I am wondering how you join small sections together later if you have a small machine. Is that what is called quilt as you go?

Billlie

If I understand your question, you are asking how to join quilted pieces together to form a larger quilt. This is not as difficult as it would first appear. It is a matter of first sewing the fronts together using a quarter inch seam allowance as if it were not quilted. Fold your backing and batting out of the way and attach the pieced top. When quilting smaller sections, you do need to be careful not to quilt in the seam allowance you plan on attaching to another piece.

I then put the quilt face down on a table so that it is smooth. Overlap the batting only, making sure the top stays flat. I then carefully take a pair of scissors and cut thru the overlapped batting using a curved or wavy cut. This will allow the batting to butt against each other tightly. Remove the excess batting.

The next step would be to attach the free ends of your backing. The method I use is to fold one side over the other and using an applique stitch hand stitch these together neatly. I just pull a chair up to the table that the quilt has been smoothed out on. Stick straight pins in to be removed as you approach that area.

Many quilters use this method of quilting smaller sections of their quilt on home sewing machines and then piecing the sections together. You may wish to check Quiltinaday.com. Eleanor Burns did cover this on her PBS show. Hope this is helpful.

This is the best explanation of how to put separtely quilted pieces together that I have seen! I love to make quilt tops and I do have a quilting frame (EZ Quilter), but feel pretty intimidated by it. I'll have to try this method when I make a quilt for my niece's new baby!

Btw, I remember seeing a demonstration of quilting log cabin squares as you sew the strips on. But that was years ago when I wasn't even thinking about quilting, I was just a kid! Can anyone give me some tips on how they do that and keep it looking neat and finished on the back?

Thanks in advance! I am going to love this board!

whisper

Blessed are the curious - for they shall have adventures!

Hi hope nobody minds me offering a suggestion, Just hope I can give an adequate description lol, anyway here goes.

Another way of joining quilted blocks is to use narrow sashings on both front and back.

If you want half inch finished sashes, cut one inch stips for the front and slightly wider strips for the back. Sew front and back sashing onto the edgeof a block that you want to join (using a 1/4" seam). Next sew the front sashing only to the front of the block you are attatching to, keeping underneath sash out of the way. Loosely ladder stitch edges of batting together. Fold under raw edge of back sash and applique to back of block.

You can make 1" sashings by cutting fabric to 2" (slightly wider for the back) and using 1/2" seams. Anything wider dosen't really work very well.

I like this method it has the effect of creating a sashed pieced back and I can use smaller differing pieces of fabric for my backing.

By the way I'm really enjoying this site, people have so many wonderful ides and are very helpful to one another. Thanks to everyone for a wonderful meeting place. :)

ShellyQ ... click on the "Search" option right under the big board title at the top of the page. search on "quilt as you go", and/or "quilting in sections". we've talked about this lots of times in lots of threads.

you'll get method suggestions, book suggestions, links to instructions, and more than a little laughter from our stories.

Thanks for that, :) I'm quite new to internet computing and appreciate any suggestions for navigating better. It's been a steep learning curve lol

HI = I have many fish bowls that I made, thinking I would make them into mini wallhangings. They are already quilted!.. Think I will try to put some of them together using this method with "wood" sashes. May make a larger wallhanging!

Thanks for the information, will try to look at other similar topics.

This is great information. I have been wondering about this very recently. I want to attempt to machine quilt and haven't had the greatest success with larger quilts. My idea was to try smaller blocks but had not idea how to put them together. Thanks. I'll have to give these ideas a try.

Georgia Bonesteel had a TV show doing this technique and also wrote several books. It's called "Lap Quilting".