Preparation for Machine Quilting
To help us be sure your quilt will look as fabulous as possible and cost less, please follow these guidelines and tips. We do the items marked $ at extra cost as part of the quilting process. You can save a few dollars if you do them.
Preparing Your Quilt Top
- Don't baste your quilt.
- Most important! Be sure the borders of your quilt are flat and square. Measure through the center and both edges of the quilt top vertically. If there is more than a 11 inch difference, it is probable that your borders will have tucks and puckers when quilted. Do the same measurement horizontally. You may need to redo your borders, unless your willing to live with wavy, puckered borders. Wavy borders will also cost you more since they require more attention and sometimes an additional person to help. If there is just too much fullness we will sew pleats in your border$. Instructions on applying a simple border.
- If you have a pieced border or bias edges on the outside of your quilt it is best to staystich the outside edge to provide more stability. We also recommend this for flannel quilt tops.
- Check your top for open seams. $
- Clip loose threads from both sides of the quilt top. On lighter fabrics, loose dark threads on the backside will show through. $
- Quilt top should be clean and all seams pressed flat.
Preparing Your Backing
- Backing must measure a minimum of 8 inches wider and longer than the quilt top.
- Wrinkle free and squared.$
- Backings that are pieced must not have selvage edges in the seams. Selvage along the outside edge is fine, in fact we like it that way. Press the seam open to avoid a slight lumpy ridge down the center of your quilt.
General Information
Fullness and puckers pieced into the quilt top cannot necessarily be quilted out. We will do our best, but the quilted area will have puckers and possibly tucks. The flatter the better.
If you provide the batting, it must measure at least 8 inches wider and 10 to 15 inches longer than your top. The extra length is important especially with larger quilts.
Tip - if you will be choosing light thread, choose a light backing fabric. Dark thread, dark backing. If you would like a "broadcloth" look to the back of your quilt, choose a solid fabric. Quilting will not show well on a print fabric.
Applying a Simple Border
A common problem, seen on many quilts, is excess fullness in the border. This results in tucks and puckers being stitched into the top during quilting because the extra fabric cannot to be stitched down smoothly. The border will also have a wavy ruffled appearance. Both these problems can be avoided by following the steps below:
- Lay your quilt out flat.
- Measure your quilt down the middle, not along the edge. Measure both the length and width through the middle.
- Cut the side borders first, using the measurement from step 2. Before cutting the top and bottom borders, add twice the border width to your measurement. Your side borders will be the length of the quilt, but the top and bottom borders will be the quilt width plus the width of the side borders.
- Fold each border piece in half and mark the middle with a pin. Match the pin with the center of the quilt side, and pin right sides together. Next lineup the corners neatly and pin. It should lay flat. If not, the edge of the quilt has stretched a little during handling. Pin the rest of the border, distributing the "ruffles" evenly as you pin. If you have excessive ruffling, this could mean your quilt is not square. You may need to undo sections of your quilt to fix this.
- Sew the border on with the ruffle side down so your feed dogs will ease in the extra fabric. 6. When that border is sewn on, trim any excess so that you have a nice square corner. Then do the other side. Last of all, add the top and bottom borders.