Best method for using Elmer's glia for basting?
 

I've seen quite a bit of talk on here about using Elmer's glue for sandwiching a quilt.
I'm wanting to try it but not sure whether to do dots or thin it out and use a spray bottle.
What method works best for you? And why do you prefer it?
Thanks for your expert opinions!

I am going to try this on my next quilt. I will be watching this thread with you!

I just squeeze out lines on the fabric, when sandwiching. I love the way it holds the quilt together. I squeeze more along the edge than in the middle. It washes out fine. I'm so glad that I tried this way of sandwiching.

I have been using the glue for the last 3 years and love it. I lay my batting on the floor then lay the backing on top. Once it all smooth I roll back one side and drizzle my glue on the batting (I do water the glue down with about 1/4 water to a bottle of glue) then I carefully pull the fabric over the batting. I use a yardstick to smooth the fabric over the batting with the glue in it. If I feel any big drops of glue I smooth them out with my hand. Then I do the other side. I let this dry overnight and then the next day I repeat the process with the quilt top. Hope that makes sense

i drizzle in a grid. One of our posters suggested glue basting replaces pin basting, not spray basting and this method works great for me

Has anyone found that this gums up their machine at all? Someone wrote in a little while ago that her serviceman said it was not good for machines.

I've used the dots on a table runner and it held very well. I am currently doing a quilt (approx. 60 x 50) and I watered down some of the Elmer's Glue and sprayed it on the backing and ironed the batting to it and it is holding perfectly. I am quilting this on on my domestic machine and with all the shoving and pulling and ripping out it has not come apart. Greatest thing for quilting since the first sewing machine! But make sure you buy Elmer's WASHABLE School Glue. And I bought a $1 spray bottle at Walmart.

I have not had any problems with it gumming up my machine. Also you must iron the fabrics together after you put on the glue.

I thin my Elmers down - about 3 parts glue to 1 part water using an extra glue container and apply in a thin line to a manageable section of the batting - i then "spread" out the glue gently using an old credit card. I found that applying it to the batting then smoothing the fabric down caused less "stretching" during the process. Next step - i press that section with a warm iron to speed up the drying process. This method has been working very well for me.
RE: gumming up the machine..... i always let my sandwich dry overnight before i start quilting.

I prefer to "draw" wavy lines. Once I applied the glue all over. Big mistake.
The quilt was so stiff... like a huge piece of cardboard. Imagine handling
that while quilting. The wavy lines keep the quilt sandwich pliable and
manageable. I wipe any excess with my finger that way the needle
doesn't go "klonk" on those spots...or break.
Make sure the glue is good and dried before you start quilting.
I also dilute the glue with water 1:1. I don't like when it's too thick.

Sorry, I just still prefer the safety pin method. I have seen some mistakes quilter's make and I don't want a mess on my hands.

i haven't had any problems either. If you are patient and have time to let it dry you don't have to iron. I don't iron.

I have been using the elmers glue since my second quilt after I read about it on this board. I still probably use too much, but it is great for holding those layers together and I have not had a problem with my machine. My first quilt I used straight pins for and had so many stabs.......my swear jar got quite full quickly during that quilt!!! LOL

I have been using this method for about 3 years now with tremendous success, I even put a tutorial on here with pictures of how to do it. I have never had any trouble with any of my machines gumming up or causing any trouble. I do water it down a bit and let the sandwiched quilts dry completely before starting my FMQ. Good lulck!

Only if you can not wait for it to dry naturally...

I use the same technique PenniF described ... "I thin my Elmers down - about 3 parts glue to 1 part water using an extra glue container and apply in a thin line to a manageable section of the batting - i then "spread" out the glue gently using an old credit card. I found that applying it to the batting then smoothing the fabric down caused less "stretching" during the process. Next step - i press that section with a warm iron to speed up the drying process. This method has been working very well for me." In addition, I've tried several different applicator bottle tips (not tips as 'hint's, literal tips you screw onto the bottle of glue) - best tips I've found are available from 'purpledaisiesquilting.com' website. Purple Daisies is owned by Sharon Schamber and her daughter, Christy Fancher. I'm not affiliated in any manner - just purchased the tips from them - great product, price and service!

That serviceman has had no experience with Washable Glue. It can't gum up the needle if it is dry.

