Spray Basting Rules!

Armed with an industrial size can of 505 Spray, Cherry-cherry and I basted three quilts on Monday.
I'm sorry it was distracting to the other group in the large room, as they were practicing to present a program for the guild next week. Although they were quite focused on their task, they couldn't help asking how many quilts had we actually done!

BLOOMS lap size...basted at last!

I have taken this poor top to so many BLOOMS classes, it's amazing it hasn't fallen apart. As soon as I have it quilted it will be a much nicer sample! You can see what the smaller version is like on the Patterns for Sale up there under the header.


Supplies I like for basting

• Quilt top, un-wrinkled batt and backing
• A big room and a big table
• Masking tape to hold the back smooth as you start
• Giant can of 505 spray (temporary adhesive)
• Scissors to trim excess length/ width
• Safety pins to hold the edges rolled up when finished
• A really good quilting buddy to help!

Basting Groundhog Day

First the the back is centered right side down on the table, then the batt, and the top goes on right side up. You can check to be sure each layer is big enough, and re-position as needed. 
This is a good time to trim off the extra batting or backing. I always seem to have a quilt that is too big for one size batt but a whole lot smaller than the next size. So I do a lot of whacking with the scissors...and save the pieces to use for pot holders, very small quilts, or even stitching together to make a larger size.


Next, as in the picture above, fold back the top and batt. That's the center of the backing you saw in yesterday's post. Sometimes I use a few pieces of masking tape to hold the backing smooth. If you are admiring how beautiful the fabric is, you need to stop...you should see the wrong side up!


I like to spray the fabric...others spray on the batt. If you keep the can close to the surface and spray in short bursts, this is a fairly safe process. If you don't wave it all around like a can of air freshener, the spray just goes right where it belongs! The table did not get sticky even after doing 3 quilts.
This brand doesn't have a real odor, and I try to keep the can at arm's length and not breath deeply. Those who are very sensitive to perfumes and other substances should probably avoid spray basting ...you have to decide for yourself, and there are other basting methods.


After spraying, lift the batt up and smooth or pat it into place on the sprayed back. This is where a friend on the other side of the table is helpful to hold the batt up while you smooth, or vice versa. Think of it like wallpaper...smooth the center first then work out to each side. It takes longer to describe it than to do it!
Spray the batt and then smooth the top down onto the same section.
Move to the opposite side of the table and lift the top & batt out of the way...as you lift, you can feel where the spray has taken hold, so stop there and fold the layers back out of the way.
Spray again...smooth the batt...repeat for the top, and now all the center of the quilt is done!


Carefully slide the quilt to one side. Lift the layers, spray and complete that side.
Then slide all the way to the opposite side and finish up.

"Florida's Brightest Jewel" in swamp colors...pattern coming soon!

For a giant quilt, or a small table, you may need to work in table-wide sections and even end-to-end, but do start in the center. The weight of the sides help pull the backing smooth. If you get wrinkles in the backing, you can peel it up and re-position. Wrinkles in the back will end up as quilted- in pleats!


Since I probably won't get to the quilting immediately, I do like to roll up the edges and pin them with safety pins. It keeps the batting from catching on things or sweeping up all the cat hair and dust bunnies from the floor! That's an "old school" method, but it still seems a good idea to me.


The basting spray will hold for a long time, and washes out when you are done quilting. I was surprised to find out it will also work on polyester batting and even fleece, which is fun to use as a combination back & batting on kids' quilts.


Well, the same people who were asking how many quilts we basted that day also had to ask how many UFOs I have. When I made a list at the beginning of last year, there were 35 that I could easily account for. Others are lurking somewhere, no doubt.
I'm going to guess that number holds steady, as I'm sure I have started at least one new project for each I have completed!
And now I am headed out to the laundry room to haul bring in about 14 yards of various backing fabrics to get ready for the next Baste-A-Thon!

Back Before Basting

I have never heard anyone say "I can hardly wait to make the back for my quilt!".
Some art quilters do make two-sided quilts, with a back most of us would be proud to have as a front. But for the most part, the backing is a huge amount of fabric to handle...so it's time just get to it!


If the quilt is wider than 40" you will be sewing at least one seam for the backing. There used to be much discussion about the correct placement of seams, with the classic preference for length-wise...not one down the center but a full width of fabric down the center, and a 22" half-width (like cut along along the bolt fold) on each side.
Today, with machine stitching, it doesn't matter as much, and I say put one seam down the center or across the middle side-ways, whatever uses the least amount of fabric. 

