Go through your quilt carefully. The details really matter here and while some small issues can be fixed or even overlooked, some things are make or break for your completed quilt.

First things first: to get the best results with machine quilting, it’s important for your quilt top and backing to “square up”. Your goal is to have their tops and bottoms as well as their two sides as parallel as possible to each other, because quilts are loaded into the longarm on parallel bars. Do your best! Being just an inch or two wider on the bottom won’t be that noticeable, but more than that might throw off the stitch pattern and you might end up with a finished quilt that isn’t what you hoped for.

Next lay your quilt out flat on the floor and see if there are any bumps or waves. A small amount of bumps or waves can be quilted out or flattened with starch or strategic pleating; however, too much is just too much–if there is too much fullness or too many waves the only solution is to fix your piecing. If you bring your quilt in and it looks like the piecing does need to be redone, we’ll have to send it back home with you to fix prior to us quilting and you might risk your spot in the queue. Or if you'd like to complete your work here in the Hoop & Bee studio, let us know and we'll help find you a spot in our next available Open Sew session.

If you’re not sure if your quilt needs this level of fixing, send us a picture or schedule a consultation with us and we’ll help you figure it out–this will save everyone’s time and money at the end of the day.

WAIT! Before you get up off the floor, let’s look at your borders. If your quilt has borders, any that are not properly measured and applied may appear wavy (slightly too long) or pinched (slightly too short). In either case, quilting will not fix this–quilting will make it worse. If you notice any issues with your borders, it’s best to take them off and fix them before you come in–here’s how:

On a flat surface, measure your quilt in 3 places along the length: once near each edge and once in the approximate center. (Those 3 measurements will rarely be the same, and that’s okay.) Then add these 3 measurements together and divide that total by 3 to get the average length. This is the length you should cut your side borders to.

Use chalk, hera marker, or a pin to mark the center of each side of the quilt and the center of the border. Then carefully line the border and the quilt side up at their center points and pin every few inches along the whole length of the border moving outwards from the center, gently easing as necessary so the ends line up.

Repeat the process for the top and bottom borders, measuring the width of the quilt with the new side borders attached.

If you have a pieced border or bias edges on the outside of the quilt, use a stay stitch put 1/8” from the edge of the quilt to provide more stability and security, and prevent seams from popping open while we’re loading the quilt into the frame. This will be covered by the binding or can be easily removed later, so it takes minimal effort for maximum results.

And finally, let’s clean everything up:

• Trim any loose threads so they don’t get caught in the quilting and become more difficult to remove after the quilt is finished;

• Use a sticky roller to remove any pet hair so that it does not get sewn into your quilt;

• Make sure all your seams are well pressed to avoid any rolls or bumps;

• To the best of your ability make sure all of your edges are straight and symmetrical and that your corners are nicely squared;

• Your quilt top should be pressed and folded neatly;

• Even if it seems obvious to you, please indicate with a note or a piece of painter’s tape which edge of the quilt is the top.

Remember that occasionally we all have seams coming loose or get small waves or puckers in our borders. Sometimes our pieces don’t line up, our points get chopped short, our geeses’ wings get clipped–or that one dang triangle is upside down. We’re humans, not machines. Don’t stress yourself out trying to make your creative efforts “perfect”–you’ve come this far and that’s an achievement worth recognizing. Done is better than perfect–and we’ll work together to get your quilt finished.

IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT YOUR QUILT TOP

• Please ensure all the pins are removed! Pins left in the quilt top can break a needle and throw the longarm machine out of timing–a costly consequence for just one pin.

• Please let us know if you have not pre-washed your fabric! We love a good crinkle, but we don’t love dye transfer! If we don’t know that your fabric is unwashed and we use steam to press out a wrinkly corner, color could bleed between your pieces.

You do not need to supply your own batting if you do not wish to. We sell a limited selection of batting in the shop, priced per square inch. For our batting rates, check our Pricing Page. We carry Warm & Natural, Warm 80/20, and Warm & White.

• Warm & Natural. This soft, natural cotton batting goes through a mechanical cleaning process, meaning it has never been washed or bleached with harsh chemicals. Once quilted, machine wash and dry your finished quilt in cold water. 3% shrinkage can be expected in the first wash with cold water. To achieve an antique puckered look use warm water for 5% shrinkage. This batting is ideal for more dense sewing.