The iron is only used to dry it more quickly. If you let one side sit overnight, it will dry just fine.

I start by pinning the center lines of the top, bat and back together. Then I pull the top piece (whichever is on top now), way back to the center pins. I dilute the glue about half and half. Turn the bottle upside down and squeeze out the glue while moving very quickly over the batt, back and forth in about one fourth of that section of the quilt which you can see. I take my fingers and go over those lines of glue to make them thinner. That leaves no big globs. Now I squeeze glue on the second fourth, the other fourth that is next to the center line. When that glue is spread a little with my fingers, I pull the top piece down over the batt, smoothing with my hands. Now tip that top piece back as far as it is already glued and spread glue on the third fourth, and then the last fourth. Pull the top all the way down and smooth.

Now turn the quilt around (or move to the other side. Large tables at church, library, town hall etc. are good for this if you can't do it on the floor.) Fold that side back to the center and continue as before. If you are in a hurry, you can iron these pieces dry. I would iron the first piece from the center to half way to the end the first time, two quarters at a time, and iron the next two quarters after you complete them both. Actually, these are eighths of the entire quilt, as we're working with half of the quilt at a time.

Turn the whole thing over and repeat this process.

When everything is dry, you can free motion on your domestic machine. The whole thing handles like one piece of fabric.

One more thing: Before I start the quilting, I stabilize the outside edges. With a lot of pressure on the glued ends, they can come apart. The last queen size quilt I made, I put the binding on before I started the quilting. Worked great!

Well, this turned out to be a mini tutorial, but I hope it helped someone.

I glue basted a queen size quilt today. I set up two folding tables, smooth out batting, drizzled glue in a thin line over 1/2 of it. Smooth the quilt backing on 1/2 way. Drizzled the other half an smooth the baking. I then iron the backing to the batting until glue was dry. I turned it over then repeated with the quilt top. Over and done in less then 35 min.
I dilute the glue with a tiny bit of warm water and stream it out of the bottle. I use pressure to smooth so all blobs will be thinned out.

Using liquid glue seems to be a lot of work.....

Greatest thing since sliced bread to me! I also use about 3/4 glue to 1/4 water, I heat my water in the microwave, then it squeezes out really easy, and I just make squiggles all around on the batting, smooth out backing, then flip over and do the same with the top. I usually allow to dry overnight with the ceiling fan on. Never had a problem with gumming up machine, works great, and washes out completely.

I have tried this, but squeezing the bottle really hurts my hands. Its fine at first, but not too far in the process I have to stop. Does anyone else have this problem? If you do what do you do?

if you can do some squeezing, why not do some, take a break, do a little more, etc. Or once your hands start to hurt does it take too long to stop hurting? Some people paint it on. I hope you can find a way to use it. I won't go back to pin or thread basting.

Someone on here posted that they dilute the glue with some water and then use a sponge brush to apply the diluted glue. I think someone also mentioned using a small sponge roller. These tools are inexpensive and widely available in the paint area of big box stores and hardware stores.

Someone on here posted that they dilute the glue with some water and then use a sponge brush to apply the diluted glue. I think someone also mentioned using a small sponge roller. These tools are inexpensive and widely available in the paint area of big box stores and hardware stores.

Edit: I meant this to be in response to meyert and the problem with squeezing the glue bottle.

And I have no idea how I got this posted twice. ;)

And here's a link to the type of sponge brushes I am talking about:
http://www.amazon.com/Value-Pack-10-...dp/B003UHJDAS/

Thanks everyone!
I tried it yesterday evening. Will see how it works out for quilting on my featherweight next week.

Here's what I did. I diluted the glue 1/2 & 1/2 with water. My sprayer wouldn't cooperate do I just spread it on by hand. Went fairly quickly. Had a bit of difficulty with my table being so small (4 ft camping table) but don't think it will matter in the long run. Got the center portion well smoothed out and hopefully securely held together. Will determine Monday whether the perimeter needs to be glued more.

I Love glue! I don't have the Roxanne's Glue Baste bottle, but refilled it with Elmer's Washable. I did it because the Elmer's is cheaper and easier to find, but I really like working with it more than the Roxanne's. It's smoother and is easier to pull apart when I have to rip seams (I use glue instead of pins for piecing).

