Quilt turn around time?
 

I realize that this is a busy time of year for longarm quilters, but I have a question concerning turn around time. Sent a quilt off to a shop about 90 minutes from here 5 weeks ago, and where I know the quilt was received by them, I have heard nothing else. This was my large scrappy quilt and not a Christmas present. Outside of Christmas time when they are so busy, what is an average turn around time?

I really think it depends on the business! Some are busier than others, and some work may be better than others, but do by all means communicate with them. Did their website or email communication did not specify turn around times? I think for most customers this is very important to them.

I knew someone that was in a lot of demand, and she said that she stopped taking quilts in early October to be done by Christmas. Anything sent in November wouldn't get even looked at until January or February. I'd also suggest calling after the 1st to see what turn around might be. I think her normal turn around time was 1-2 months. She just put in a lot more hours getting quilts done for Christmas.

It all depends on the quilter. I use a newer LA that only does pantagrams. Her turnaround is about 2 weeks. Another that has been in the business quite a while and does custom quilting can take several months. I guess it is best to ask your quilter what is normal for her

Maybe this is a case in “don’t assume.” Everyone is different. It’s Christmas. An emergency may have occurred. Was there any discussion between you about expectations? It’s been my experience, if nothing was said about before Christmas, it won’t be before the middle of January.

A car trip through town that usually takes 10 minutes, took hour+. It’s Christmas.

I don't think there is a meaningful average turnaround time for longarmers. Some won't even accept a quilt if they have more than a given number in their queue. Others will take them in, but they may not get finished for several months. Some are busy, some are not; some (with robotics) can finish a couple of quilts a day, others may do custom quilting that takes a week or more. And then there's my longarmer friend who just broke her wrist and cracked 3 ribs. She won't be able to quilt for a while, but I'm sure she has notified her clients if their quilts are waiting to be done.

One LA kept a calendar and made appt’s. She didn’t want lots of quilts stacked in her space. She’d notify the person in advance to deliver the quilt and it’d be finished within 2 wks.

Why don't you call them and ask? 😉 I'm sure that would be more productive then asking the internet, as I'm sure you can already surmise from the wide array of answers you've received here. What if they sent it back to you 2 weeks ago but it got mis-delivered. How much longer would you wait to ask?

Turn-around times vary as much as the weather, so it’s a moot point. The only person who can answer this is your LA quilter. Did you contact her to find out? Did she give you a timeline when you scheduled your quilt? If not, it’s a question you should always ask. It may have been sent back a long time ago and lost in the mail. Your quilter won’t mind the call, email or text.

Sorry ladies, guess I wasn't clear. When I sent the quilt I knew it wouldn't be back before Christmas unless a miracle happened. The check for payment was sent with the top/backing and hasn't been cashed yet. She has quilted large quilts for me before, but not at Christmas time and so her turn around time was about a month. Was simply asking what the turn around time for other longarm quilters was. I'll get mine back sometime in January probably.

Each business has their own average turn around. A local shop has an average of 3 MONTHS throughout the year; if someone wants something by Christmas, they have to give it to them by August as that's when they get their rush. Other local quilters have them done, on average, in under a month.

try sending her a card in the mail asking if she got the quilt since you can't contact her.

I turn mine around in a week to 10 days, tops.

Sent?
Unless you know her policy is to not cash checks until the quilt is done, I'd be on the phone verifying that it got there at all.

The quilter I use normally has a turnaround time of about 4 weeks. Every year she has a cut-off date that quilts must be there by October 1st to guarantee it be done by December 1st. I got a quilt to her on October 5, and got it back on November 29.

My first experience with a LA was so disappointing that I hesitated to try it again. After three months I still had not heard anything from the quilter. Little did I know she was a VERY popular custom quilter LA in the area and also could not say no to any one. She admitted she over schedules her time at the long arm. I made a phone call at three months and got a finish weeks later. Beautiful work, not custom, but I have not gone back to her because for me almost 4 months is too long. I now use a LA that has a turn around of about 2 weeks. She understands how long it takes to load and finish a quilt as well as her family obligations. I also make it exceedingly clear if a quilt is on a deadline or if I can be flexible if someone else has a more pressing deadline than I. So far this has worked well for both of us. She does about 4 or 5 quilts per year for me and I do the rest on my own domestic machine.

Ladies....yes I sent the quilt filmsy/backing to a quilt shop owner/LA quilter in Dubuque, Iowa. ( I'm in Davenport, Iowa ) No different than sending to Missouri Star in my opinion. Shipped it by United Parcel Service and have a note from them that it was received by Megan. I did send a note through Facebook this morning and it is on the list to be quilted on 12/28. Sounds great to me. Thank you all for letting me know the time allowances that you have to get a quilt back. You've shown great concern and have been helpful.

My friend who does my longarming usually takes 4-6 weeks, depending on how many are in line ahead of me. But she can usually give me a close guess on when to expect it back.

Mine usually takes about three to four months unless I ask for a rush job ahead of time and check with her about it. She is really a wonderful quilter and I know that means a long wait time.