This time I bought a pretty fabric for the back!

For the back of my scrappy Groundhog Day quilt I got twice the length of the quilt (2 x 78" = 156"...divided by 36" for a yard = 4.3 yards, so I got 5 yards to be sure)(and continued blessings on whoever invented the calculator). Remember, you need a couple extra inches on each side.
If your quilt is wider than 80" you need to do more figuring...maybe 3 x the width. I like to draw a little diagram to figure out which way to run the seams to use the fewest yards of fabric.
Cherry-cherry says that the extra-wide backing fabrics (90" or 108" or more) can be a better purchase, even though the per yard price appears high. You will need to buy less yardage, and can avoid sewing a seam.  
NOTE: if you are planning to take your quilt to a longarm quilter, please ask first to find out what their requirements are. You may even want to purchase backing and/or batting from them.


Here's how I made the back this time:

A really wide seam allowance

It's a good idea to pre-wash, even though I hate ironing that many yards! Taking it out of the dryer before it's completely dry will make the ironing easier.
Fold the whole length of fabric in half across the center (not along the length).
Match up the selvedges, and sew with a big, fat seam allowance. I like about 1"or more. 
I started at the cut edges, but you could sew starting at the fold.
When you're done, press the seamline to set the stitches, and then trim off the selvedges together, leaving some fabric for the seam allowance...it does not have to be even! Don't worry about the selvedge on the other side...that will be cut off when you trim after quilting or basting. 

My ironing board cover does have little irons printed on it!

Then you cut along the fold, and yes, you must remember to make a little snip in the seam allowance.

No measuring, just slide those scissors along the fold

I think it's easier to use scissors than a rotary cutter for all this, as precision is not required.
Press the seam allowance open. I bet nobody who's reading this blog would hand stitch a backing seam...but if you took leave of your senses and did, then you should press the seam to one side to keep the batting from sneaking out. It's good to know the reason why something is done, so you can decide whether to follow the old traditions or not.
I run my finger along in front of the iron to open the seam...don't let your attention wander if you do this!

As Gary Larsen of "The Far Side" might say: Trouble brewing?

Now what do you do with all that nicely pressed fabric until it can be used? I have to lay it out on my Pile O' Quilts upstairs railing:

Sometimes it's hard to get down the hallway

You can see I have a batt "airing out" (de-wrinking?) and ready to go.
The next stop is hauling all my basting equipment over to the church, where there are nice big tables and lots of space...unlike at my house!
And, of course, Cherry-cherry will meet me there to help.

Stuck in the middle of Q

I'm stuck alright...stuck in the middle of Q...as in quilting!
It may feel like the fabric selection, cutting and piecing/applique takes forever, but that's just the first half. The actual quilting takes a long time.
OK, you take-it-to-the-longarmers out there! I hear you snickering! But you do have a good point, because one of the biggest roadblocks to a complete quilt is Backing & Basting.
It's not the batting. I have batting! I even have batting ready to go:

No better use for a stairway railing!

Look at that stack! And the batt has been "airing out" or relaxing (to loosen the folds from being packaged) for weeks now. 
In fact, since it has been out, I have finished 3 more tops and the blocks for another quilt. This could be a cause for concern, except I know a woodturner who has 100 bowl blanks in the shed. Let's face it, artists need plenty of materials at hand! It's the potential that's important, not so much the number of completed works.
(by the way, there is one finished quilt peeking out on the left of that picture,  "Quirky Bits").
I also have several huge cans of spray basting, and a willing friend to help (hey there, Cherry-Cherry!). So here's the problem:

A job of work, as they say

Nobody wants to iron 4 yards (or more) of fabric for the backing. Sigh.
But I will! Really...as soon as I finish this post...and think about sashing for the blocks on the design wall....and have  lunch....feed the cat inside....feed the cats outside..check my email....check Facebook...

Books & Basting

It's the annual Friends of the Library book sale... I know many quilters love books almost as much as fabric. The photo above shows just a part of the middle section of three giant areas of books, all selling for about $1.00!
Finding a good quilt book is difficult for several reasons, the first being I did not arrive until the second day of the sale. Next comes my own extensive library (both in number and age of books!).

But I did enjoy running into fellow guild members V.S and S.C.

