Cutting threads on the back of a pieced top
 

Dear fellow quilters,
If you give your quilt tops to a long-arm machine quilter,
do you cut ALL of your threads on the back, or just the ones that
would possibly show through a light fabric?
Thanks.

I cut all the threads as I am putting the top together, then check it again before it goes to the long-armer. It's the way I was taught to quilt!

I only trim them if they would show behind light colored piecing fabrics.

I trim all my threads as I piece the top. Doesn't matter what color the fabrics are or who's going to quilt it, they all get trimmed as I go.

That's a great question to ask I was wondering the same thing, I always have so many strings I feel like its impossible to get them all.

If you clip as you make your blocks and as you construct the top there is less ) clean up) to do before quilting. Being a longarm quilter I can tell you it is definitely appreciated when the customer delivers a nicely done quilt top. When I have to spend an hour ( or more) cleaning up loose threads it is aggravating and sometimes I have to charge extra for the service. If you only clip the ones you think might show up and leave the rest there will be ones showing through! Mainly because as the quilt ( sandwich) is advanced on the bars those ( left behind) threads move and wind up where you do not want them and it is a pain to try to remove them in the finished/quilted quilt. The backing/batting behind them really enhance them showing up in the top.

I do give my tops a final checkup before sending them off to my LAQ. Since I normally make my blocks a bit bigger, they are freshly trimmed when stitching the blocks together so there are less loose threads.

I clip my threads back to no more than 1/4 inch as I piece. That way they do not get sewn into the seam with a chance to show on the top nor do they have a chance to show between the top and the batting.

I clip as I go. If I see any fraying, I hit it with the fray check.

I clip threads as I go because it is not a chore I like to have to comb back and do. I also do this when I FMQ. I tie off and bury every thread as I go. I learned the lesson one time when I left them to the end-not a fun task. Besides, I like neat looking projects.

As a former longarmer, you will be happier if it's trimmed. I know some longarmers charge extra to do the trimming. Nothing more discouraging than to have a beautifully constructed and quilted top and have a thread GLARING at you where it's not supposed to be. :) Once you trim it, be very gentle with the top or it will just keep fraying.

Same here - I know no body is going to see them but to me it is messy looking. Yep I'm that annoying person that would straighten the pictures on your wall lol

I snip threads as I go and then check again when making the sandwich.

I have always been taught and lived - do not make a mess for someone else to clean up. Especially if someone is doing something for me. Make less work for those "down the line" is another saying.

I clip as i go ......can't stand to see loose threads on anything........

I, too, clip as I go and straighten pictures.

I agree with ckcowl about trimming all your threads when making the quilt top. In high school Home Ec., our teacher was adamant about us clipping all our threads as we sewed. I think she may have instilled this particular step in sewing to me so much that when I've worked with groups of people, such as making crafts and craft items for our church's Holiday Fair, I would go a little nutso when I saw those loose threads; however, my friends still do talk to me. LOL. It's so much easier to clip those pesky threads as you are sewing, rather than putting in more time to do it after the quilt is assembled. I think I trim those loose threads out of habit that was instilled in me by my dear Home Ec. teacher, who taught me so much, she was also my mentor who helped me over some rough patches when I was in high school and college. I heard from a high school friend that she was still teaching into her 80's.

I try to use a light enough color that won't show thru. I try to cut them but do miss some.

I've always kept them clipped as I sew, can't stand threads hanging! I even clip them on my practice scraps, LOL!

If you chain stitch, there are hardly any threads that need clipping. Sometimes I pull the last piece out a little farther (this happens when you do partial seams especially), but when I cut them apart, I snip at both ends, leaving no thread ends to show.

If I don't clip as I go I sorely regret it as it is a royal pain to do at the end! But that said, at the end I snip the threads which are from the fabric as it frayed during the sewing and handling.

I guess I would straighten your pictures, too. I trim as I sew. I can't stand it when a thread gets sewn into a seam and I have to go back and trim it. I try to chain piece as much as I can. Then there aren't any threads to trim. Leaving them until the entire top is finished takes too much time to clip them all. I can see the long arm quilter charging to trim. It can take hours. I also trim some of the frayed edges as I go along. I guess my ocd is showing.
Sue

I trim all threads as I go, if possible. I do make the back as clean as I can too. :)

A longarm quilter gave a presentation at our guild. She said she only trims the threads that might show.

I trim as I go and then do a quick check once the top is together. As a long armer, I do have trouble with some fabrics that seem to really fray badly--seems no matter how much you trim the thread more get produced while rolling the quilt--these really need fray check.

I am also a longarmer and prefer to trim as I go. I ask my clients too trim the ones that will show through and then turn their quilt over to repress and check for threads in the seams on the front. I really do not like to trim threads next to the quilt and don't wish to pull those threads and cause fraying either. I think being a longarmer has made me a more cautious quilter, LOL!