puckers
 

I have done everything I can think of to not get puckers on the back of my quilts. I only SID on my quilts and cant seam to figure this out, but to rip, rip, and more ripping. anyone with some suggestions out there?

How are you laying the back out? It needs to be taut but not stretched, before my longarm and frame I taped mine to the floor then the batting then added the top and pinned the dickens out of it, later I used the elmers glue instead of pins, look online for some videos, maybe if you can see it that will help.

Are you stitching in opposite directions, one row to the next? Going all the same way can create wrinkles. I start from the middle and work out on several lines, then alternate, never going all the way across or down the length of the quilt.

I have spay basted my quilt but it seems to always wrinkle.......I did tape to the floor but still get those pucker......

What type of batting are you using?

It is hard to get NO puckers if you are using a medium- or higher-loft poly batting (which may still say "low loft" on the package).

Are you stitching on a regular home machine? To SITD on one of my home machines, I baste with safety pins on either side of the line I'm going to stitch; this machine has dual feed so I don't need a lot of pins. For the other machine, I thread-baste right next to the line I'm going to stitch. For both methods, when I'm sewing I keep one hand under the quilt to smooth the underside as I feed it through the machine.

Last, how puckered is it? A pucker here and there isn't a dreadful thing. I personally only rip out the big ones or if there are several in a row that would cause a problem elsewhere. Quilts have some texture and depth, and it would be odd if there were never a pucker anywhere.

I would use a walking foot and increase the stitch length that should help

maybe you stretched it when taping to the floor. I spray baste mine on a folding table and don't tape at all. the back should be smooth and perhaps taut but not stretched. it will spring back into shape if stretched and make puckers. walking foot should help a lot and not too small a stitch length. good luck.

I secure my backing to my table with large black binder clips from the office supply. When I have to move the quilt to finish pinning is when I usually get wrinkles/puckers. I have to re-smooth the backing when I move the quilt. Spray basting may help. For SID a walking foot will help as increasing the stitch length. Hopefully something posted here will help you. Good luck.
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I'm finding that one of the causes of puckers for me is the backing catching just a bit on the uneven edge of my sewing table. Apparently there is a roughness there somewhere that is causing it to hang up that little bit that can cause a pucker to form.

I don't get puckers. The tip I have to offer is to *heavily* starch the backing fabric before you layer. This stabilizes the backing so that it is less likely to get stretched or distorted while you are machine quilting. Some machines are worse than others about this, and your machine may be one of the bigger offenders.

Anyway, here is how I starch. (I starch the yardage before even sewing the backing pieces together. You could also starch the backing after it is sewn.) I mix a 1:1 solution of Sta-Flo liquid laundry starch and water, then use a large wall painting brush to saturate the yardage. My kitchen island is the right height for this and easy to clean up afterwards. I wait a couple of minutes to allow the starch to be absorbed by the fabric, then toss in the dryer. I iron with steam.

This is the heaviest amount of starching I have been able to achieve. It has not interfered with spray basting. I never stretch the backing; I just smooth it out and, on larger quilts, secure with clamps to keep it from moving around.

If you have an already-layered quilt, it still helps to spray starch the backing (and the top can benefit from this also). For this you would want to lay out the sandwich on a large flat sheet to catch overspray. Spray the starch on from edges towards center to minimize overspray, and let dry. A fan speeds the drying process. Spray several layers of starch this way. Toss the sheet in with the rest of the laundry.

Starch stabilizes fabric so it does not stretch or distort while you are working with it. The other techniques mentioned help too, but starch (in my opinion) is the key.

Edit: Also, are you using a walking foot when you SID? That can be an important factor on some machines for keeping the top and bottom layers together when sewing.