Thread: Small project bunching up after quilting

I just finished free motion quilting (with Bernina BSR) a small wall hanging (19 x 25). It's called Chilly Charlie and it's a snowman head with a hat & bird and 3 large snowflakes. I did a really simple FMQ design of just loops and curves - no quilting on the snowman/hat/bird. It seems as if the areas that I quilted scrunched/shrunk up. This now makes the areas that I didn't quilt bunch and 'poof' up. It's especially noticeable around the snowflakes - they don't lay flat - like they have a bubble in them.

This is only the 3rd FMQ project that I've done and did not have a similar problem with the other 2. This is the first time I've done a project with the BSR. Perhaps I didn't keep the project pulled flat when I did the quilting? Any ideas on what I might have done wrong would be appreciated!

Could we see a picture? Then it would be easier to tell the severity of your issue and give pertinent advice.

Have no idea, can you post picture? Going too fast? Tension?

One cause of this is when you have some areas closely quilted and others not quilted at all. If you think about it, quilting stitches require the fabric to "bend" frequently and this causes the scrunching. This may be only part of your problem, however.

How did you baste the quilt? I'm thinking that, for quilting of this type, you really want to spray baste. Spray basting keeps all three layers in continuous contact with each other, providing some resistance to the "take up" of fabric that causes scrunching.

I did spray baste it. Do I need to wait a while before I start the quilting? Here's a picture. You can see that the hat is rippled/wavy and the bump in the middle of the snowflake.

I didn't originally do any stitching around the snowman or the appliques. I've now stitched around the snowflakes and finished with a circle in the middle of them. They are laying acceptably flat now. I also outlined around all the other motifs and it's looking better. As for the snowman, I may just stitch around the eyes, nose, and mouth and call it done.

I did learn quite a bit from all of you so thank you for all of the comments and suggestions.

I agree with margecam52. Cute quilt by the way!

Originally Posted by margecam52

You didn't do anything wrong...Your background is quilted a lot more densely than the rest of the quilt...Quilting pulls the fabric down into the batting just a little bit...leaving unquilted areas the original size. I use three fingers wide and three fingers tall as the most I will leave unquilted on appliques...this equals about a 2-1/2" square area. I'd add a "belt" to the hat, maybe even a buckle...like a pilgrim hat. I'd outline where the wings on the bird are. Outline around the letters in the label. Put a line down the center of every snowflake spoke. I'm not sure how your snowman is "dressed", but you can outline any clothes (or make up clothes using stitching...white or clear thread). Outline his eyes, nose and mouth. Be creative and fill the open areas in.

Sew a button on the middle of your snowflake. I try to keep the quilting the same density over a project.