In another, curtained off area they had "Better Books" for $4--6--10. It was my good fortune to run into yet another quilter there, who confess the "Better Books" had been selected by herself and another guy. I asked if there were any quilt books in there, and she said not many, so I didn't look too long.

Anybody want a copy of a Dr. Phil book? And there were at least 12 copies of The DaVinci Code. It's not too hard to tell what was hot and has now cooled off!
This is a really good place to find books for doing Altered Book Art, collage or other creative endeavors. Even if you were strictly taught never to write in or cut up a book!

Meanwhile, back in the studio, it's a stack of basted quilts!
Thanks to Cherry-Cherry for helping me get these stuck together last week.
Just to help you sort through the visual confusion, there are 4 quilts shown, all in some stage of being quilted.
"Roxanne's Honeymoon" is the pink & black one at the left. The other three are stacked in my chair, folded with the backs out.
From the bottom up they are: the teal color is the Mystery Quilt for the Spacecoast Quilters (class in April); the stripes are the scrap quilt for Mrs. Starbucks; and the one on top is a wonderful coffee labels print on the back of a quilt I am doing for my sister's birthday in May!

I am pretty sure she never reads my blog (because she's too busy doing wonderful theatre work with students at a performing arts high school ...not in the city where I live, though). So here's what the quilt looks like:
Sorry about the ironing board in the corner...you'll see a better pic when it's done!
I started this in a class with Dee Duckworth at the SSQA meeting last month. There was nothing wrong with her pattern, but by the time I was done a number of changes had been made.
Some of them were even planned! (you know what I mean?)

Respect Your Quilt!

While I am usually the first person to say losen up and relax about your quilting, there is also another side of the coin.

Your quilt deserves some respect, especially if it does not fall into the quick-gift or utility category. Trying to do things too fast and skipping some steps will lead to heartbreak down the road. The worst part is that you know, at the very time you decide to skip or rush, that it is going to be a Big Mistake.

Any quilt with a white background is especially prone to problems with dark threads and seam allowances showing through. Here is my "Summer Garden" quilt, and you can see the threads on the left side of the photo (believe me, they show up even more than that!) and the dreaded "seam shadow" at the bottom.

This quilt has a ton of white space....but I love the scrappy reds instead of all one fabric!

It's always being in a hurry that gets me in trouble, and that's why I went ahead and basted this quilt without checking the seam shadows and threads. I fell prey to that thought: I will take care of it later. Of course, if I do not have time to do it now, why ever would I think I might have time later? (I have been making that error in thinking since I was born!)

And I figured I'd use spray basting, to get it done even faster....
Guess what? As tricky as it is to use a needle to fish out stray threads after basting or quilting, it is almost impossible if the top has been spray basted! DOH!

All the while, nagging in the back of my brain is the thought that this quilt would really like to have some nice trapunto in those big white squares....but it's already basted!
But also I am teaching the machine trapunto class in a few weeks, and wouldn't it be nice to have that as an example?
Then again, I really need to get this quilt done so it can be photographed for a pattern cover!

I decided to bite the bullet and take it apart. At least spray basting made that easier than if I'd pinned it all!
Look what I found inside...oh, yes, this would have been a sorry looking quilt with all those red threads shining through the white!

This batting is Warm & White, chosen so it would not interefer with the white fabric!

I was beginning to feel proud of myself. I was Doing The Right Thing! And once it was cleaned up, well, I already had the backing basted in place, so that did not need to be redone!
The backing was lying on my cutting table, minding its own business, when a person who owns his own mat & cutter decided to cut some black leather in my studio!
Cutting leather leaves a lot of fine little debris, like dust. It can easily be brushed away.
Unless it is sticking to a batting covered with spray basting!

Well, in the interest of saving my marriage, I just had to sleep on that one, and fortunately the morning brought a good idea: masking tape rolled around my hand, gently patting the batting, picked up the black dust. WHEW!
I think I will take a small risk and fold it batting side in (the basting spray is not that strong now, as it has been sitting for a few weeks already!) until it is time to re-baste.

So now I am trimming and nabbing all the threads I can on the wrong side, then I will go over the top from the right side and find the seams that are shadowing through.
HINT: folding the top in quarters makes this a bit easier. Just go over it one section at a time. I do the same thing when I am trimming threads from the back after quilting.

After that comes the trapunto, so "stay tuned" for more adventures with this two-color quilt!
But no matter what happens next, I know I will be glad I decided to respect this quilt and do the right thing.