World Wide Quilting Page
Question of the Week
Question for the week of May 19, 1997:
Our question this week comes from Bobbie Harris
How is quilt basting done?
Grace :
I baste my quilts with large "Quilters" safety pins. They take less time than traditional methods, and are easily taken out when the quiltin's done.
Cheryl :
My favorite way to baste a quilt is with the Quilt Tak gun. I do my quilting by hand and the plastic goes in my hoop very nicely-where safety pins get in the way. It also goes much faster, and easier on the fingers!
Doris :
Lay the quilt together[bottom [right side down],batting, top[right side up].Have the batting and bottom or backing both about two inches or so larger than the top. take a large needle and thread about 36 inches long and take big stitches.Start in the middle and work out to the edges. have your basting rows about 4 inches apart. you can use a basting gun if you prefer but I don't like to if I am going to quilt on the machine..
start in the
middle and work out to the edges.
Charlotte :
Call a local quilt shop and see if they have a basting frame that they allow customers to use. The frame is like a giant set of stretcher bars that make it much easier to get the layers together without wrinkles. You pin the backing onto the frame, then tighten it. Lay the batting over the backing and smooth it out, then lay your top on top and baste using a very long stitch. I usually use a doll making needle so that I can cover ground faster.
linda humphrey :
Bobbie, this step in quiltmaking is probably the most unpopular of them all. Find a very large (larger than your quilt top) hard flat surface. Lay the backing (this should be at least 4-6 inches larger on all four sides than the top) RIGHT side down,tape, clip use weights or find some other way of keeping the backing FLAT and STRAIGHT. Unwrap the batting and let it breath for about 20 minutes, or you can pop it in the clothes dryer NO HEAT and tumble for 5 minutes. The batting should be larger all around than the quilt top also, at least 2-3 inches or more on each side. Lay the batt on the backing, smoothing it gently so you don't disturb the backing. Place the pieced quilt top RIGHT side up on the batting/backing sandwich. VERY carefully so as not to move any of the layers you have worked so hard to place so perfectly, use a very long needle. I use one that is made to stitch faces on cloth dolls, it is about 3-4 inches long with a large "eye". Choose a thread color that you can not miss - but not deep red or blue, unless you finish the quilting in a couple of weeks you run the risk of the color transferring to the quilt top. That is also about as long as you can make your stitches. Starting at the center of the quilt top stitch diagonally to the top corner, its ok to leave the end of the thread dangling. Now go back and at the center again work diagonally to the botton corner, continue until you have basted a X across the quilt top. Beginning at the center again baste a + on the top, using the X and + design helps hold the layers together. Now you can baste up to 4 inches apart in a all-over grid. pattern. When you have finished the X and + plus the grid pattern that quilt sandwich won't be going ANYWHERE! But you are not quite finished yet, fold up the top and bottom edges of the sandwich so there are no RAW edges. I use a smaller running stitch since this fold is a bit "heavier", repeat for the side edges. Your quilt top is now ready. This is not a fast and easy process. But it is very important to have a smooth top and backing to quilt. Also take your time when you are moving your quilt hoop around, try to work from the center out. Then move in a clock wise fashion so if any quilting "kebobbins" appear you can smooth them away.
quilter274 :
I strtch the backing over my lg. kitchen table..Tape it down and then put on batting and top. From there I pin it well and then use my favorite quilt tack gun to baste it. Oh, I love my tacking gun
Nancy B :
Using two conference type tables(placed together), tape ironed backing to the table, wrong side up. Smooth batting over the backing, then lay quilt top over batting. Make sure there are no major wrinkles. Baste from the center outward, using a long needle and even longer threat. Baste every two inches so there is no shifting of the layers. Baste both horizontally and vertically. Roll borders and excess layers and baste to the top of the quilt. This is the best method I have found.
Anthony :
As a machine quilter, I pin baste or use the new quilt tacker (the one with the short tacks). I find that thread gets caught on my presser foot as I twist and turn the piece through the machine. And the layers shift more so that I have to work harder to prevent puckers on the back. Here are a few hints that helped me. Fill the pin with as much quilt as possible to prevent shifting. A hint I got from Michelle Hart of Quilted Sampler in Tampa; always pin with the grain, not on the bias. Basting is my least favorite part of quilt making. One of the best purchases I've made was one of those drop leaf cutting tables. It is just the right height for basting as well. Plus the edges perfectly fit the binder clips. Before I got my table, I had a piece of 3/4 inch plywood cut down to 3'x5' and used an old ironing board as the legs.
linda hohenstein :
i put the three layers together, baste an x and a + and then put some small safety pins to hold the layers together.
Judy Simon :
I take it you mean for the quilting itself. Lay quilt backing out on a flat surface. Roll out the batting and smooth it in place evenly. Place quilt top over all and pin down. Make sure quilt backing and batting are visible all around the top. Starting in the center and using large 4 6 inch stitches
baste the three layers together. Go lengthwise then go crosswise. Alternate between the two until the whole quilt is done at 6 inch intervals. As you quilt the stitches can be removed.
MEANDGENE@aol.com :
Lay backing out wrong side up, put batting on top and smooth out real good, lay well pressed top right side up on both, then pin with 1" safety pins no more than 4" apart starting in the center and work in circles toward the outsides (For machine quilting)
Sue Duthweiler (duth@alaska.net), Kenai, Alaska :
Although I agree with Lou Shafer that the
old fashioned method of stretching and
basting a quilt works best, I don't have
anyone but my dear husband to help me build
the quilt sandwich. I have a large door, mounted
on a pair of kitchen cabinet bases which serves
as a cutting/work table. I spread by quilt
back over the table (if it is small enough,
I tape it down, if not, I don't worry).
Then my DH and I place the batt over the
backing, being careful not to create wrinkles
in the under layer. If the quilt is large,
we might slide the backing/batt several
times across the table to be sure that
the layers are properly aligned.We fold the quilt top in quarters, right
side in, place the top on the backing/batt
and open it up. We then start from the
center and safety pin the entire thing toge
Lou Shafer @ JanniLou Creations, Philomath, OR :
Bobbie: Jan &I prefer thread basting over all other options of basting. We believe it's the "kindest" to your quilt. Using the old fashioned c-clamp frame method, we stretch the backing, layer the batting and then the top. (We've pinned the backing to the frame, but the batting and top are straight-pinned only through the backing.) Then, using a slender darner, we baste all the way 'round the outside of the quilt top. After the edges have been basted, we work a handspan in creating a cross-hatched grid of basting a hand-span apart. The basting process requires the buddy system. We often have 4-6 quilters work together on a major quilt basting spree. You need buddies to help roll the quilt when you've gone as far as you can reach. We find this stretching/basting method one of the best ways to maintain a smooth backing through your entire hand quilting or machine quilting process. Be sure to snip the threads as you approach them in your quilting. You don't want to stitch across the threads, or you may have trouble removing the basting at the end. Jan &Lou @ JanniLou Creations, (a quilt shop) Box 333, Philomath, OR 97370-0333
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