Question About Piecing Batting
 

I've got all sorts of batting pieces that would fit together nicely to make a piece I can actually use for something other than a runner or coasters! I've tried zigzagging them together, but the seam ends up looking like a Frankenstein scar (too tight) or all bunchy with giant stitches. I'm sewing on a Janome 6500P. What is the best setting for success? Could it be the pressure of the foot? I'm not about to give up!

I just butt the pieces against each other and then use a wide long zigzag or triple zigzag. I do that all the time and it works well for me. Sharonve

The iron on tape that is sold in quilt catalogs works great for me.

I find it helps to use my walking foot with a wide zigzag stitch. I don't worry about how it looks, because you'll never see the seam after the quilting is done.

I really like the iron on tape, but just get a yard or two of iron on tricot stabilizer at JoAnn's & cut strips. As mentioned above, it's pretty amazing at how ugly it looks before sandwiching and after quilting you can't even find where it was joined.

I lay a strip of iron-on batting tape, sticky side up, on the sewing machine, and butt 2 edges batting pieces in top. I zig zag a wide stitch catching the two pieces of batting with the tape underneath. When I am done stitching, I take it to the ironing board and press the sewed on tape to the batting for reinforcement. This takes out the bunchiness and make the pieces act like one batting.

this is the tape: http://www.joann.com/batting-tape-3q...2Btape&start=2

I use a walking foot with the largest and widest zig zag stitch and butt the pieces up against each other.

Now there's my morning smile :) ... frankenstein scar!

Basically you just have to catch the two sides together, so open up your width as wide as it can be and lengthen out the stitch. It's a great time to use up ends of thread (bobbins and spools) as it will be buried in a quilt later! I don't worry about colours either, as I tend to use my patched batts in darker quilts, just in case the seaming should show through on a lighter coloured fabric.

When I am joining pieces, I make a fresh edge cut, on any angle to maximize the batting that will stay, and minimize the trim portions. Likewise a fresh cut on the piece I am adding. Or you can overlay the two, and cut through both at the same time, and you know for sure their lines will match.

Angled lines are actually better than all straights at 90°, as that way it will have your joins running on angles and less apt for anything to show through. Plus it helps avoid being right under a seamline of your quilt where you may be doing SITD or running down a section where you may have no quilting. With the angles, it is more likely to get quilted on top of, which will help stabilize the joins.

Some of my joined pieces are pretty small. Some are trimmings of the excess when I sandwich a quilt, and some may be a bit bigger but smaller than anything that I can see me using for a runner, etc.

I keep a patched batting WIP at the cutting table. As I have extras, I add on, instead of making it a major project later on. With it are some of the trimmings that don't get into the patchwork, for when I need narrow pieces for bag handles, or when I am doing a small test sandwich.

All great advice. Thank you! I'll post pix as I try again!