Have any of you used the quilting in sections technique in marti michel's book? I have but was not totally happy with the seam issue. I was wondering if anyone had an idea of how to eliminate the bulky seam.

I have never tried it but want to one of these days. I'm going to be watching this thread for helpful tips.

i did that before got the 18"-er. i don't know what method you used, but here's what i did for a 90 x 90:

i planned it in quarters. made the whole quilt sandwich,, BUT the backing was left 1.5 " larger all around, and the batting was 1" larger all around. the trimming came later.

i made the blocks and did the quilting (by machine). i planned not to get TOO close to where the seams would be, but still pretty close, so it wouldn't be too obvious. choose your quilting pattern carefully.

when each quarter was done separately, i put them two fronts together,
carefully matching the points, etc. i flipped the batting out of the way and pinned it back. i sewed the seam watching to make sure the seam would be in the right place. i did NOT pay too much attention to the width of the seam. i paid close attention to the matching seams.

with the batting still out of the way, i pressed the seam open using only the tip of the iron. then i trimmed the seam to about 1/4". i butted the batting and trimmed that to fit as exactly as possible. on the wrong side, i overlapped the backing, folding back one side and lapping it onto the other so that the seam would lie even with the seam on the top. before i stitched, i finger pressed with my nails, opened it up and trimmed. then i slipstitched. two quarters were done.

i repeated the procedure with the other two sections. then i did the same thing one last time, treating both halves as i did with the quarters.

you have to do the hand stitching on the back two short seams and one long seam. when all four quarters are together you bind as you normally would.

it's not a bad way to go if you don't have a mid or long arm machine. you can make any size by dividing it up into as many parts as you want. all you ever have under the throat of the machine is that last bit that you're adding at that
time. if you make baby- or lap- quilts, start out by using parts that size, because you're familiar with that size. good luck with this method!

oh....is that the method you meant? or the flip and sew?

Yes, thank you. It does sound like the seams would lay much flatter than sewing all the layers together.

great info here, I may try it soon.

In her book she explains several different techniques. Some have less bulk in the seams than others, and she explains why you would use each method. I tried several of her methods. They all worked, but I liked some better than others.

Like all things, it takes some practice to perfect the technique.