• Warm & Natural 80/20. This is completely clean, natural cotton fiber blended with pillow-soft, resilient polyester fibers, evenly layered and needle punched into a lightweight, stable 100% cotton scrim. 3% shrinkage can be expected. This batting is ideal for less dense sewing.

• Warm & White. This batting is ideal for pastel, tone-on-tone, and white fabrics. It is natural cotton fibers undergo a hydrogen peroxide bath to remove all the impurities as well as the natural color. Both Warm & Natural and Warm & White weigh 4 oz. per square yard, but Warm & White feels a little thinner due to the cleaning process. There is little to no measurable shrinkage in a cold or warm water wash after quilting. When looking for a finished quilt that will remain pristine without puckering around your quilted lines, Warm & White is the perfect choice.

If you choose to supply your own batting, be sure you read the packaging carefully and know how to care for it after it is quilted (for example, some battings like silk and corn cannot be put into a dryer and some battings need to be pre-washed or will shrink up to 15%), and that the batting you supply is made for longarm machine quilting and is of good quality. The batting must be able to be moved easily within the longarm quilting frame and be able to maintain its stability without tearing (specifically, not Mountain Mist or Poly-Fil).

You should bring batting to the studio still in the package, to prevent tearing or stretching in transit.

We also accept “frankenbatting”, which are battings pieced together with a wide zig-zag stitch or fusible tape. The batting must measure at least 4 to 6 inches more than your quilt top, but for frankenbatting, it’s best to give us as many extra inches as possible.

IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT YOUR BATTING

• If you are supplying your own batting, we will not quilt Mountain Mist or Poly-Fil Batting. Please feel free to ask us for recommendations for alternatives.

• If you are using frankenbatting, all pieces should face right-way-up and should not include any pieces that have previously had spray baste on them.

Your backing fabric must be at least 4 to 8 inches bigger than your quilt top on each side. The denser the stitch pattern, the larger the back will need to be, to avoid shrinking past the edge line as it sews. Density refers to how many stitches per square inch; the higher the density, the more stitches are in each square inch.

As an example: if your quilt top is 68x74, your backing should be at least 80x86–but this is one of the times where bigger is better.

If you are not using a wideback fabric, which are generally 108 inches wide (but watch out, they really shrink!), you may need to piece standard 42 inch wide fabric together to achieve the necessary size. If you need to piece a backing, take your time to sew those long seams carefully. Cut your fabric yardage straight and square before joining segments–bonus points if you can match your prints! If you only need a few additional inches, you might also consider using the Flynn Method.

Most importantly, sew at a half inch seam, and use pins or clips and a walking foot to help achieve an even feed. If you are a machine sewer, sewing a seam this long without any pinning or walking foot tends to result in a seam that looks fine to the eye, but actually has more fullness on one side of the seam than the other, due to the tension created by using the feed dogs only on the underside. When such a backing is loaded onto a longarm sewing machine, the full side sags down even while the other side is pulled tight, which can make it difficult to compensate without stressing the already-tight fabric and can lead to unsightly wrinkles or pleats on the backing. Since we cannot see the backing while we’re quilting, this can be a huge risk.

Also, when joining your fabric, consider a seam that is not in the direct center of a quilt. If you think about how you fold a quilt–you usually start by folding in half, and half again, right? This repeated folding and “facing out” of the center will pull and create stress if there is also a seam there. If you are looking for a strong, durable quilt to last you a lifetime through washing, drying, using, and folding–your seam should be off center. Additionally, the seam should run parallel to the top (side to side) whenever possible, as this will help your backing be smoother and have less stress put upon it while long arming and while using it. All backing seams should be pressed open.

You put a lot of time, energy, and love into your quilt top–why stop there? Think about how you can incorporate your front into your back! If you have a few extra pinwheels or a row of not-so-perfect flying geese, give that backing some personality! It’s almost impossible to guarantee a perfectly centered backing, so making something intentionally asymmetrical is always going to give you a stylish and stunning look.

However you prepare it, your backing fabric should be pressed and folded neatly. Even if it seems obvious to you, please indicate with a note or a piece of painter’s tape which edge of the backing is the top.

IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT BACKING

• We absolutely will not accept any poly-blend fabric or bed sheets as backing.

• If your quilt top fabric was pre-washed prior to piecing, be sure to pre-wash your backing fabric as well (or vice-versa).