4 Different Ways To Baste A Quilt #1. It’s a good idea to make the quilt backing larger than the quilt front by at least 4″ on each side. You can simply cut your backing to the same length you figured in Step 2. Generally, cotton backing is popular. Trim off the selvedges and square up the piece if necessary. That’s the number of inches of fabric you need to buy. Materials: These clamps– (You could also use these metal clamps) A few sheets of thick craft foam A set of long straight pins dedicated to quilt basting, that you will bend slightly in the center (I like these). Fold in half lengthwise, wrong sides together, to form a binding strip. You can hand quilt. Basically, you make individual stuffed squares from cloth and sew the squares together. Assemble and sew the squares. The batting was a thin cotton pieced together from a bunch of smaller scraps. Press the seam open. Sew the squares first in three rows, and then sew the rows together. You can choose whatever is easiest for you. To baste your quilt you will need: Quilt backing fabric (at least 5″ wider on all sides than your quilt top) Quilt batting (at least a few inches wider on all sides than your quilt top), read All About Quilt Batting here. Tips for piecing quilt backing. You can also fold them up and open them later as needed. This will give you a better idea of what to do. Also, you need to measure out the fabric before you sew them together. The more stitching you force between the threads, the wonkier it gets. Or, the making of the quilt sandwich. Now you will need to prepare your quilt back. Photos via Lindsay Sews. The knots hold the layers in place so they don’t shift as the quilt is used or washed. Here’s the quilt top and backing fabric I chose for a modern Christmas table topper. Doing it over again I would pin an entire row together and sew it all at once. 8. 2. Lay your backing material atop the batting. Pin Basting Quilt. Sew around the outside edges leaving an opening large enough to pull all three layers through. The stitching you use to sew a whole cloth quilt together is what makes the quilt decorative and unique. Pin layers together so they do not shift when sewing edges. Pin the midpoint of the border to the vertical midpoint at the top of the quilt, right sides together and raw edges matched. Assemble and Connect the Quilt. Now you have to baste it. Hem one long edge of the remaining backing piece. You can also piece together different fabrics and sew pieced quilt backs that are every bit as interesting as the front. Advertisement. Lay the backing fabric on your work surface, right side down, then center the batting on top of the backing and smooth away any wrinkles. Place backing on top of quilt top right sides together . If you can buy the extra wide fabric for quilt backing it will save you lots of time and energy. (Yaay! 9. Put the backing material on top of the quilt batting. Lay the backing on the top of the quilt top right sides together. Use this strip to bind one long edge of one backing piece, trimming any excess at the sides. 6. Sewing a perfect straight stitch seam will help your final quilt come together without puckers, wavy, or unmatched seams. 7. This will add some thickness to the blanket. Those layers are the quilt backing, batting, and the top. Janeen: “Now that our quilt top is done, we need to make a "quilt sandwich" with batting and a backing fabric. Sew your remaining squares into a long strip. You can add sashing widths of 1 inch, 2-inches or whatever size you want, but smaller sized sashing in a contrasting color won't detract from your quilt-block handiwork. Step 4: Sew the Patchwork. But run a single line of stitching through a single layer of our cotton quilt fabric and things start to get wonky. For an average sized quilt I can use as many as 200. How to Sew a Biscuit or Puff Quilt. Lay the backing on top of the batting, right side facing up. I was right. Step 4 - Get Ready for Sewing. I opted to do it myself with my walking foot. Sew the short edges together using a 1/2 - 1" seam allowance. 1. Quilt Backing Fabric and Quilt Batting. The best combination will lead to the formation of the best quilt that appeals to beauty. Sashing between the quilt blocks is also a matter of how big you want to make the quilt and the number of quilt blocks used. Step by Step Instructions. Sew the quilt backing using a rotary cutter and rulers. You can take your quilt to a professional long arm quilter and have them sew the “quilt sandwich” for you or you can do it yourself. Knots are placed at regular intervals all over the quilt. 8. You will need to buy Batting and a fabric for your mini-quilt at a quilt shop. Before you make the quilt backing, you should try to design and envision how it might look. Measure your backing carefully before you begin quilting. Then I hand basted the two layers together (you could safety pin together if you’d like) so they wouldn’t move around once I started quilting. Pin all of these layers together, beginning with a line of pins down the center of the quilt, and then add more lines parallel to the first; these rows of pins should be around 18 inches apart. 4. Cut the backing to size, ensuring the fabric is 2” larger than the quilt top. Continue matching and pinning the border to the quilt just as you did side borders, working with ends first then matching and pinning the remaining length. Quilting: sewing through multiple layers of fabric to create one thick layer - typically involves three parts: cloth top, batting middle, cloth bottom. Sew the border to the quilt with a 1/4 inch seam allowance. It is best to assemble the layers on a large, flat surface where the entire quilt can be spread out. The idea is to use a border or sashing to reach the desired quilt size, not in place of quilt blocks. You can also use layers of fabric as backing for a patchwork quilt. If you don't have space at your home, see if your local quilt shop will allow you to use their large tables. Learn how to sew accurate patchwork in this lesson on Quarter-Inch Seams. Proceed to quilt the pieces together, but stop quilting 1/2-inch from the edges of the quilt top. Yet I've found that most of the time, the instructions stop short on how to hand sew the binding to the quilt backing, simply stating to "hand sew" it. I used my zipper foot so I didn’t have to remove any