1rottendog

Before I get too upset, maybe I goofed. My 50" x 50" wall hanging came back with puckers quilted in on the front. The back is fine. What would cause this? I squared up blocks before putting them together, pressed it very well so there would be no wrinkles or bulgy spots. This is a quilt I wanted to put in a show in January and, of course, now I can't. If I take out all the stitching, will needle marks show? Do I say anything to the lady who quilted it for me? Thanks for any advice/help.

missy miss

I think that you should say something to the person that quilted it.
Then I would find myself a new long arm quilter.

joyce888

If your quilt has white fabric the needle marks are probably going to show (at least that's what happened to me). You might try sewing on some scraps from your quilt and seeing if the stitches removed leave marks.

Patti25314

You might also try on your sampler to wet down the removed stitch area. This is suppose to reclose the fabric holes. Good luck.

Tartan

So sorry this has happened. 50 X 50 seems small for the LA to have problems with it to me. I would question her about it. Did you mention that you wanted to show it when you dropped it off? Not that it should have mattered because if this is the her best? I would be looking for another LA. I know sometimes there are problems with a top but before stitching the "problem" with puckers, I think a LA should call the owner! Now what do you do? You've got to try and fix it and sometimes the holes will close in if washed but as others have mentioned, on a light fabric I can still tell they were there. BUMMER!
Long armers on QB, do you call your clients before stitching in puckers on a quilt top?

dunster

Usually the reason a quilt winds up with a tuck on the front is that the quilt itself was not flat, and that usually is because the borders were wavy before quilting. I'm not saying that this was the case with your quilt, just that it's the usual explanation for a tuck.

I would ask the quilter for an explanation. We've had several posts like yours recently, about longarm quilting that came back with less than stellar results. One thing I've decided is that if I ever do start to longarm for others, I will talk to each customer about any problems with her quilt before proceeding, and if the final results aren't as good as they could have been, I'll discuss the issues with the customer. It seems to me that if the longarmer had mentioned the tuck to you, and discussed why it was there (assuming that she realized there was a tuck and that it was unavoidable, which may not have been the case) you would not now be questioning the quilting.

As far as removing the holes, usually that is successful. You might need to mist the quilt lightly and massage the holes to get them to close if you don't want to launder the quilt. Best of luck in salvaging your project for the fair.

Deborahlees

Please let us know what your deceide to do, so we can learn from this. Would be especially interested in what the LAQ has to say about her work. If it was me I would take it apart as YOU will always see those puckers even if no one else will.

Bobbielinks

If the quilt was quilted with an edge to edge design stitched by the quilter from the back of the machine it might be that the quilter did not realize that puckers had been stitched in. If it were my quilt, (and I am a longarm quilter) I would take it back to the quilter and explain to her/him that I was planning to enter it in a show and wanted to know if she could removed the puckers. Sometimes it is possible to remove a pucker with a bit of steam without needing to rip out any stitches. Sometimes the quilting stitches need to be removed to take a pucker out. If the fabric is cotton a little spritz with water and a gentle rub will remove the needle holes. Seldom does a quilt need to be completely washed to remove the needle holes. (I could probably name 20 longarm quilters, many of whom quilt for show, and they have probably never quilted a top in which they didn't have to rip out and redo at least a little on it). I have been quilting for over 12 years on a longarm, have had several customer quilts entered in shows, taken several ribbons for quilting, and have always needed to rip out somewhere on a top. Just want to encourage you that your top can be fixed and ready for the show. Wishing the very best to you and a blue ribbon for your quilt.

tezell0801

So sorry this happened to you. I for one know how it feels to have your quilt messed up. I am to new to have advice, but wanted to say I am sorry this happened. I took all the stitcheing out of mine and found a new LA'er. Can't wait to get it back and see it looking how it should look. Good luck.

Krisb

Posts like this one make me wonder whether there is or should be some certification process for LAQ's, demonstrating a basic level of competency. Or could I go and buy a frame, put my Janome 1600p on it, put ads in stores and/or papers, and start a LA business? And if I did want to engage the services of LA quilter, how would I be sure that the person was competent and reputable? I know---use somebody from this board, of course!

This is a serious question.