Another question on using school glue when sandwiching
 

I have tried using school glue (like Elmers or other brands) but has anyone ever tried diluting it? My problem using it straight is that it dries so hard, you can't quilt through it.

The spray adhesives are so messy and expensive.

Can this glue be diluted with water in a 1:1 ratio and still be effective?

A lot of people dilute it. I drizzle a thin bead in a sort of grid on my batting and smooth it all out. If there are any globs I smooth them with my finger (washable, after all!). Remember that glue basting replaces pin basting, not spray basting so you don't have to get it on every inch of your quilt. I like to think of my grid as where pins might go. I've been using this way for a while and have had no problems with it. You can also put Elmer's or glue or some combination into the search bar above on the right and you will get a lot of other comments.

Sometimes I put about a tablespoon of warm water in the bottle so it will flow out easier.

Thanks Stitchnripper for the information. I never really thought about glue replacing pins. I wS wondering how you were supposed to glue everything! Maybe I will try glue now.

I dilute it as well. My hands are not strong enough to squeeze the bottle otherwise.

I sent in a request to Elmer's to make a washable non aerosol spray. If we all sent an email maybe it will happen.

Friend of mine uses glue and a sponge brush to smooth it out. I myself still prefer stitch basting. Sharon Shamberg way.

I use it all the time and dilute it with about 1/3 water to the bottle, I keep an empty bottle to use. I find it comes out a lot better with that ratio.

I dilute 50-50 with water. You don't have to spread it over the whole thing. Just squirt a thin line 6 to 8 inches apart. Then I smooth that out with my fingers so there are no big globs. The fingers will get washed later. (Sometimes I don't wash them until the whole quilt is finished.)
One time I had the glue too thin and it didn't hold well. Some batts don't hold as well either. I always put pins around the outer edge to keep the pressure off that glued spot until it is sewn. Sometimes I even put the binding on before I quilt the insides. (Horrors!)

I am curious about when the glue doesn't come out of the bottle easily. Granted, I don't have carpal tunnel, shoulder, wrist, thumb, etc. issues (at least not yet!) but when I turn the bottle over, gravity takes care of much of it and it drizzles out in a thin bead. It doesn't take much pressure at all to get it going. If it gets down to the end of the bottle I give it a shake or two and then things start flowing again.

I thin my glue also till it gets to flowing easily out of the bottle. Then I press the glue blobs flat with my hand. Sometimes they ease thru the fabric but everything washes out. If you leave blobs, they do create hard lumps. I don't cover absolutely everything. Just enough to tack the pieces together like pins do. I just do easy swoops of glue.

I dilute glue 50-50 with water. I then do a thin grid line. If I need extra hold for some reason on a quilt I will use glue full strength and smear (spread) it around with my hand. The trick to using this glue is do not put it on in globs. There is no need to. This glue will hold everything together when you let it dry. I have been sandwiching my quilt with glue for years. I even glue my binding on with glue before stitching it down. I don't like using pins on my quilts because no matter how hard I try to get all the pins out of my quilt I have found every once and awhile a stray pin. So if use use glue and no pins you don't have that problem. Wash your quilt after it is finished, the glue just washes away.