Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Tuesday Tutorial - backings and thread

I am always grateful to my friends who call me about quilting questions....thanks for the inspiration.

My friend Becky inspired this tutorial, which is more a tip than anything else.

Often when we are preparing a quilt, the back of the quilt is the last thing on our minds.  We work feverishly on the top, and lovingly piece it together with the joyful thoughts of what a fantastic quilt it will become.  We find a back which will work, then pin that "baby" together, and then think about how we are going to quilt it. Now, is the time, we realize the quilting question should have been in our minds well before this moment.

Tips for happy quilting:

Have the back of the quilt be roughly the same color as the top.  This way, you can use approximately the same color thread, and you won't have to play as much with the tension.

Use a back with a big print.  The more going on in the fabric, the less you will see of the quilting, thus, the less you have to worry about imperfections.  Of course, the reverse is true, if you want to show off your expertise in quilting....please oh please, use a plain fabric.

Do not use monofilament thread (clear thread) in the bobbin.  Trust me, you will only create problems.

Use the same weight of thread in the top and bobbin.  You don't HAVE to do this, it just makes quilting easier.

Use embroidery threads, and other fun threads to quilt.  Cotton thread is not needed for quilting (shocker, I know).  Embroidery thread has a little sheen to it, and I love the look of it in the quilt.

Variegated thread is Awesome.  The thread changes color, and it is a nice thread to use to help the quilting blend into the quilt.


Go and Quilt something today!

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