Plee1053

I can't get my back and batting to stay in place even after pinning on my knees for hours and cutting the backing and batting at least 5 inches bigger than the quilt. The front always runs off of the back when quilting. Still new to quilting and don't know what I am doing wrong. I have 4 quilt tops I am afraid to try to sandwich and quilt! Really can't afford to hire a LA'er to do it for me. I have a walking foot and embroidery foot. Just can't seem to get it quite right!😪

Bree123

Plee-
Do you start your quilting in the center of your quilt? You want to quilt in quadrants, always starting from the center and working your way outward.

Also, with just those 2 feet, you only quilt in straight lines, right? You need a darning foot to do Free Motion Quilting. If you pin a fist's width apart throughout your entire quilt, starting in the center, working to the edge, then moving to the next quadrant and doing the same until your entire quilt is pinned, you should hopefully be okay this next time. With a walking foot you want the feed dogs UP. With a darning foot to do FMQ, you want the feed dogs DOWN. Hope that helps! At least you knew to leave extra backing & batting. When I started I didn't realize I was supposed to do that & would cut everything to exactly match the front. On top of that, I didn't know to start in the middle & I spent a lot of time ripping out stitches & re-quilting the thing. Not fun!

If you need more tips, post a new thread. I'm sure the other members here can help you figure it out.

Panchita

I would need to fix pleats and also wavy borders. I am not fussy about cut-off points - tend to look at it and just think "Must be more careful next time!".
Unless it is a very, very obvious problem (or a specific gift quilt for someone) I am quite likely to continue regardless...

quiltingbuddy

Like a few others it drives me crazy when I have my quilt blocks all laid out on the design wall and still somehow sew the wrong sides of the blocks together and then don't notice until something is off somewhere else in the row or the next row. Like this purse I'm working on right now for my daughter. I'm using batiks and several prints are scattered around randomly for variety. Got one sewed wrong (too much talking when sewing with friends I'm sure) and then I had to reorganize several others after they were all laid out perfect. One little mistake can throw the whole thing off. So it's me that I find frustrates me.

jonkauai

Stalling! I seem to stall out right near the end of projects.
Does anyone else have this irksome trait?
I will be on the last 2 rows -literally the last 2 seams to sew, and I space out in front of the machine - then I end up cleaning house or something instead of wrapping it up. It happens during binding a quilt too!

Toni C

Cover your dream batting with a sheet. Then it will not stick to batting

jeanharville

[QUOTE=Onebyone;7258767]I'm not past fusing a triangle over a cut off point to make it pointed if I didn't see it in the block. I will add a 1/2" piece of fabric all around a quilt block to make it bigger if it is smaller then the rest. Anything that works is fine with me.

I am so glad you posted this. I feel the same way, but secretly felt guilty about it. Just knowing that others may be solving the same problems the same way is liberating. Thanks

jeanharville

Melanie, what is the technique you use? I don't like hand stitching the bindings either.

Genden

What bothers me when making a quilt is a mistake in the pattern instructions. I now think my way through the whole quilt process before I begin--even before I purchase the fabric. Sometimes a mistake slips past me even with these precautions, but rarely. Sometimes in thinking the pattern through, I find simpler construction techniques.

lynnie

uneven blocks, or stopping to cook.