Tie vs stitch
 

Does anyone here tie their quilts?

Is it considered less of a quilt if it's not machine quilted or at least hand quilted?

Yarn vs DMC thread vs crochet thread if you do tie?

Do tied quilts hold up for a long time?

I'm new to all this but I have 4 finished tied quilts over the last 2 months with 4 more tops ready to sandwich. My goal is 10 by Christmas and then work on one for me. :)

Tying your quilt does not make it less of a quilt. I like DMC.

I like DMC or crochet thread. I do not prefer yarn. It is harder to pull through and turns to a fuzz ball after a few washings.

The important thing with tying quilts is to have a secure knot. I work with charity quilts, and some of the ones that come in are tied with granny knots. I can pull them out with no trouble, so they will never stand up to normal use or washing.

Dayle

I have some very old, very well used quilts that were tied.

The important things to me with a tied quilt -

1) The knots are secure

2) Depending on the batting/filler/middle - there are enough knots to hold it together and to keep the middle layer from shifting around - if one is using flannel or warm and natural batting, for example, one knot every 10 inches would probably be adequate. If using a fiber that is sort of 'loose' - a knot every four inches - read the packaging label

3) I prefer the knots to be 'arranged' - not scattered willy-nilly. It probably doesn't affect/afflict the utility value of the item, but I like the knots to be arranged in fairly straight lines and fairly consistently spaced.

I LOVE the process of tying a quilt. Call me silly. Plus, the quilts come out so soft, not stiff like some "over-quilted" machine quilting that I have done. I use two or three strands of DMC floss. I have used yarn and it is soooo very hard to pull through. The floss makes it a breeze.

I LOVE my tied quilt! I used perle cotton and have no problems with "undoing" or fraying. It gets washed often and was done 2 1/2 yrs ago.

I use pearl cotton to tie. You can tie it a few times to secure it or zig zag a few stitches to secure it to quilt, then tie. I do not like yarn either, especially on baby quilts.

Thanks everyone. I was beginning to think tied quilts were the lazy way of doing them. Personally I like them better. :-)

I just helped my daughter finish a quilt by tying it, it was a tee shirt quilt and it was wonderful. She loved tying it, thought it was "was more fun"

I think it's a matter of personal preference, and a tied quilt does not make it less of a quilt. This gets into Quilt Police territory, IMO. If anyone tells you it's not a "real" quilt, just turn and walk away, lol. The only opinion that counts is yours.

I've always been more a fan of quilting vs tying, but I saw a quilt that Kaffe Fassett did that was tied with French knots - and it was drop-dead GORGEOUS. Now I'm contemplating which one of my unfinished tops I should tie with French knots! lol!