nance-ell

So, I've been reading the threads about how to piece the back. My quilt top is 65 x 65. I bought 4 yards of fabric and cut it in half. I was going to sew them together and then put it on the back with the WOF on one side and the balance to finish it off. My thinking was that would use 45 WOF plus 30 and I would be left with a 15 inch strip for future use. I was reading where a lot of folks use the 45 WOF down the middle and cut the 2nd piece in half for either side. Either way avoids a seam down the middle. Is it really going to make that much difference which way I do it? This is the only my 2nd quilt top and I have yet to try to complete the first one, so essentially, this is my first quilt. I don't want to be discouraged when I'm finished as I'm really hoping to use and enjoy this quilt. I want to make a good choice from the experience of all the wonderful folks on the board. Thanks!

gale

Personally, I don't care if I have a seam down the middle. I did use the diagonally pieced method for one quilt and if you are trying to save as much fabric (for other projects) as possible, it's the way to go. I'll see if I have a link.

donnajean

When I piece a backing on a smaller quilt, I start with a WOF piece squared - after trimming off selvage. Then I add borders on all four sides to get the needed dimensions for the pieced backing. The idea is not to have a seam down the middle of the backing as that is where you ususlly fold a quilt & it gets more wear there.

gale

It's not on the flynn site anymore, that I could find, but here's a pdf link:
http://www.flynnquilt.com/media/uplo...onalpb1103.pdf

and this blog post explains it a bit:
http://pinkchalkstudio.com/blog/2009...-flynn-method/

katier825

It's a matter of preference. If you can piece it with one seam and don't mind how it looks, go for it! I will often use leftover blocks or strips to divide my 2 pieces, especially if it's a large print that I don't want to match. Plus it ads interest.

Most of the time I run a seam down the middle. I use my quilts frequently and never noticed any stress on a center seam. I think if you quilt it enough it shouldn't be an issue. There are a lot of people who disagree with this, but that's how I often do it. :)

Dee Dee

Pieced backs add so much to the look of the quilt. Really adds interest.

craftybear

thanks Gale

nance-ell

Thanks for the replies! That diagonal looks interesting and I may try that sometime. Not sure I'm up to it for this one. I just added a picture of the background fabric. I don't think it is going to be that noticeable to have one seam off center. I thought the quilt top was the hard part with all the decisions to make! lol

gale

The diagonal takes some thinking and plenty of space to lay it out, but it isn't hard. I'm a ditz and I managed without messing it up. I had no choice-I bought my backing fabric based on that.

Joeysnana

I pieced a backing for the first time and used the tube method. it was easy.

http://www.reddawn.net/quilt/backings.htm