I had never done a backing horizontally until last year when my Sister in law sent me backs that weren't long enough to go vertical. I had never thought of it, but it seemed to me that she got more bang for her buck by doing that version.
Either way, what sharon was trying to explain ... was: (I think <g>)
You dont want the seam directly in the middle, because it will break down rapidly (or so I have heard)
so, either way, what you do to avoid that problem is to cut two pieces of fabric either horizontally or vertically ... so for the horizontal, I am going to measure the length of my quilt, cut part of my backing to the length, open it up and take the OTHER part of the backing, cut it in half, sew one half one one side of the whole piece, and the second half on the other side (where is a drawing when I need one?)
there will be two seams, but they will not be in the middle, now, will they only show up part way over on your quilt.
When you do it vertically, of course, everything is done according to the width of the quilt top ...
again, you measure the width, cut a piece of fabric that measurement, take the other piece that measures that same measurement, cut the second piece in half, sewing one half on either side of the complete piece, which is laying open.
Remember ... when you are getting ready to baste the quilt before actually quilting it, or when you are loading it on to your frame, the backing needs to be at least three inches bigger ALL AROUND the quilt ... and six inches is a better amount ... the reason for that is because the stitching you do while quilting, starts using up the backing.
I can't explain it ... I just believe it <g>
Can hardly wait to see your finished project! :wink: