I just found out some really cool news. I may be able to quilt my son's quilt on a long arm machine. There is a woman in a close by city that rents out a longarm machine by the day. It isn't cheap, but it is cheaper than having someone else quilt my quilts. The first time I go it would be a little more than just the rent because she would be teaching me how to use it. Hopefully, once I learn, I can save a couple of finished tops and quilt them in the same day every once in a while.
My stepmother quilted a lot. She had a frame built out of 1x4s held together with C-clamps at the corners. I believe she stood it on sawhorses, but maybe she hung it from the ceiling. She would roll the quilt up on one of the side 1x4s as she went, like a scroll, keeping the working area relatively small. Sometimes she had an old-fashioned quilting bee, where her friends who sewed would come help her get one quilted after she'd pieced it and her daughters helped her place it together with the batting and the bottom onto the frame. She had one in the church bazaar auction every year for years, and they brought quite high prices.
It is faster but it takes a bit to get the hang of it. The most time consuming part is putting it in the frame. I bet you could do 3-5 in a day once you get the hang of it and depending on size.
