quiltlover03 Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 I recently quilted a beautiful Quilt for a customer called House Hunting, a BoM, with 10" appliqued house blocks all around and log cabin center. I SiD around the blocks and was instructed to stipple around the applique but not to touch the applique themselves. No problem, but......you have a 10" block, an 8" or so applique, quilting around that. I was told my quilting is "exquisite" thank you very much, but the blocks are "puffy" in the unquilted area front and back and customer is not pleased with the result. What do you say? What could I have done differently, what is your experience with this kind of thing? I look forward to your responses. Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindasewsit Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Monika, I have a quilt that I am working on right now that has the same kind of thing. I told my customer, that I would have to do at least a small part of quilting in the appliques so they would not be puffy. I am going to go back after I get the quilt quilted and use invisable thread and follow just a few lines in the applique. Are you able to put it back on the frame and maybe do that? linda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doodlebug Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 i get the "i don't want such-and-such quilted" all the time. mostly it comes from lack of foresight. i explain to my customer than the 'unwritten rule' is that as a quilter (not a piecer) i don't leave an areas unquilted that is larger than my fist. but that also depends on the batting. some batting require tighter quilting. i've had that happen, left area open, i thought it was puffy, the customer came and got it and was really quite. she knew she had told me to leave it open and now it looked crappy. i said, "ya know, i can add a quilting line here and here" and she was very relieved and thankful. bottom line- do what you think is right. as a 'proffessional' long armer it's our job to kindda steer customers towards the-right-thing-to-do. we learn as we go what will look ok and what won't (thank goodness for the forum!) they will appreciate the honestly. just treat it as you would want to be treated. (also getting it in writting is so CYA) at least i do. i don't want something walking out of my studio i'm not happy with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltlover03 Posted June 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 No Linda, she doesn't want any stitching done. I suggested to her to use a running stitch and follow her satinstitch to stitch/tack down the various parts, thus reducing the puff. Sometime in the life of that Quilt it will get washed and heaven help her then, nothing was prewashed/shrunk and I have this horrible image of distortion in my mind! This is the second Quilt like that and I think I will just not do them anymore. Not worth the hassle, and it just knocks down my confidence, and I know I can..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindasewsit Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Well, you did what she wanted..... You'll maybe just have to remind her of that!! linda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltlover03 Posted June 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Hi Shannon, you are so very right, however, I deal long distance with my customers and rarely get to face to face with them. I got the "concern" from her via email. I talk to them at lenght when I get to their Quilt, I send them p[ictures of thread choices and pantoes or samples for custom, etc. This one was adamant....no stitching in appliques. Yes it is my job to educate, but not to babysit. I just sent her an e-mail explaining what I might be able to do now after the fact, or leave it to her to tack down the puffyness as I am not really keen on running my needle over the stiff fusing used for the appliques. Thank you all. I know what I should do, just wanted to know how any of you have "handled" this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doodlebug Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 monika i feel your pain. but i think it's time to let someone else learn from this lady...i just don't get how some piecers can be so darn stubborn. they will 'ruin' a quilt before letting a LAer do it justice (and do it RIGHT) i don't get it. to me it's like putting walmart cheap batting in an hand applique quilt for show. i have learned (and mastered) the ability to JUST SAY NO! (i want one of those old 'just say no to drugs' tshirts to wear in the studio) some customers leave me scratching my head.... i guess the moral would be: never expect anything, good or bad. :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Judi Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Monika - I know what you mean.... I can do many guilts that have been pieced and appliqued with the correct kind of fusable web, have NO problems, then get one that has the crappy stiff junk in it and break a needle.... GRRR!!!! Not only do I have a whole in the quilt now, I might have thrown off my timing - PITA - Pain In The _ _ _ You did the right thing, what she wanted. Some customers can be so stubborn.... I have loaded one of my own quilt with the binding on, after I deceided to do more quilting, I actually quilted into the binding a bit on the back - - ooops! The judges never saw that thank goodness! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltlover03 Posted June 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Oh how right you are and if you ever find a Tee shirt like that, let me know, I'll get one too. I will start saying no as well, not worth it, my stomach is just in knots over this, and I think for customers I'll just do pantoes for awhile. Leave the custom for the Quilts I sell. Have a wonderful weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs.A Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 This doesn't sound like a quilt which will be entered in a show but you can let customers know that there are two reasons to quilt 'inside' their applique...one is for durability and the other is that the judges will definitely mark down a quilt that has large areas (including applique) unquilted. You did your best...you can sleep easy tonight. Nancy in Tucson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bekah Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Oh Monika I feel your pain. We all know what a good quilter you are and this must really bother you to not to have been able to do what you knew was right. But you did what the customer wanted and it appears she doesn't want to listen to you so just shake it off and find that tee shirt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnie Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Yepp, your hands are totally tied here, and all you can do is NOTE it on the quilt that you did explain that the open areas will now wear equally to the quilted areas. That you are not responsible for the quilt after its been released from your hands and that you can not be held liable for a refund, as you have explained the possible reactions to water and washing. Just CYA and you should be okay....I've had two customers come back and demand a full refund on a quilt because it didn't wash up correctly...if you note it you have legal ground not to refund any money and they can't sue for damages to their quilt. I know that law suits are far and few between, but I have been threaten several times and each time it was dropped. AND someone on the forum a couple of years ago did get sued and won their case because of notes and documentation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltlover03 Posted June 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Wow Ladies, there are some "sickos" out there! Thank you all. I took my heart in my hand one more time and called my customer. I explained again what it looks like and that I know she will be very unhappy and that will do either one of us no good. I told her I will be able to do some appropriate stitching in the grasses and trees etc to make it all fit on her absolutely fantastic beautiful Quilt! I killed any objections with flattery and compliments. A load of my mind. Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnCavanaugh Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Monika, Here's a bit of advice you can share the next time you have this situation: I have judged several quilt shows as a "machine quilting expert" along with NQA certified judges. Judges will look for consistent density of quilting over the quilt. If you heavily quilt the background around a block, then you should have similar density over the whole quilt, including adding texture to applique. In terms of wear and tear, applique benefits from quilting not only for appearance's sake but also for stability. Since the top applique layer remains "raised up" without quilting, that fabric receives extreme wear and tear from abrasion (even folding up the quilt), and will eventually wear through. I can send you some photos of antique quilts where this has been the case, if you'd like some "tangible evidence" to back up this info. It sounds like you've got the gal handled. Good job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltlover03 Posted June 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Thank you Dawn, I feel real good now and I will, with your permission, copy the essence of your comment into my information package for the Quilter in this Guild. They seem to be very big on applique. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltmonkey Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Monika, I am by no means an expert, but I had a quilt that had very large pieces of applique edged with a beautiful satin stitch and it had really wild bright bold designs and colors in the fabrics. Any quilting and stitching inside the applique (as a design or enhancement) would not have worked for this quilt, so what i did was use monofilament thread and followed along the edge of the satin stitch in some areas inside the applique to "tack it down" and it worked perfectly. You couldn't see the stitching but it served a purpose. Perhaps in the future if you have a customer that doesn't want quilting in the applique, you could use this solution. As I continue in my learning from people here who share their knowledge, I have come to understand that in the big scheme of things, many of their customers are not educated or not aware of what needs to be done or should be done. That's where we get to step in and give them options. And, if they don't want you to tack it down on the longarm, you can do what you can with the background and hand it back to customer informing them that they must now hand stitch down in some areas to tack it down or use their DSM to do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferret Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Two spanners for the works. I don't quilt evenly all over the quilt. I deliberately leave area unquilted so they will puff up. So far there is no difference in wear on any of my quilts. I can't promise to check back in 100 years, but I can live with it f that is where they wear out then. I am also currently waiting to see if I will have a legal case to answer. It hasn't materialised yet though, it's good to hear it is very rare. However, I don't leave large areas of applique un quilted. It's already a fragile area of the quilt (most of the ones I get are hand sewn) and it is usually a quilt that will be shown. I like to try and hide any quilting I do put in by whatever means the customer and I can agree on. I know later in the year I will be working on a stunning Jacobean quilt. Lots of applique especially in the borders. I can't wait, it will be so much fun to so. The piecer is even going to mark up the quilting for me in the borders so it will match the applique, i spent a lot of time today discussing the possibilities and when she offered to draw it on I jumped at the chance. Glad you managed to talk your customer round. Ferret Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltlover03 Posted June 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Hi Shana, thank you for your input, and yes, this forum is absolutely fantastic for research. Thank you all. As far as monofil thread is concerned, I tried using that and since I have a hard time seeing the stuff and my Baby doesn't like it, it is not available in my studio. I applaud those that have success with it. I carry a wide variety of Swirl and Lava variegated threads and there is hardly a color that I cannot match to a fabric, so that will work for me just fine. Be good ladies. I got to get this Quilt out of my hair!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SandraC Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Glad you got it resolved, Monika! I usually explain to people that a bit of quilting on the applique will most times enhance the quilt. I have a couple booked for the summer from a very elderly quilter. She always lets me do whatever...but this time when she gave me the quilts, she said, "don't do anything curvey"! Hmmm, almost anything we do is curvey!!! I'll have to call her when the time comes closer for her to elaborate. I kinda wonder if she had one in the past that she wasn't fussy on and maybe this was her way of trying to avoid that pattern again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra Darlington Posted June 21, 2009 Report Share Posted June 21, 2009 Last year I made two tee shirt quilts for my next door neighbor's son and DIL. I had strict instructions for all of the quilting, from the designs to the color and type of thread. The blocks were 12 inches square. I had to SID around each block, then do a wavy line 1/2 inch inside the squares. So, that meant there were 11 inches in each block with NO quilting in them. I tred to tell them that the tee shirts needed quilting, but they were adamant that there should be no quilting in those blocks. They won. I hope they are still happy with the quilts. I haven't heard anything sic=nce they picked them up nad said they loved what I did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltlover03 Posted June 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2009 They always look nice when they are just quilted don't they, we have the foresight to look down the road and see what they will look like after they have been washed, I wish some customers could see it too. On the other hand, I have a customer who washes every Quilt she gets back from me and then tells me how she likes the quilting. Everythings gets washed in hot water first. I guess some like the rumpled look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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