Until I joined this board I had never seen quilts with pieced backings. Am I the only one who prefers a single-fabric backing?

I also do mainly single backing. It just seems easier to me. But.........I think that I will try pieced backing sometime. BrendaK

I prefer the single-fabric backings. My theory is that some people are so addicted that they just can't stop quilting and this way they get to quilt twice as much! :lol: :lol:

I like pieced backings, mostly because I like to use up the extra blocks and strips and chunks of fabrics which didn't make it to the front of the quilt. And because it's interesting and fun to have a secondary design.

On occasion, I've ended up liking the pieced back better than the front.

I do know that many non-quilters really dislike pieced backs. I just did the quilting on a collaborative project and the woman who we were making it for was very adamant that she didn't like "those weird and cheap" backs that are all pieced together. She was willing to pay $50 just for backing fabric that wouldn't need any piecing at all. Shrug. Her money, her choice.

RST
RST

I don't DISlike them, it's just that by the time I get to that point, I'm pretty tired of the whole thing for a while. Love it later though,
and don't want to get rid of it.
Have a grand daughter who is due 3 more days, don't know if it is a boy or girl yet. They aren't talking!!

I usually go with one color or piece for backing, but have used 2 1/2 x 10 or 11 inch strips in the back using the same fabric as the front. Example: Log Cabin in the front and strips of the same fabric on the back, just to change things and make it reversible.

I usually back my quilts with wide calico, but occasionally I will use pieced blocks/strips to extend backing.

I have been quilting for two years now, and I always piece the back of my quilts because I still have so much to learn and so many patterns I want to try that I hate to buy the fabric and not learn from it. So my quilts are usually two for one. It is funny because sometimes I or others in the house prefer the back side to the front when it is finished.

I would prefer a single-piece backing, but, until I have used up my stash, I will continue to piece my backs. Plus, I love the challenge of using different fabrics in the backing.

it depends on the quilt- i use whole piece backs for a majority of them but sometimes the quilt just (needs) a peiced back- i think both ways works fine, looks fine, and i let the quilt decide what kind of backing would be best.

I ALWAYS look at the back of the quilts - prefer a whole piece (print is nice) but I want the back to be as nice as the front.

I've only done single piece backing but as mentioned above, using up the extra fabrics, strips or blocks makes a lot of sense. I might try it next time when I have extra pieces that could be used in the backing.

I like some of the pieced backings I've seen, but some don't really seem to be 'right'. I have so far only done single fabric backings with a single seam to make it wide enough. I do like the idea of a pieced strip connecting the two parts of the backing.

I piece the backs. I do not think that it is that hard and besides I ususally can not find wide backing fabric that goes with the quilt top. Also I think that wide backing fabric is nmore expensive that 45" fabric.

Mostly I make solid backs, but on occasion I have pieced a back. Sometimes just to use up leftover fabric from the front, sometimes as a design choice.

I tend to do both. If it is a simple quilt and I want to finish it I use one piece.
Sometimes I have to piece as the colour I have only comes in small pieces. Not my favourite as I also plan it goes exactly in place and it takes ages to sandwich correctly.

I hate wasting time because nobody notices the time you took over matching the two. I did one for a show and put it in double sided. I heard some ladies say.@you would have thought she had made the seams straight' If she had thought the other side had wavey musical stave and the seams matched the black lines.

Do what you want please yourself.

I usually use a sold back, because thats how my Mom taught me, Ha ha. Old habits.

I've been doing a lot of baby quilts latley (I dont know but all my friends are expecting!) and I've been doing traditional cotton designs on the front and using flannel for the backing so it will be extra soft. I'm sure there's someone who would disapprove of mixing the fabrics, but the new Mom's seem thrilled that it's soft.

Wide backing @ $10/yd is comparable to $5/yd - the cost equals itself. This would be for 90" fabric. Most wide backing is 105-110".

I like both pieced and whole backs. Some of the pieced backings add so much to the looks of the quilt. For the quilts I make I try to use only one whole piece with no seams. I hand quilt. Right now I'm working on a quilt where I pieced the back and every time I hit one of those back seams I'm reminded why I don't like to work on quilts with pieced backs. Less of an issue for machine quilting.