pins as I sewed. Determine the yardage of the quilt back that you need. Once the entire length of your 2 pieces of fabric are right sides together and pinned you can safely transport it to your machine to sew. Pick out two pieces of quilt batting, preferably the same color to make for an even look. You should now have three pieces of fabric: two that are the width of your quilt by 44" and one that is 22" by the width of the quilt. Step 3 Lay the batting on the table. Here are some tips to help you learn how to piece quilt backing that’s a perfect fit every time! Place the squares in the most appropriate position. Lay a layer of batting atop the face down quilt. Sew the two pieces together to give you a backing that is big enough for the entire quilt. Typically sewers sew a seam with a line of stitching and two layers of fabric. These layers are ‘sandwiched’ and basted before the actual sewing is done. Quilt Backing. Step 6 – Quilt the sandwich together. And the seam looks nice (as long as the tension is balanced). If the front is a quilt and already pieced, cut the back fabric to fit. (Note: dimensions may vary since most quilting fabrics no longer measure 44" wide.) I was very careful to make sure none of that pink crept over from the seam. Without the extra wide fabric, you will have to use fabric panels to make your quilt backing. Sew the quilt backing together. Patchwork quilting is quite different and easy from the general quilting, as you just need to sew pieces together to create a quilt top and then use a backing to complete the quilt. Basting can be done in multiple ways, and different quilters have their way of doing it. For this approach, you’ll have to buy enough yardage to sew two large pieces together. How to Add a Quilt Backing. You can sew the pieces together by hand or use your machine set on a zig-zag stitch. The long side is 68”, which will work with the 80” joined-yardage width. Quilt top: pieced fabric, typically put together in blocks. If you don't want it to be thick, you may omit it. Once you have made the quilt top, the next step should be to decide the quilt backing. Step 3 - Pin the Material. Backing. Step 5: Baste the Quilt. But, if your quilt is wider than your fabric, you’ll need to figure out how many fabric widths you’ll need to piece together and then multiply that number by the quilt backing length from Step 2. At this point there are a million possibilities to quilt. You can long arm. You sew straight on the line of your ironed half inch seam. 3. Quilt sandwich: what I call the three layers - top, batting, backing. Seam allowance: the standard seam allowance for quilting is 1/4 inch. NOTE: I did not use batting between the two layers because I figured the quilt would be plenty heavy and warm as is. Lay your quilt top face down on a flat surface. Method 2 of 3: Quilting. Cut the backing to size.With the seam in the center, trim the backing fabric at least 2" larger than the quilt top using either your rotary cutter or scissors. 9. 1. I rolled the quilt top up into a log, then carefully unrolled it onto the backing, again smoothing as much as possible. The procedure ensures that the fabric layers in the quilt are smooth and wrinkle-free. Sewing pieces will come in handy when using up scraps of batting, or piecing for a large or long project such as a king size quilt or a table runner. If your quilt is less than the backing width, congratulations! One book that I own gets a little more specific saying to use a slip stitch. When I made the quilt, I chose to pin a shirt to a short strip, sew it on, then pin the next shirt to the other side of that strip (one strip will attach 2 shirts together). In either case, you will sew blocks together into long strips or rows and then sew the strips/rows together to make a finished quilt top. The quilted top is heavy and doesn't seem to spray baste as securely as a typical quilt sandwich. Basting Quilt Layers together. Example: 60" x 68" throw quilt. However, if you must piece 44-inch wide lengths of fabric together to make your backing large enough, use the hints below to reduce stress on the quilt (and if you’re using a longarm machine for the project, to reduce stress on the quilter!) Regular quilting cotton yardage is 42-44” wide. Step 2 Cut a piece of batting the same size as the blanket. To use the backing as the binding it will need to measure 2 to 4 inches larger all around than the top. Sew the quilt backing.Use the rotary cutter, rulers and ruler connector to cut two lengths of backing fabric to 62" in length. Use the right tool for the job and read all about the BERNINA fleet of Patchwork feet in this Quarter-Inch Seam Tip. The layers will be joined together in preparation for quilting. I usually use basting spray for my quilts, but with quilt-as-you-go, pins may be better. These quilts are so easy to make in any size. Secure with a quilt adhesive. If you are using wide quilt backing then purchase enough so that you can orient the backing correctly for this scenario. You will need to have a good judgment so that you can decide what goes with what, and which one goes where. How To Sew Quilt Backing Panels Together. Pin the layers together leaving the outside edges free. Put the backing, right side down, on the biggest table you've got, or on a VERY clean floor. Pin together all layers of the quilt, including the top, batting, and backing. Then, lay your quilted quilt top on the backing, right side up. Sewing by hand. Step 5 Quilters call the process of assembling the three layers (quilt top, batting, and backing) as making a quilt "sandwich." Next, put the batting down (doesn't matter which side is up), and then the patchwork top (congratulations on the top, by the way). Hand tying a quilt consists of stitching a tough, heavy yarn or thread through the quilt’s three layers and tying a knot to to secure the layers together permanently. Remember that the quilt back is about 4-6 inches longer than the top quilt layers on all sides. If you are able, use one large piece for the back (some people like using bed sheets for this since they are large enough although this is controversial, as some seasoned quilters feel they are not as durable due to their high thread count and subsequent thread breakage). This is also known as ‘basting’ our quilt. 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