I machine quilted this quilt top and now am hand quilting it. However...in 3 different places (so far) I have found where areas of my seams have come unsewn...IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SEAM...not at the end of the seam by the edge of the block. :(

I don't know why this has happened! I have taken my hand quilting thread and using small stitches have whipstitched the seams closed. They are all in the same part of the block...in the off-white triangles at the end of the black star points.

I also found a small hole in the fabric at one point and whipstitched that closed, too. (I've found this in other quilts from time to time and had to repair it the same way, so I'm not as concerned about that.)

However...this quilt was supposed to be a gift and now I'm beginning to wonder how many seams I can whipstitch closed before it is no longer "gift" quality. :(

I don't have a picture of the repairs, but here are some pics of the quilt...

Maybe your tension is off? I have no idea, it's so odd that it is coming apart in the middle.... I hope you figure it out!
Sorry I'm not much help!

I had this happen to me not too long ago an several different tops. I changed the needle in my machine (thinking the thread could have been shredding in the needle's eye) and started piecing with better quality thread instead of the cotton/poly-blend serger thread that I was using. I don't really know if the thread was old or if it was melting when I pressed the seams or if the stitches weren't properly hooking together to make a sturdy seam. However since I upgraded the quality of my piecing threads, I have not had any more problems. I currently use Masterpiece thread from Superior Threads for all of my machine piecing. Good luck! Sherry

Is it just the stitching that has come out?

Or are the seams frayed apart?

You can do a ladder stitch sort of thing and the stitches are almost invisible for repairing a seam that came apart.

It's not fraying...
the stitches have come apart for a short area...usually about .5-1" in length. The seam is sewn up to that point and after that point...

This really sounds like poor quality thread. Once the sandwich is quilted, there will be less stress on the piecing threads. The closer the quilting lines are to each other, the less stress there is on the seams.

Personally, you could whip stitch *all* of the seams closed and I would still consider that quilt to be gift quality!

My machine was "skipping" today. I replaced the needle and everything was fine.

Hmmmm. I'm thinking that if the thread at the open seams is broken, then poor quality thread is likely to be the problem.

However, if the thread at the open seams is not broken -- just continuous and loose -- then this problem of skipped stitches is more likely to be the cause.

I have had problems with this in the past. I too can say that putting in a new needle and using a better quality thread made all the difference in the world. I use threads from my Bernina dealer. King Tut quilting thread I find is the best. I have also bought thread from Connecting Thread. Theirs is good stuff too. It just always seems that I need or want my thread now and that means a trip to my B-dealer. How ever if I plan ahead I have no problem with Connecting Threads.
I have made it a habit to use a new needle for every project. If I am working on a big project I may even put in a new one during. I would rather be safe then sorry.

Hope you have gotten to the bottom of your problem. And happy quilting.
Karol

Can't help you with the problem but the quilt is absolutely beautiful.