Alice Posted March 10, 2006 Report Share Posted March 10, 2006 OK, I goofed and hit the send button too quickly! I just received a call from a home dec lady who needs a reversible king size comforter with piping for a customer. How do I go about doing this on a longarm. The stitching itself is simple - just a wavy diamond border for which I already have a pantograph. Has anyone every done this? How do you handle the edge? HELP! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted March 11, 2006 Report Share Posted March 11, 2006 Hi Alice--- I think you haven't gotten any replies on this topic because everybody is scratching their heads and trying to think of a way to apply piping to an edge after quilting. Traditionally to apply piping to an edge--like a pillow--you sew it into the seamline with the pieces right sides together and leave a few inches unsewn to turn everything right side out. Obviously, you can't do this with a quilted piece. You could apply an extra wide bias binding to the front ,and as you turn to the back to stitch down, enclose some thick cording as you sew. (Cotton cording if the top is cotton and synthetic if it is not) Be sure to charge enough for making the binding and for all the hand sewing on the back. I charge $3 a foot for full binding application but you might need to charge more because of the extra-special treatment!! Let us all know how it comes out. Quilting for home-dec will bring you lots of business! Linda Rech Snowing in March in Olympia! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Posted March 11, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2006 Linda, thanks for your tip. To completely enclose the piping between the two layers would necessitate not stitching (or taking stitches out) about 1/2" to 3/4" from all edges which I think would weaken the quilting. To put all layers together with piping before quilting is dangerous, because layers could (and probably would) shift during quilting, leaving unwanted tucks. So, I'm thinking of quilting it, stitching the cording on one side along with a narrow (bias) binding which would then be turned completely to the other side and hand stitched. If I make the binding very narrow (say 1/4") it could be another design element. To make matters worse, the customer says the fabrics are both solid! I normally charge $.15 a linear inch ($1.80 a foot) for my bindings which include cutting & piecing the strip, machine stitching to the front and hand stitching to the back. I'm thinking of charging double that ($3.60-$4.00 a foot) to do this piping/binding edge. What do you normally charge for an overall wavy-line stitching? I charge by the square inch. For an overall, pantograph like this, I charge $.015/square inch. Alice:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted March 11, 2006 Report Share Posted March 11, 2006 Hi Alice--- Your charges sound reasonable---have you quoted a price yet? Working for a decorator may be tricky--they will contract with you and pass the cost plus a percentage on to their client. You don't want to scare them off but you must,must, must(!!) make enough for it to be worth your time and talent.(Remember that the decorator is probably charging the client for a "custom-designed, professionally quilted, and hand-finished bed cover" probably Big Bucks!) Don't undercut your price at first hoping for more business later. That's a slippery slope. Decorators are professionals and so are you!!! You will be able to tell after the first project how much to charge next time--you may love the decorator and you will then be a team and can give discounts on future projects--or maybe it won't be a happy time for many reasons and that will be the end. In any case, charge what you are worth from the beginning!! Linda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Posted March 11, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2006 No, I haven't quoted the job yet. I told her that I would let her know on Monday what the charge would be. I knew that I needed to research it first. I agree - I need to be compensated adequately for my time. What's the use of getting a lot of business just because I'm cheap and then I don't make any money! So, I think I'm going to charge the $.015/square inch for the quilting and then $.30 a linear inch to finish the edge with piping/binding. Plus, she wants this by mid-April when I informed her upfront that I'm booked through mid-April. I think a rush charge might be in order, too. I'm still open for suggestions if anyone else has any! I'm also a little worried about thread type and tension. Since this is reversible, the tension has to be just right. Thanks for your help! Alice:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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