Hi All,
A few questions have been nagging me while working on my latest project.
1. Why does my iron not want to remove
all wrinkles? It doesn't seem to matter if I starch, steam or turn it up to "Linen", even pressing both sides, some of the creases, especially the fold lines from being on the bolt, just don't want to come out completely. Is it a sign my iron is "going"? It's a department store iron that's about 17 years old, but has had very little use until late last year when I started quilting. (And doesn't have auto shutoff, which I sure like.) I'm ironing on a ironing pad with what I think is sufficient padding (A layer of insul-brite, and I think 2 layers of batting as well as a cotton cover). Is it my technique?
2. Is how wrinkled the fabric was on the bolt any indicator of the quality of the fabric? I know all fabric wrinkles, especially cotton, but the quilt I'm working on is half fabric store fabric, and half quilt shop, and I've noticed the fabric store fabric is much more wrinkled, and harder to iron as a result of the above problem. Coincidence?
3. Quilt sizes. I'm making a queen size, and the dimensions mystify me. This one is 90"x110". The bed surface is 60"x80", I get the "drop" part, to a point. I
assume this means that the sides would have 15" of overhang each. I can't figure out where the length is supposed to go for the top and the bottom. I can tuck in 10", but that still leaves me 20". This could, I suppose, be turned down at the top, but it would cover the quilt pattern partially. If I turned it sideways (This pattern can be turned), the overhang would almost touch the floor, which suggests
the "full length" quilt size? Is it all perception? I see the quilts hanging in the shops, and they're hung with the long side vertical, as is the photo on the pattern. Is that just for space?
Quiltmaker suggests 90"x94"
Quilter's Cache suggests 88"x96"
Both of these I "get".