Firstly,
WOW!! Thank you to all of you... For your Linky's for
last weeks class!!!... What a ton of inspiration to come back to again and again for ideas and tips... Thank you for sharing your great projects with us!!! xx
This weeks Class -
How to Baste your Quilts!!
Now, there are a
few different ways you can baste your quilts.. I'm going to show you the way
I like to do it.. Some of you may do it differently, maybe you can link up again this week showing us
YOUR way..?? For those of you who don't know how, try a few different ways, and you will find what suits you best.
OK, Lets start with a few measurements...
QC Quilt top (if you have followed mine ) measures 50" x 58"
Backing fabric measures 56" x 64"
Batting 60" x 68"
(for the Batting I chose 100% cotton)
You will also need:-
100-200 Curved Safety Pins
2" Masking Tape
Your first step.. is VERY important.. and it start with Ironing. Iron your backing fabric, and lay it face down on a large hard surface.
Start at the
bottom Left corner.. Put your tiles or floor boards to good use. Use the lines and grid to line up your backing to ensure its straight and square.
Take your masking tape and Tape your first corner..
Place another strip across to secure.
Next, tape your
Top Left Corner, Pull your backing fabric tight along the grain/selvage of the fabric. If your selvage runs horizontally instead of vertically follow my other basting tutorial
HERE.. The taping order varies slightly.
When your taping this corner, make sure it still lines up with your tiles (floorboards). Tape this corner with your first strip.
then second strip to secure.
If you have pulled your corner tight, your backing will buckle slightly.. This is OK and as you continue to pull and tape around your backing, It will ensure your quilt is stretched tight.
Next, Pull and Tape your
bottom Right corner, Line up the bottom of your backing along your tiles...
Next, Pull and Tape your
Top Right corner. You will notice your backing sides bow in slightly, again this is what you want to ensure its stretched tight..
Your tiles come in handy again... Tape the
Left side of your backing, you do this by starting in the middle and work your tape out to each corner.. Pull it in line, each time you tape..
Repeat by taping along the
Right side of your Backing piece, again from the middle to the corners.
Repeat by taping the
top side and then the
bottom side...Your backing should be stretched perfectly flat and tight.
Next,
lay out your
batting piece...
Climb onto the middle of your batting... Start
smoothing all the crinkles out so it is also nice and flat.
Lay your Quilt top onto your batting.. Take note, if you have directional fabric for your backing, remember this as you lay your Quilt top on. I made this mistake once!! Painful!!
This completes your Quilt Sandwich.
I learnt a
great tip from
Ashley, Film in the Fridge..when using a pieced back. Its hard to ensure your quilt top is straight and lined up correctly with your backing fabric underneath. For my pieced back I have the zigzag going vertically down the Quilt back.. I want this to go straight an even down the back. So, Ashley suggested you
clip the batting in line with the seam lines from your backing, so you can now line up your quilt top accordingly... Genius!!
Climb onto the centre of your Quilt Sandwich. Starting in the centre of your Quilt top, slowly and carefully
smooth out all the crinkles. Once it is all smooth, again start in the
centre of your Quilt top, Take your curved safety pins and
pin through
all three layers, in the centre of your square. Curved Safely pins work great! It really is a must. When you put the pin into the fabric, the curve allows the pin to pop back up easily to secure it closed. Its way too difficult to try and use regular pins.
Continue to pin in the centre of each square roughly
3-4" apart. I constantly smooth and pin, smooth and pin, working from the centre out towards the edge.
Your nearly done!! When you have finished pinning all over your quilt..
Cut around the edge of your Quilt top, 1" away from the edge through the three layers.
And you ARE done!!!
You are ready for Quilting!!!
xxx
