please don't.  You will eventually finish the job.  I promise.

You also need to watch out that you don't damage the fabric.  Don't be too aggressive with the business end of your seam ripper -- you might accidentally shove it right straight through your quilt and then you'll really have a problem.  Watch when you are picking at the the quilting thread, that you haven't snagged a thread of the fabric.  

One last caution -- be sure to take frequent breaks to stretch, check your e-mail, walk around the block, drink your beverage, eat your chocolate, and breathe.  Even if all you do is stop, roll your shoulders a few times, and roll your head around a time or two, you'll be better off.  Shake out your hands occasionally too.

And make sure you use the lint brush on your clothing when you are done.  You are going to have little bits of thread allover yourself.

Moving On

OK, the stitches are out, where do you go from here? Well, depending on how hole-y the holes you've left behind are, you might want to try coaxing the fibers of the fabric back into place.  You can sometimes get this done by brushing at the fabric with your fingernails.  You may have to resort to lightly (lightly!) spritzing the section with water, but be super careful with water, as you'd really hate for the fabric to bleed.  (And because this article is about frogging, not about how to deal with bleeding fabric).

In 99.9% of my experience, the first time the quilt is washed, the holes will close up on their own and you'd never know there had been any stitches taken out.  Time will help, too, as will the requilting of the area in question.

Speaking of requilting:  before you apply thread to an area that has been frogged, you should consider trying your NEW idea on a different section of the quilt.  That way, if you have to frog the new design, you aren't abusing the same fabric a second time.  I tried 3 different designs on this quilt before I settled on the freehand allover you see here.  Yup, I frogged different parts of this one three times.  But it was worth it, as this quilt won an award!

Wrapping Up

In my world, frogging is a necessary evil.  I try to quilt such that I only need to frog on rare occasions, but I'm not afraid to make the choice to frog if the situation calls for it.  I would much rather have a finished quilt than a perfect one, but sometimes the only way to get to finished is to take a few steps backward and undo something that isn't quite right.

I'd love to hear what you have to say -- you can visit this post in the forums to discuss anything I've mentioned, as well as to add your tips and thoughts.

Suzanne has a long and storied of career of frogging for every reason you can imagine.  Pleat in the quilt back?  Bad design choice?  Terrible tension? She's been there and done it all.  To read more about Suzanne, you can visit her bio.