i don't read how you are quilting. Are you doing in the ditch; using walking foot etc. I have quilted in ditch and walking foot by pin basting. I also was careful in hold the layers flat as well as pinning with straight pins in front of the walking foot to help keep it flat.

I have made several hundred Linus quilts with flannel backs in the last couple of years. I always prewash all fabric for those quilts. I pin bast about every 4 inches and don't have a bit of trouble. I use a walking foot and a decorative stitch. I only quilt about every 5 inches or so. At the most I might have one or two puckers. I have a Bernina 1260 but I have also done them on my newer Bernina. No problem.

i use flannel all the time...i think you will have better results if you lengthen your stitch a little bit it sounds as if you are using too small of a stitch for your sandwich, remember flannel is a (thicker/heavier) fabric, then add the top and the batting...makes a thick fluffy sandwich...a longer stitch and on my machine i can set it for light, medium or heavy fabrics which adjust's the pressure on the foot to accomedate the thickness. when i've had pucker problems though it's been fixed with a longer stitch.

I am quilting with my Bernina using a walking foot. I normally do quilt in the ditch, but decided to do a more decorative style this time. The quilt is a modified Rail Fence w/5 strips instead of 3. To try to soften the linear effect of the design I marked the top w/arcs from corner to corner on each block. I pinned every 3 inches and started quilting in the middle of the quilt out to the edges. I'm hopeful that using starch and a spray baste will allow me to stick w/my planned design and not resort to quilting in the ditch. I will try to upload a pick of the quilt soon.

Basting spray, walking foot and larger stitches seem to help me! Looking forward to seeing a pic of this cute baby quilt!

Good luck, I would love to see a pic of your quilt once you finish quilting.

Ditto: I use flannel alot with my quilts and lengthen my stitch. I rarely prewash my flannel and I have never had it shrink or bleed. However, I do pin more heavily when using flannel with my walking foot.

I haven't tried using flannel yet but someone suggested using a flannel blanket instead of batting... does this sound like a good idea??? Any drawbacks to this idea??

I've had success putting the flannel on top,ie quilting it upside down. Then you can keep an eye on what's happening.

I love flannel backing for baby quilts. I spray baste and pin, pin, pin. Then I flip it over and make sure it is super smooth, repin if necessary, and use the "braille" method while quilting. If I feel a bump or unevenness, I stop and check. Don't try for speed in this stage of your work.