We had a sales rep come by yesterday and tell us, "We have 118" wide backing."

Do you find that 118" backing is better and/or more useful than 108" backings?

Just wondering if the extra 10" matters a lot or a little.

It might be nice for a king quilt, but other than that, seems 108" would be sufficient. I like not having to piece the back.

I don't know how many people make quilts that big. Even my king-size blooming lilacs didn't need more than the 108 inches. I know there are some, I just have no idea how many. It will be interesting to see the answers you get.

i find the 108 is plenty 95% of the time

Maybe it would be useful for longarm quilting? I like to have longer sides so that I'm not running into my clamps on the side to stretch things tight. But my frame is only 120" wide, and 118" would actually be too wide. Hmm. I can't see the value, I guess.

I don't buy a lot of wide width fabrics, as there isn't a huge selection of them easily available. So I am often piecing 42" widths to give me what I need.

Quilts used as bedspreads for my double bed are easily 100" square, or larger. So yes, I can see 118" being very useful.

I don't have a queen or king ... though with my sizing for the double, I would think there'd be many that would be happy to get the 118". Of course, as I often find, the fabric colour/design itself may not be what is wanted!

It would be great for king size quilts. Too often 108 just barely covers the back and there is not the 4 inches overage that you need on each side.

I agree. I have been making king size quilts and hate having to piece my backs, since I put them on the long arm. I have several tops that are 106" and with 108", I have to piece.

I do purchase wide backings ..but have never needed one that wide. But.. if it was a design that only came that wide .. And I really liked it .. yep I would buy it.

I buy 90" or 108" when I can't find the print I want or a suitable alternative in 120" - I wish all of them were a standard 120" though.

Not just for big quilts - I use wide backing for everything I can. Three yards of 108" wide cut in quarters give you four 54" squares - very economical backing for four smallish quilts and you don't have to piece any of them.

It's a good size for laps, table runners, throws, toddler and crib quilts, but I would like to have an extra couple of inches on each side, sometimes.

I had to search for almost a week online to find a wide backing for my king size top. Its 112 wide. I finally found one, but having a resource to find one quicker would be wonderful!

108' or 110' is large enough for most anything I would need.

I like them BIG.. I want more than enough fabric all the way around.. the left over will get cut up and used in a scrappy quilt of some kind so i have very little to no waste...

I agree, if I had 118" available to me I'd pop for it in a heartbeat.

I buy most of my backing from FatBacks. They are ends of bolts & the prices are great! All different sizes to choose from too. If its too big it just adds to your stash!

i would rather have a couple of extra inches instead of being a couple inches short

I like the extra width too!

I love 118" width...many of the quilts I make are 110" square or 110 X 100...anything "left over" when the quilter is done with it...adds to my stash...

I also make large kings 113x113 and wouild love the 118

Generally these would be wide enough but I have done one larger and liked having the extra 10 inches. It now fits on the bed as a bedspread length and works great, so once in a while it comes in handy.

Alot of times the 108" backs are really only about 106". I have a quilt right now to quilt that is 94 X 106, and I have to waste fabric because I'm afraid I will come up short if I lay it out along the 106 side. 110 or even 118 would be nice.

My extra big calif king needed 120 inch wide. Bought it at Joanns.
Washed it and is now 117 and is too small. Had to buy more and cut it down, Im not a happy camper.

As said by someone else 108 or 110 is generally big enough for me.

The shop I work at she keeps off white, white, and tea dye backs in 118-120. All of her other backs are 108".

The quilt top I have on my LA now is 117" square. Since extra fabric is needed all around, the 118" backing still wouldn't be wide enough. But... if a quilt is 110", then 118" would mean not having to piece the backing, so it would be very useful.

That said, if I'm making a scrappy quilt top then I usually piece my backs anyway, using a variety of fabrics. I get rid of large scraps that way, and if the front is scrappy it seems only right that the back should be scrappy too.

I just can not imagine washing, ironing, handling that large of a piece..wow...the weight of it alone would keep most from buying it...

I use 108". When I made my last king size, it even fitted then. The only purpose of this wider fabric is if you want to cut it off and use in another project.

it's great to find 118"-120" wide fabrics- they back king size quilts!
and if your queen size is on the large size- (like with extra over-hang on the sides) the wider might be inportant- especially if you are sending it out to a long-arm quilter- it is important that the backing and batting be larger than the top when being long arm quilted.

When I have a back that big, I DO wash it..but then I load it on the frame. Spray a section with Best press and roll it taut. When it dries, I roll to the next section. VOILA! Nice flat back and NO IRONING! Heaven!

I would imagine that bigger is always better as opposed to smaller. I hate having to piece backings.

The extra 10" equals four 2-1/2" strips for binding.

For me, 118" is better than 108". I am actually looking for a backing even wider than that right now. The quilt top measures 118" so I need a backing a good bit wider.

Many people have deep mattresses, and queen or king size beds. By the time a quilt is quilted it loses a few inches, so we have to start with a fairly large quilt top.

I like both. Since I make only bed quilts, sometimes the quilt itself is 108 which gives you no extra for the quilter to have any wiggle room to put the quilt int he frame. I have had to add quilt art to a couple of mine upon occasion. So I like the idea of the 118 inch width. Jan

I agree.

hello,
i want to share with you what i use for backing.
depending on the size of the quilt top, i use bed sheets.
alot less expensive and so much easier to use.
beatrice

I agree; the 108" shrinks and then is definitely too small, necessitating buying extra. I had to add a 9" strip on each side of my backing cuz the 108" had shrunk 16"!!! so I had to use the extra I'd bought, just in case, since I'd never used such backing before. This was for a king size quilt.
So, YES, I would definitely prefer the 118" wide to begin with since I did not appreciate having to have a seam along each side after all, when the idea of the wide backing is to have it be one piece.
Thanks for asking; this is a sore subject with many who make larger quilts that a kingsize bedsheet won't accommodate.

I have a commission right now for a 110"x110" king sized quilt...and will have to piece the backing to get enough room to long arm it...so yes, I would think that size would be welcomed, especially by those of us who need the extra few inches for the long arming process. Thanks for the information!

I would also go for 120"

I REALLY love this width!!! We have a California King, the first quilt I made for it measured 106 x 106. So, 106 + 3 + 3 =112. That's 3 inches on each side that my LA quilter needs to have when she puts a quilt on her machine. It's great that I don't have to piece a backing then for my quilt.

118" is for King size
108 is full/queen