I will soon have a quilt top ready to take in for quilting. I have located 2 people locally who can do it. What questions should I ask to be sure I will get the best work and a happy experience? Of course, I will ask to see samples of their work.

How many quilts have you done. How long have you done this.
What happens if I am not happy with the work? Do you guarantee it? Ask for a price sheet.

That is all that comes to my little mind.

"What longarm training have you had-classes, seminars etc?"

Its pretty easy for me. There is only 1 local long arm quilter, and she pretty much insists on doing all quilts in the wishbone pattern, but they always look good & I love her to death :)She never keeps my quilts more than 2 weeks at a time,and her prices are great which is definately a plus.

ask how long she will have it too....one girl i use typically is 2-3 weeks.....another 6 months! (i dont use that one much lol)

Also ask for references. Any LA'er should be able to easily supply a few references that adore his or her work.

ask if she has any samples to show. some la's keep samples for showing. ask to see what designs she offers and of course what the price will include (thread, ?).

How much extra backing do you need (usually 3-4 inches all the way around)

If you have any ideas about what you would like, let her know that, as well as what you don't like. For example, if you don't like feathers, let her know!!

Let her know your budget for this quilt, and any others you do. You may not want to spend as much per square inch on a baby quilt as you would a wedding quilt.

If you are interested, see if she attaches binding on her LA. This is something that I can do while the quilt is on the LA and my customers don't have to wrestle that quilt with their home machine.

If she trims the quilt - how close do you want it trimmed? Some people don't want them trimmed, some want it trimmed right up to the edge of the quilt, others (like me!) like it trimmed 1/4" away from the edge so the bindings are full and the edge of the binding meets right up to the binding seam on the back.

Does she have pets in her studio. Do you care? And let her know if you sew around your pets - some quilters have allergies, too!

Some quilter's have a backlog (the good ones usually do!). Ask if you can be put on her list, then get the quilt top to her a couple of weeks before your time.

HTH!!