How to quilt edge to edge with groovy boards

Board count, setup on the rear table, the pass, the advance, and how registration marks keep the rows nested. The whole method in one page.

Edge to edge quilting with groovy boards is one motion repeated: trace the groove across the board, advance the quilt, trace it again. The boards do the remembering, so the fortieth row matches the first. Here is the whole process, from the box to the last row.

What you need

  • A frame-mounted longarm or mid arm with rear handlebars, and a stylus and adapter for your machine whose tip fits the 1/8 in groove (the fit guide names the part for most machines).
  • At least two boards of the same design. Boards interlock end to end with puzzle-piece connectors, and two boards give you about 40 in of pattern.
  • Painter's tape. The six silicone grips that come with every board hold the boards down; a strip of tape across each joint keeps the pair from drifting apart sideways.

How many boards

Each board is roughly 20 to 22 in long, so divide the width of your quilt by 20 and round up: a 60 in throw wants three boards across, a 90 in queen wants five. With enough boards to span the quilt you lay them down once and never touch them. With fewer, quilters leapfrog: when the stylus reaches the end of the last board, move the first board to the far end, align the connectors, and keep going. Two boards and a little patience will quilt any width.

Step by step

  1. Load the quilt on the frame the way you always do, and bring the machine to the back of the frame where the rear table is.
  2. Lay the boards on the rear table, grips down, connectors locked, in a straight line parallel to the frame rails. Tape each joint. The line enters the first board at its left edge and leaves the last board at its right edge, at the same height, which is what lets the boards chain.
  3. Set the stylus in the groove at the start of the line and position the needle where the first row should begin on the quilt. The stylus mounts to the rear handlebars; the groove now steers it.
  4. Trace the groove from one end of the boards to the other at a steady pace. The machine follows the stylus and stitches the design on the quilt. Stop at the end of the line, or where the quilt edge tells you to.
  5. Advance the quilt one row. The registration marks routed on the boards (every design since 2024 except a few self-aligning ones) show where the next row sits against the last, so the rows nest the way the design was drawn instead of leaving a stripe of empty space.
  6. Trace again, and repeat to the bottom of the quilt. The boards never move unless you are leapfrogging.

Turning a corner. For a border that goes around the quilt rather than across it, a corner connector carries the same line through a right angle. There are corner connectors for 90 Degrees, Champagne Bubbly and Hypocycloids among others, all in the corner connector group.

Good first designs for edge to edge

Open, continuous designs forgive a new hand. Lotus Leaves and Running In Circles are single flowing lines, and Cross Hatch is as even as a design gets. Browse by theme on the theme pages, or by height on under 8 in, 8 to 10 in and 10 in and over.

To watch it done, the Video Vault collects Handi Quilter's own groovy board videos and other makers' pantograph tutorials in one place.

Questions quilters ask

Do the boards slide while I quilt?

Six non-slip silicone grips come with every board and hold it to the table. Painter's tape at the joints between boards adds security; O-rings or other connectors are not needed, the puzzle-piece ends handle vertical movement.

How fast should I move?

Steady beats fast. The groove keeps the stylus on the line at any speed; your stitch regulator or your pace sets the stitch length, the same as freehand.

What if my quilt is wider than my boards?

Leapfrog. When the stylus reaches the end of the last board, move the first board to the far end, lock the connectors, and continue the same row.

Can I quilt edge to edge on a sit-down machine with boards?

No. A sit-down machine has no rear handlebars or rear table. If a computerized system is attached, the same designs are sold as digital downloads.

Not sure what fits your machine? Read the fit guide or write to us with your machine model. Groovy Patterns is a family shop in Owosso, Michigan; every board is routed here to order.