sandyl

So, I made my DSIL a quilt top. I put on a border and quilted it. I decided I hated the way the border looked-kinda ruffley and wavey. So I took it off. I would really like (need to cause he's so tall) to put a border on it. Is there a way to do it after the quilting is complete? I've quilted tothe edge of the pieces but I have enough backing and batting to accomodate a border. I don't want to hand sew it, but I will if that's the only way....I am such a goofball sometimes.
Do you see a way out for me?

sewcrafty

I'm not really sure. Maybe you can hand sew the border onto the front and back and then quilt it to blend in.

justwannaquilt

Just lay the border on the top with right sides together, then sew as if you were putting binding on then press the seam towards the border once it is sewn on. Once you have the border on you can finish quilting it any way you like to match the rest of the quilting. I don't think you have to hand sew it though I would do it by machine. It would be kinda like a quilt as you go border. You would end up seeing the "quilted" seam on the back of the quilt but the seam allowance and everything would be hidden inside. Does that make sense?

Bluphrog

Measure and cut your border fabric, batting and backing fabric. Cut the pieces slightly wider than the finished size of your border. Layer your border fabric on the quilt top, right sides together, and on the back, place the backing right sides together with the back of the quilt and then the batting. Do this with both sides (or the top and bottom, if that's how you roll). Sew through all the layers and trim the batting from the seam allowance, then flip and press. There'll be a little extra bulk at the seam, but it should lay fairly flat. Then do the other two sides. You can then quilt your border, if desired. Trim the border to the desired size (remember you cut it a little big). Then apply the binding.

justwannaquilt

Would she still have to cut the batting and backing if she already has it available without cutting anything extra? She said in the original post "I've quilted to the edge of the pieces but I have enough backing and batting to accomodate a border. I just assumed that her batting and backing were large enough already to accomadate the border without adding any to the quilt! Sorry if I miss understood!

AliKat

Hi Sandyl,

Use a form of the Cotton Theory method ... a form of quilt as you go. Then you could finish the quilting after the border is on.

ali

Bluphrog

Well, she says she took the original border off because it was wavy, so figured she wasn't going to put it back on. This method (which is a kind of quilt as you go), works for applying a whole new border.

[quote=justwannaquiltWould she still have to cut the batting and backing if she already has it available without cutting anything extra? She said in the original post "I've quilted to the edge of the pieces but I have enough backing and batting to accomodate a border. I just assumed that her batting and backing were large enough already to accomadate the border without adding any to the quilt! Sorry if I miss understood![/quote]

Prism99

I'm thinking the border was ruffley because you did not measure the border properly before applying. If you just try to sew a strip on as a border without measuring, chances are that the border fabric will stretch as you sew. This may not become obvious until you get a lot of the quilting done.

The way to correct this is to measure through the *middle* of the quilt. To add the side borders first, for example, measure through the middle of the quilt from top-to-bottom. Cut your two side borders to that measurement. Pin so that the border matches the edge (pin middle and ends first, then halfway between pins, etc. until entire border is pinned). Sew the border, easing as necessary. Then measure through the middle side-to-side to determine how to cut the top and bottom borders.

As long as you have enough free fabric at the edge, you can still attach a border to the top. It's not clear to me if you still have the batting and backing fabric to accommodate the borders. If not, you can piece additional batting to the existing batting (same with backing fabric). Once all 3 layers are there, you can pin and quilt the border as usual.

SueDor

I am so glad that she typed this. I am sure I would have forgotten a step or confuse you even more.

hobo2000

I enlarge a lot of quilts for people. I make a 10 or 12" border of contrasting fabric. finish it as if it were a quilt then attach it by machine short sides first then long sides. Remember on the long side to add the dimensions of the top and bottom border. Sometimes I will scallop the part that gets sewn onto the quilt, makes it look more "planned". Just an idea. Hugs