When basting, I don't dilute (but I'm using the skinny Roxanne tip) and I just drizzle the glue on the batting and smooth the quilt top over it. I press it to make the glue set quickly. And it has never hurt my machine - i don't get any gumminess on the needle and I never see traces of glue anywhere. And I use glue a lot. Love glue.

Did I mention I love glue?

oh, that's a good idea!

I don't know if the 1/2 ratio of water will work. That may hinder the holding. Be sure and post how it worked.

Easiest way I've ever found to baste so far.

BTW Roxanne's glue is Elmers. After they sold this part of their business, they let the cat out of the bag....

I won't baste any other way! I do thin down the glue a bit (roughly less than 1 part water to 3 parts glue) and drizzle it on in a zig zag fashion on the quilt bat and then smooth the back over it. Let it dry, flip it over and repeat for the front. You don't need glue everywhere anymore than you would pin everywhere. I don't iron it but let it dry several hours or overnight. I also do it in sections because I can only reach so far and it is easier to pull the fabric over the batting that way.
I have found that I need to wash the quilt with warm water to get the glue to dissolve. I usually wash in cold water but cold water doesn't dissolve the glue enough. I've never had any problem with it gumming up my machine or breaking needles. The biggest challenge is when I tie off threads and bury them in the bat if I have to go through a glued spot but even that is doable.

I find that if I dilute the glue with some water (roughly 1 part water to 3 parts glue) it streams out of the bottle much better. I also hold the glue bottle 6-8" above my work surface and get the glue coming out in a thin stream and then go quickly. One squeeze usually goes a long way. The glue will bead a bit and not be a continuous line at points on the batting but that is fine as it will stick just fine in the end. Trying to squeeze the bottle and drag along the batting was hard for me as well as using the glue full strength.
I would caution about diluting it too much and doing it this way as the glue will seep through the batting and may not stick as well.
To me the method of rolling it on with a paint roller or putting it on with a sponge brush seems messy and you don't need to cover the whole surface anymore than you thread baste or pin baste the whole surface.
Think of glue basting as an alternative to thread or pin basting and not spray basting.

There are several videos on the method. Watch a couple and see which appeals to you. https://www.google.com/search?q=vide...utf-8&oe=utf-8

I have used most of the methods mentioned to find the best one for me. I also tried applying the diluted glue with a paintbrush(light strokes with the end of the brush) used a yardstick to smooth it out and let it dry overnight, easier that heat setting with an iron. I found this worked quite well, it was a midsize quilt for a child. I use an old plastic tablecloth on whatever surface I am working on.

I've diluted the glue with even more water when I was in a pinch.
It still held. The problem when putting more water is that it gets
runny and messy but it will still hold. A little goes a long way.
I go by the thickness of the glue more that an actual formula.

I have that problem too. I try to glue in sessions, taking breaks in between.

Applying it is no harder than using safety pins (it's probably easier on my fingers) but one thing I LOVE is that there are no pins to remove while I'm quilting. I always tried to place pins where I wouldn't be quilting but I always ended up having to take out a bunch during the process. What a pain that is. Not having pins to remove is one of the best parts of glue basting!

Another method of applying the glue that I have seen on the QB is to use a mini paint roller and paint tray. Thought this was very clever at the time!

I did until I started microwaving the water to dilute it with, makes it real runny, barely have to squeeze!

I have an hardwood floor area in my living room that is big enough for a full-size quilt, so I use painter's tape to tape the backing to the floor. Then I spread my batting, fold back half and drizzle glue on the backing. Re-spread the backing and do the other half. Repeat with the quilt top. Dry overnight. No overspray. Never gums up my machine and never slips. No puckers, ever. Washes out completely. Best idea for basting that I have come upon. Certainly easier in my opinion than pinning, stitching or spraying.

I drizzle the glue also and smooth it with a ruler if I get a bit too much. I buy not only Elmer's but the white glue at the dollar store when I run short because it is only a couple of blocks from me. Never had issues with needle or gumming because I make sure it is dry.

Best thing since Chocolate Ice Cream.....I have been doing this for at least a year...I do water it down a little and then I iron it.....works for me.....and it all washes out....it has to be washable glue.....