Koller

Instead of pins i use 501 spray. I lay down the backing right side down, then spray lightly, then lay the batting down and spray lightly. Next the top right side up. I hand smooth all layers. Take to my ironing board starting on back in the middle, I heat set the spray. Working from middle to out to iron the puckers out. Once I have done the backside I turn it over and heat set the top in the same manner. Sure save from all that pinning . This sandwich will stay together for a long time till you are ready to Quilt

dee1245

I use starch. I buy Sta-Flo starch at Walmart for about $3 for the 1/2 gallon jug and mix half and half with water, put it in a spray bottle, and spray the batting first then layer with the backing first and iron it to dry it to make it stick together. Then I flip it over and repeat with the top. It stays long enough to get the entire quilt quilted. It does need to be washed after it is finished but it beats having to pin and not as expensive as spray baste.

ktbb

based on the picture it may be beneficial for you to unpin the areas around the tucks, flatten as much as possible and re-pin. You may be able to work a lot of the extra fabric in that way.

WesternWilson

Ok so first quilt, do not make the experience about learning frog sewing (rippit rippit!). Finish, wash the heck out of it, and move on to your next one. Maybe try spray basting next time : )

If the quilt stitching really bothers you, make it a wall hanging, where you will never see the back. Or make it a nice dog bed.

Congratulations on completing your first quilt! May there be many more : )

Onebyone

Get rid of the safety pins. LOL They will murder your hands slowly. There are many great basting glues and sprays to use that works great. My first time machine quilting I glued every inch of the quilt. It wasn't stretching anywhere. It was like quilting paper. I didn't have to think about puckers or pleats just concentrated on my quilting. Now I can lightly glue baste the quilt and keep it all flat. Don't get discouraged, keep going and don't stress over it. A generic walking foot will work for your machine. They are not expensive. I like using the serpentine stitch for quilting with the walking foot.

juliasb

Welcome to the QB and how exciting it is to hear you are making your first quilt! It is totally up to you whether to take out the work where the pucker is or not. As mentioned by others after washing it may or may not be noticable.
For now when basting I have gone to the glue method which fits my quilting needs perfectly. There are a number of videos on YouTube that are great tutorials. Using Elmer's Washable School Glue. It is a perfect fit for me.
Right now I am working on an Apple Core Quilt that is curves on all sides. As careful as I can be I am afraid I may end up with some puckers in it. Again welcome to the QB. I hope to see a great deal of you here.

vadalia

I'm a perfectionist, which makes learning a new skill difficult because, just like you're talking about, I just want to rip everything out when I see mistakes. Somewhere in the back of my head I guess I'm certain I'll do it perfectly one of these times... except that's not how being a newbie works, of course!

I'm still a relative newbie but I watched the Youtube channel The Midnight Quilt Show and her mantra of "'done' is better than 'perfect'" has been a life saver for me! As to your quilt issue, I agree with the previous poster who recommended un-pinning it, trying to spread the extra fabric out where needed, then re-pinning it. A couple tiny bubbles is better than a big one. Or, though this is more difficult, maybe see if you can try folding the extra fabric into a seam to disguise it?

tranum

For a first time project - it sounds like you did alright. I agree with washing and using it yourself, we all have “first quilts”. Now if it were me, my next quilt would be baby or child size. Use fleece for backing, no batting and stitch in the ditch. I just completed one and I surely thought it went together good. Good practice.

dorismae904

Years ago I quilted a scrappy quilt, can't remember if it was straight line or FM. Didn't pay much attention until almost done. Several really big pleats in different spots. Didn't want to tear out all that stitching so my final solution was to applique large black cats over the pleats. Might have been six of them all together. The quilt finally ended up as a donation quilt to Animal Rescue. The lady that took it in was very impressed. I don't think she was a quilter. Anyhow after that, I paid more attention to my quilting.

wabekem

I chuckle at this because when doing my first quilt, I cut all the squares using scissors. Now I that I have the rotary cutter, I can't imagine going back.