Now that your quilt top is done, you are almost ready to snuggle up under it. Before you can do that though, we need to quilt it! What makes a quilt a quilt is fabric and batting all put together in three layers. Right now the top layer is done, so we are ready to add the other pieces.
Backing and Batting Requirements
When quilting a quilt, you want your backing and batting to be a few inches bigger than your quilt top. This will make sure you don’t run off an edge.
For this quilt, you’ll want 1 2/3 yard fabric for your backing.
A baby sized packaged batting (45×60″) will be the perfect size for this quilt.
Basting Your Quilt
First, lay your backing right side down on a large flat surface and smooth it out as much as possible. Next, lay your batting down and smooth it out as well. Finally lay your quilt top on top of the batting, centering it and making sure that there is batting and backing all the way around. We are going to hold these layers together (called basting) with safety pins. Grab a bunch and stick one in each of the big squares, making sure to go through all three layers. After you are done, you are ready to start quilting!
Quilting Your Quilt
I’m going to share two basic ways to quilt a quilt. First you can simply sew lines all the way across the quilt, every 1-3″ apart. These don’t need to be straight, just start at one end and go to the other, then move over a little and go again. If you choose this method, it’s easiest to start in the middle, work to one end, then flip your quilt around and do the other half. Make sure to take your safety pins out as you go and don’t sew over them!
The second method is hand tying your quilt. You’ll want cotton thread or yarn and a needle big enough to put your thread or yarn through. Fold the thread in half with your needle in the middle. Stick it in the middle of one of the fabric sections from the top and pull until you have a few inches left, then stick it back up close to the same spot and tie a double knot. Then, without cutting your thread, go to the next fabric section and stick your needle in from the top, pulling your thread till it’s flat on the quilt (don’t pull it too tight, it’s better to have extra thread here then not enough) and come back up close to the same spot. Repeat in other fabric sections until you run out of thread.
After you are out of thread, cut the threads in half between each section and tie them in a double knot. Grab some more thread, and keep going!
Binding Your Quilt
When you are done quilting your quilt, you do need to do one more thing before you can us it and that is called binding your quilt. This is where you put something around the edges to protect and keep all those loose edges inside so it doesn’t come apart. This is probably the trickiest part of the process and a great spot to get lots of help. If you are one of our older quilters and want to tackle this step yourself, we definitely encourage you to do so! We have a tutorial on how to do this so you can learn and follow along.
Just because your quilt along is over, you can still access these videos, share them with others, or make more quilts! Also, don’t forget to reach out and leave a comment if you have any questions.
Happy Quilting!
