Originally Posted by np3
Originally Posted by BKrenning
You would quilt 3 separate quilts to within 1/2 inch from where they are to be joined. After all the sections are quilted, you join them together and use a sashing strip to hide the seam on the back. Search Quilt as You Go for a block by block style or even Quilting in Sections and you should find examples of what it looks like. You only have the entire quilt on the machine when you are putting the sections together and of course putting the binding on.
Sharon Pederson & pair of ladies I forgot the names of did episodes on Simply Quilts years ago and I'm sure there are others. Check YouTube for videos.
I have quilted block by block which is very similar to the quilting in sections & it was very easy. I quilted each block and then used sashing front & back to put them together row by row. It was a lot of hand sewing on the back to finish but if you use a matching thread color, you could probably machine finish it easily enough. I was a new quilter at the time so I followed the directions I had seen.
The method she is refering to is not the quilt as you go method. You make the full quilt and then do the batting in thirds. I'll search for the tute on it.
It is easier when you do the middle section. The last section is just as bulky. The key is having a really big work space. The method lessens the amount of quilt rolled up in the throat of your machine.
I think that is the method I saw the pair of ladies doing on Simply Quilts. I was using a machine with a 6" harp at the time so that method wouldn't have worked very well. I have a larger machine now but I still prefer quilting in sections over adding the batting. I do agree that having your machine setup in the center of a long table & possibly even turning it like a longarm to do free motion quilting would help tremendously with any quilt larger than crib size and even crib size is a problem if you have arthritis in your neck or shoulders.