I need help from my friends.....ok..so I made a quilt for a friends 15 year old daughter. It's a little bigger than a baby quilt...I pillow cased it and then did stitch in the ditch...when i got to the end of the stitching I have a big poof of fabric.....so how do I fix this.....

thanks Mary

If you google "how to get fullness out of a quilt" there are lots of subjects there that might help. I have never had any luck pillowcasing b4 quilting. I know that is not much help, I usually quilt first then bind it so that it lays flat. I am sure someone on here can help you out. Keep watching for posts

That is the exact reason I'm afraid to pillow case a quilt. The only way I think I'd do it is to tie it and do a straight stitch around the border. I have no idea how you could fix it...sorry!

Been there, done that! Good thing it was a baby quilt, because I had to take the whole stitching out. I am VERY good with a seam ripper!
About yours: is the poof on the back or the front? Maybe on the back you can open a seam or two and make some adjustment. I had to do a lot of basting to hold the layers and then got a walking foot which made the differenct for me. I know it is discouraging to have this happen, but it can be redone and fixed. All the best.

you wont like this, but you might have to rip all the quilting out and then iron it flat and then stuff the batting in and around the edge of the quilt stitch it down then that should help with the poofing. also if you are not quilting it too tight should help.

unfortunately it is on the front.....

It is helpful/important to pin around all the edges before starting to sew to keep the folded edge "true" and to keep the fullness on both sides from "traveling/bunching"

If it's really not the way you want it, the best thing may be to take out that stitching and start over.

baste baste baste and then pin pin pin in front of the walking foot. You really have to secure all layers extra well and go slow and smooth on top and back as you are quilting. when you pillow there is no place for the extra fabric to go.....

I guess I was lucky with the one I did before this one...that one turned out great.....thank you for all of your help....I guess I will see how far my seam ripper has to go....

thanks
Mary
:-(

I pillowcased a quilt once. That was all it took, once. I had to rip it all out. Good luck.

If I'm understanding right -
When you sandwiched it, sewed around the edges and turned it right side out - it was okay.
Now I get lost
Was it when you stitched around the EDGES in the ditch that you ended up with a POOF?
Or was it after you Stitch in the Ditch over the entire quilt?

Either way, IF it were ME - I'd take a seam ripper and unsew while watch tv tonight.

THEN Press it a little - make sure it's smooth, remove all stray threads and Pin Pin Pin
Straight pins long the sides and closing pins hand space apart IN the quilt.
Check to make sure there's no puckers
Don't remove pins until you've sewn everything or if the pins are in your way.

I pillowcase all of my charity quilts. The trick is to pin corners, first smooth between corners and pin midway on each side. Then, while SID in each quadrant keep smoothing as you go. Then, I do a 1.4" seam all the way around, works best with a walking foot but with out make sure it is smooth between pins and feed in and out, front & back with your hands. I never have a problem. On yours, you may be able to unseam a small way 6-10 inches and ease the fabric as you go and restitch.

I was going to try and rip some out and see if I can smooth and fix....but will see......what I did was sid around the inside design of the quilt....I did 6 inch blocks....4 across and 7 down....so I stitched in the ditch around the perimeter of that section.....

Mary

That is the reason I don't like this method.

I would like to know what it means to pillowcase a quilt? As you can see I'm new to quilting or I would know I'm sure.

To pillowcase a quilt that means to put right sides of the top and backing together with the batting in between then sew around all the edges leaving a opening for turning right side out. Then quilt.

When I did that, had to rip all the SID out---once was enough!

Oh- I actually made some little quilts that way for the hospital in San Antonio for their preemies. It does actually work for very small quilts---20X20. Thanks for the info--just hadn't it heard it called pillowcase quilting.

The two pieces of fabric are placed right sides together and the batting is on the bottom or top (one article said to have the batting on the bottom so it doesn't catch in the presser foot)

Other names: birthing, inside-out, quick-turn

I've wondered how to deal with the layer of batting outside the seam line.

Do you trim it close to the seam line or leave it? If it's left, I think it would be bulky after the quilt is turned right side out.

If it was me, rather than rip out the quilting, I think I'd take my rotary cutter to the end that was poofy and open up the seam at that end. Then cut the front to fit the back. Or was there more than just one side that was poofy? If so, I'd do whatever sides were poofy. Then I'd finish quilting and put a binding around the whole quilt.

What is pillowcasing? Never heard that before. Marge

My sad story has a happy ending, in a way. When I first started hand-quilting I made a wedding quilt for my niece and hand-quilting with a hoop, no pins, no basting spray, just started in the center. Anyway I had a hugh leftover pouf of backing left at one edge, so in my feeble brain I thought I'd just make a pleat so it would look as though it was meant to be like that. Now, years later, my niece asked if I could do some repair on her quilt. The 'leftover' fabric was perfectly aged with the rest of the quilt, I was able to fix my mistake & make repairs with "vintage" fabric.

Hmmmm.....Never "pillowcase" a quilt....it never looks as good (or lays as flat) as making a quilt with a binding!
(I don't care what anyone says) :roll:
If I were you I would take all the stitching out & don't do it pillowcase style....you won't be happy with it otherwise.
SORRY!! :cry:

I never heard of "pillow casing" a quilt. I understand the process after reading the messages but I have never tried it.

I am so glad you girls asked about "pillowcasing". I have done it but had no idea that is what they called it.

I've never pillowcased or birthed a quilt before, but after hearing of some problems, I don't think I will finish a quilt this way, not sure what time it would save since you are quilting it anyway.

I would also like know what it means to 'pillowcase a quilt'

I also am not fond of "pillowcaseing" a quilt. just too chancy to have a mess. but, if you do, you definitely need an even-feed foot. lots of pins ! thin batting. after I sew the edges & turn the quilt, sew opening shut, --I like to stitch-in-the-ditch about 3/4" away all the way around. even-feed foot necessary ! also need to in again. it then looks like there is a binding all around.
this method makes the quilting harder too because you can get puckers at the end with too much fabric---and you have nowhere to go with it.
Definitely do not cut off any fabric. if you squared the quilt when you started, that fabric belongs somewhere !
But best of all---use this method only for smaller quilts. it wastes more time than it saves.
In my humble opinion.

Check out Sharon Schambers Network, she had something about that, but maybe it was just for a single block not sure. I'll bet if anyone can tell you how to do it, she can, you might call or email her and ask.

Ducky, I love your Avatar, do you have a larger pic. of that. It is so pretty, what is the pattern. I am getting to really love a black background.I have a pattern I want to do after this Christmas rush and it will have a black background. I have been so antsy to do it I can hardly stand it. But I've been good, I am finishing my brothers quilt for Christmas, putting binding on tonight and tomorrow. I've worked on this thing since the first of Oct. It is a reversible, so it's like I'm making two instead of one with what I'm doing.

I learnt something today because I didn't know what pillowcasing was yesterday. Thank you all.

quiltinaday with elenor burns has a great video for this type of quilting.

GREAT SAVE, quilterfly!

And Bearisgray, I love your drawn illustration. The old graph paper always works. Now as for pillowcasing--that is a new name to me. We here in Missouri call it enveloping. I have no problems with this method, however, I use it only on my 40x60 (or smaller) charity quilts and would never consider it for any bedsized quilt.

Leaving the batting extend a good half inch from the seam lines makes a full fake binding effect when one sews a half inch all the way around quilt (after you turn the quilt). See photo attached. Lately, I have been using a patterned stitch around outside of quilts at fake binding and it gives another look to everything.

This looks really good!!!