So you want me to quilt for you, eh?
First of all,
THANK YOU SO MUCH
for choosing me to be your longarm quilter!
Please read over and follow these simple guidelines to prepare your quilt
before delivering it to me to work my magic on it.
Quilt Top:
- All seams should be pressed nicely.
Please do not press your seems open unless
you are having the quilt edge-to-edge quilted.
Otherwise, pressing either to the dark side
or in the direction that allows the quilt to lay flat is sufficient. - Your quilt top should be a perfect square or rectangle.
The edges of your quilt top should all line up and have 90 degree corners.
If your top is not a perfect square or rectangle, then it will not load onto my frame straight.
You’ll also want to make sure the quilt top lays flat when laid out.
If it waves or wrinkles when you lay it out, it will wave and wrinkle when I lay it out.
Waves and wrinkles are extremely frustrating to manage when quilting
and can potentially result in unwanted tucks and gathers. - Any seam that meets the edge of the quilt should be backstitched.
While it isn’t imperative to backstitch every single seam in your quilt,
backstitching the seems that meet the edge of the quilt can sometimes come apart
when the quilt top is loaded and pulled taut on my quilting frame.
If you backstitch those edge seams,
it ensures that your seams will stay intact throughout the quilting process.
If you don’t like the idea of keeping track of which seams will meet the edge of your quilt,
you can also opt to do a final 1/4″ seam around the entire perimeter of your quilt top. - Any appliqué should be securely fastened to the quilt top.
It is helpful to make sure all appliqué is amply applied to the quilt top.
You may still do your appliqué as you choose, just please make sure
there are not pieces flopping around and hanging off the quilt top. - Finished quilt top should be neatly pressed upon delivery.
I cannot accept a wrinkled or wadded up quilt top. I do not offer
a pressing or steaming service, so please have your top nice and flat before I receive it. - It is helpful to label the orientation of your top.
Labeling “which way is up” is a great way to ensure that your top and backing will
be oriented the way your would like it to. I know that most of the time it is obvious with quilts
and their backings, but labeling your top and backing will eliminate any confusion. - All stray threads should be clipped.
Sometimes I am not able to catch and clip all threads
that are dangling from the quilt top. Before you send your top my way,
be sure to just do a quick final inspection and make sure any stray threads are clipped
both from the front and backside of the quilt top.
This is especially important if your fabrics are white, or light in color
as sometimes dark threads will show through, but only after it has been quilted.
Backing Fabric:
- Backing fabric must be a perfect square or rectangle.
This is extremely important. If your backing is not square with 90 degree corners,
it will never load onto my frame properly. If your backing fabric is a type of fabric that you can “snip and rip” then that is an easy way to square up the sides. Fabric typically snips and rips extremely straight. - Pieced backing seams should run horizontal to the quilts orientation.
Basically, when I load your quilt onto my quilt frame, the poles run horizontally.
So, if you know what side of your quilt is “up”, when you piece your backing
it is extremely helpful to piece it in a way that the seam will run horizontally.
This means that not only will the seam run parallel to the top of you quilt,
but parallel to my bars, which just makes my life a ton easier
and minimizes the opportunity for the quilt backing to tuck or pucker,
because there are equal amounts of layers loaded along the quilt frame poles. - Your backing fabric should be at least 5″ larger than your top on all sides.
If your quilt top is 50″ x 50″ then your backing fabric needs to be
at least 60″ x 60″. The extra fabric is extremely helpful in accounting for any
shifting of the quilt top that might occur throughout the quilting process. - Do not layer your top, batting and backing.
All 3 layers of your quilt will be loaded onto the frame separately.
So, don’t waste your time putting them into one sandwich
or pinning the layers together. - Avoid a “symmetrical look” if you plan to stylize your backing.
I know that is is super fun to create a backing that is just as cute and fun as the front.
It is extremely difficult to line up the backing and the front exactly.
So please avoid trying to create a backing that requires perfect aligning with the front.
Batting:
I can pretty much work with any batting that you provide, and even 2 layers if you desire.
Please just make sure that your batting is at least 4″ larger than your quilt top on all sides.
So, if your quilt top is 50″ x 50″ then your batting should be 58″ x 58″ but no more than 60″ x 60″.