Do I need to quilt lines in both directions to secure batting?
 

I'm working on my first quilt and I quilted diagonal wavy lines 3" apart.

Do I have to quilt in the opposite direction (cross hatching) to secure the batting?

I'm using Pellon natural cotton batting with scrim which I preshrunk. Packaging states the recommended stitching distance is 8-10".

My neck, shoulders & arms are NOT enjoying the quilting process. At least not as much as I enjoyed the piecing process!

I have done baby quilts this way and they were fine. Granted, I only washed them once before giving them to the recipients, but that first wash didn't displace any batting. I would think since you're using a batting with scrim, and since the directions recommend a sewing distance of 8 to 10 inches, you should be just fine with the 3 you're doing. If there's some way you can elevate your sewing chair, perhaps with a cushion, that might help your neck, arms, and shoulders. Sitting at a higher orientation above the sewing machine bed may help some.

I use that batting all the time and never preshrink it with fine results. I think your wavy lines 3" apart are good. In my quilting opinion, it has never mattered going one direction and then the other. Agree with adjusting position to make it less uncomfortable. If the quilt goes through easily and you are not "hunching over" you should feel better.

When the batting says 8-10", what I believe it means is that from any point in the quilt you shouldn't be able to move more than 8-10" without hitting a seam line. Quilting diagonal parallel lines would not meet that requirement.

However - I don't actually know whether your batting will shift, come apart, ball up, or otherwise misbehave. I personally wouldn't take the chance, especially if the quilt will be washed often.

I agree with Dunster. If it were me I would do "something" every 8-10" in those diagonal unquilted parallel fabric sections. Especially if it's a quilt that might get a lot of use and therefore be washed a lot.

I think it will be just fine w/o more quilting. Most of my early quilts had minimum quilting, and they have held up well. I get nervous on the FMQ step because my sit down longarm is new, so I quilt in small sessions with lots of breaks.

I always quilt diagonal lines both ways on all my quilts because I like the way the quilting looks when it is finished. IMHO quilting one way only looks unfinished.

On my last one, I did just as you did, with diagonal channel quilting in one direction, but then followed up with straight lines across the width. It looked rather cool on the back. But I was using a batt without a scrim and the quilt was larger.

hugs,
charlotte

I'm not so sure the guidelines mean that. If so, then parallel lines 1/2 inch apart wouldn't meet the requirement either. Although, I wouldn't feel good with only parallel lines 8 inches apart, I would feel perfectly fine with wavy diagonals 3 inches apart.

I would contact Customer Service for your batting brand and ask your question. I will be interested to find out the correct answer as well.