Vicki W

I have several quilt tops that I inherited that I would like to finish. Most are very simple and I think they will be good practice for both SID and FMQ.

I also have a lot of fabric and want to use it for the backing instead of purchasing more. So my question is:

Which is better to have the seam running hortizonal or vertical? I did check some of the ones here and they appear to be vertical (up and down the quilt)

Thanks for your help

Prism99

Traditionally one would buy two lengths of fabric, split one down its length, sew the halves to each side of the whole, and end up with two seams running up and down somewhere on the sides of the quilt. The idea was to keep the seam from being in the center where the quilt would likely experience more stress from folding (and perhaps beard more).

Nowadays, though, there are no rules. It usually saves fabric to have the seam or seams going from side to side rather than up and down. You can also save fabric by using a diagonal seam. However, with patterned fabrics, it really doesn't matter at all to me.

Also, many people apply borders to the back, run a diagonal line of blocks down the middle of the back, etc. This can make the back more decorative and also allow for using smaller pieces of fabric.

For traditional quilts, I still prefer the original method, especially if it's a plain fabric on the back (such as muslin).

Maggiemay

I usually go in the direction that takes less fabric.

MzMcKee

Are you loading this onto a frame to quilt? I only ask because if you are you should lay the seam side to side. Loading it with the seam going up and down will cause the multiple layers of the seam to build up as you roll your quilt causing a ridge down the center of the roll changing the tension on the frame.

quiltsRfun

Same here.

ckcowl

being a long arm quilter i always ask that backings be peiced horizontally- that way when the quilt is loaded on the frame the seam runs evenly along the length of one of the bars...if the seam is vertical then in the center of the quilt, with each turn of the bar you build up 4 layers of fabric- in just a few turns you have very baggy/loose side edges because of the bulky buildup in the center.
if hand quilting it does not matter- and i don't know if it really makes a difference when using your domestic machine- but it makes a huge difference if long-arm quilting

JUNEC

That's what I usually do

OKLAHOMA PEACH

Thank you for your info on the seams, makes so much sense. the horizonal method.

jljack

Ditto!! It doesn't matter to me.

luvspaper

I go horizontally side to side and generally add in a stripe of different fabric so it means that I have two seams, but neither are in the exact middle of the quilt when folding. And i love the different "pop" of color.

Here are two samples of what I did....

But most of my quilts are less than 72 inches wide....so it works to get 4 yards and cut it into 2 yard pieces.....so they are each 72x44.... and it ends up a bit more than 72 x 88 inches.