I only piece as much as I have to get the backing size I need.
ava

I like to piece backing on my smaller quilts to use up leftovers - less waste & a smaller piece needed for the main backing fabric.

I like the idea that the back of the quilt is where you can have some fun on traditional quilts.
peace :D

I hand quilt, so I prefer one piece backings, and buy 90 inch wide muslin so I don't have to deal with any seams on the back.

The only time I used a pieced backing, I was quilting a top for a friend. I hated dealing with the seams on the back as well as the front - plus she used some batiks on the back and front. It was tough getting through all that.

Janet

I go either way, depending on the circumstances and how much time I have.

I have done pieced backing when I had fabric that was a must for the back, but didn't have enough for the back. I have also do pieced backing to ad interest to the quilt.

I piece some backs simply to use up the fabric I have. I also have trouble finding backing in my area. There is not a huge selection available.

Have done both but my favorite is to back with a king sized sheet (I make B-I-G quilts). They come in such gorgeous patterns and colors and if I plan for a smaller quilt I use the edges of the sheet incorporating it into the quilt pattern on the front thus everything appears totally coordinated (kind of?). I so love this occupation ............

Thats what my Mom did! I noted that the sheets, depending on where purchased were a lot less expensive than the same amount of material! She would turn the edges of the sheet over and make sort of the last border with it....

I mostly use single backs, but have pieced some also.

Nope.. I use single fabric backing. I never really saw pieced backing until I joined this board.

I have done both but usually use a single color backing. I usually use my favorite which is a white paisley. I have to sew two or three lengths of fabric together to get it to fit especially a king size. I have made two quilts with a pieced back.

For me it depends on the quilt. I do both pieced and whole backing. I don't know of anywhere to get $10 wide backing. The LQS here charges almost $22 a yard for wide backing and I don't like muslin for backing. More often than not I piece a backing of the same fabric so it appears its one whole piece.

Actually wide backing is less expensive! Assume you have a queen size quilt you need to back. 45" wide fab, which these days it is really only about 42" of usable fab once you remove selvedges, you need to purchase at least 7 yards of normal width backing (usually 8 to 10 depending on how many seams you are willing to have ). Wide backing (108") fabric you only need 3 yards. Less than half. Most wide backs I see are in that 14.99 price range but I have seen it as low as $10 on line. Compare that to an average cost of fab at around $8 P/Y. 7 yards at $8 = $56.00 3 yards at 15 = $45 so the wide is less expensive because you have to buy less.

I like both pieced backings and one fab. I like using leftovers from the front in some pieced backs. But I do prefer a pieced back that is appealing to the eye not just big chunks of fabric put together helter skelter. If I am hand quilting I prefer as few seams as possible in my back. But if I am LAing it anything goes.

Ditto. I just want to get it done and move on to the next project. I am also a person who doesn't like clutter and I think piecing the back feels like too much to me - I need a single fabric back to balance the business of the front. Just a personal quirk of mine. :wink:

I do both .... some quilts "demand" a one fabric backing and others "want" for a pieced backing. Also, if I'm sending for hand quilting, the backing will be with as few seams as possible .... one fabric, or possibly minimally pieced (as in inserting one block or similar.

A one fabric back, can sometimes give you a nicer look at the quilting or the benefits of a second whole cloth quilt. At Christmas, I flipped one quilt to the back that had a black/gold print. Then laid a Christmas lap quilt on top ... showed it off better than it being on a couch in the family room! And can see doing the same for other seasonal quilts, rather than making a full bed quilt in the future.

Here's one with a pieced back .... it just seemed right!

I have always done a single piece backside. But then I wasn't exactly sure how to center it if it was pieced with multiple rows and such. Seems like a lot of frustration to me, but am sure there is an easy way.

That is what I learned to do, solid backings. I think the pieced is a great alternative. I want to try it on my next quilt.

Mine are mostly solid, but sometimes I piece for fun or necessity :D:D:D

I piece the back if I have good sized pieces of fabric left over from the quilt top. Otherwise I buy fabric that is on sale--like Connecting Threads--and use a soldid backing--still pieced because of the width of fabric, but all the same fabric. My family likes the pieced ones, they always look to see!

:thumbup: Sounds good. What is the thread count? Or does it matter? Thanks for the information. BrendaK