Firstly today, the new system for Hexie Love is working perfectly!!!!! No complaints! No problems! Not even a single question! It's easy peasy now to buy and read Hexie Love!
Now moving forward...
Do you hate basting quilts? It's not my favorite thing, I'll admit. I don't have a longarm machine - just don't make enough quilts to justify it. And I do love to quilt my own quilts unless the quilt is really huge (like my Celtic Solstice) or really special (like my Odyssey).
Yesterday I decided to try a new way to baste, trying to make it easier on myself. Here's what I did.
1. I pinned the quilt backing (face down) to my design wall. (Pin just at top and sides.)
2. I pinned fusible batting to the wrong side of the quilt backing, smoothing it out as I went. (Only pin at top and sides.)
3. I pinned the quilt top on top of the batting. (Only pin at top and sides.)
4. Using a cordless, rechargeable iron on a hot setting (mine is a Panasonic), press small sections and replace iron into its cradle to recharge. The iron reheats quickly and you can repeat the pressing process until the entire quilt has been pressed.
5. Carefully unpin the layers and remove quilt from the design wall. Turn it over with the quilt top facing the design wall and pin at the top and sides. Repeat pressing process with the rechargeable iron.
6. Remove quilt from the design wall. Using a plug-in (non rechargeable iron) press both sides of the quilt one more time for good measure.
7. Be sure to press well around the edges.
8. Machine stitch around the perimeter of the entire quilt - approximately 1/8" from the edge.
9. And you are done! Ready to quilt!
This is what I did yesterday morning. I have a couple of more tops I need to baste - but not today. Today is for hexies!
you need a long arm :) no basting needed! I loaded and finished quilting a 55 x 72" quilt in a few hours today, including kids interrupting..... :)
ReplyDeleteI stretch mine on my own basting frame and then use 505 spray. Takes some time to pin it in to start, but love the speed of the spray!
ReplyDeleteHow did this work? Was it just the heat of the iron??
ReplyDeleteUgh, I hate basting! I don't have a lot of floor space for the size quilts I usually make. I do the old bent safety pin method, working from the center outward to work out all the bubbles and folds. The thing that makes it such a chore for me is my 5 little feline helpers who love to slide into big expanses of fabric, writhe around on top of my work and try to run away with pins already pinned in place. Maybe I can adapt you design wall method. It would make life a lot easier! lol
ReplyDeleteI like pin basting. I have two large craft table that have a plywood top. They can be folded and put away when not it use. I stretch my backing and clamp it to the table. I lay my batting on top and reclamp and then repeat with the quilt top. I can pin baste a large quilt in under an hour!
ReplyDelete