Problems with machine quilting
 

I was quilting in the ditch (or somewhere near it) and it seemed that everything was just fine; until I looked at the back. Here is a picture of what I saw. Can anyone make any suggestions?

Your lines look great. Are you talking about the puckering (for lack of a better word)? I have found that washing often resolves this issue, because it makes the whole quilt look more wrinkly. I will be watching this post for answers from the experts.

I agree - the stitching looks good. To avoid the puckering, you will likely need to pin more closely together. When you are sandwiching your quilt, be careful not to stretch it too tight as that will result in puckering when it relaxes.

Cheers, K

This happens to me....I don't know what to tell you.....I wouldn't worry about it. :)

I wouldn't worry about it. Once it is washed it seems to go away. One suggestion I do have is that when you are quilting straight lines try to first go one way, and then the other way. (EG: From top to bottom of the quilt and then from bottom to top) This seems to keep whatever stretch happens at bay. This isn't always feasible because there often gets to be just too much quilt to fit, but try to do it whenever possible.

You may already be doing this because I don't see the stretch that can happen.

How did you get your lines so even. I always have a hard time with that, so your suggestions are welcome.

amh

I agree with the others; the issues will go away with washing, and I wouldn't worry about it.

Next time, if you want to avoid this altogether, I recommend:

(1) *heavily* starching the backing fabric before layering. I use a 1:1 solution of Sta-Flo liquid laundry starch and water, "paint" this on the fabric with a large wall painting brush, let sit for a couple of minutes to make sure the fabric fibers have absorbed as much starch as they can, toss in dryer, then iron with steam. This stabilizes the backing fabric so it has no chance of puckering while you sew. For me, it also helps to spray starch the top before layering. These two things *greatly* reduce the chance of puckers if you are crossing lines (as in cross-hatching).

(2) Spray baste. Spray basting adheres all areas of the fabric to the batting, unlike pinning -- which attaches the 3 layers only at points, usually about 4 inches apart. Glue basting probably has a similar effect to spray basting. When all of the layers are connected at all points, the fabric is not able to shift even slightly while you are machine quilting.

I sew verry, veerryy, slowllllyy.

Hi Prism99,

Glad to hear you recommend starching. I did in fact starch the top, which is probably why there were no puckers on the top. After seeing the back, I realized that I had not starched it.
I used 505 to spray baste it. First time that I used it. Probably could have smoothed it out a bit more.

It is a very strong word, but I hate stitch in the ditch. It is slow and it is painful and it makes my eyes hurt and after all that I rarely stay in the ditch. I stitch OVER the ditch. It is not fast, but it is definitely forgiving of my lack of expertise :-)