aktbone Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 A friend's 16 year old son brought me a quilt he constructed for a co-worker's baby which is due soon. Nothing was square; no corners matched; high and might waving borders; ugh! So...., I ironed using magic sizing and used the panto pattern Cotton because I thought by doing a bigger pattern it would not pucker terribly. As I quilted I tried to keep things as square as possible. I have attached pics as to what the end result looks like. I must say I am not really happy with the results. There are places where kit puckered. How do you get around this mess? I forgot to take pic before. Shucks! Would a fluffy batting have helped? When he dropped it off, he even told me that his did not look as good as mine does but he was very proud. I am sure he will be thrilled. My issue is if a potential client sees this - ugh. What to do????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primitive1 Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 Tonilyn, I think you did a great job with it and I wouldn't worry about potential clients, it looks good from what I can see. Next time if you have one that is full of c and d cups, and wavy borders, fluffy batting does help as well as using basting spray and patting the fabric down as smooth as you can before quilting. But a 16 year old boy making a quilt - great job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibbyG Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 I agree with Vicki! It doesn't really look bad. When he picks it up praise him for the work he did. Then give him a lesson on adding borders. He'll appreciate it in the end. When I first started quilting for customers, I would just take off the borders and redo them because it was easier. I didn't charge them either. I found they came off in a second because those customers don't use the correct stitch length either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delld Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 I also agree with Vickie. Not many 16 year old boys would do this. What a special gift! And you part of it! All quilters start with a first quilt and very very few of those were flat or square!!!! I'm just sayin!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne from Guam Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 What a great looking first quilt! I'm sure that teenager will be bursting with good self esteem, and you helped him complete his project. Way to go! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimerickson Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 Tonilyn: I agree with Vickie, don't worry about it. In the future, when confronted with this problem, consider doing a random meander, rather than a panto. With the meander, you can stitch more, or stitch less to tie down any fullness. You don't have to follow a pattern. The meander has a pleasing look, and offers a lot of flexibility to deal with irregular piecing. If anyone should ask you about the quality of your work on this quilt, gently explain the the quilter was an inexperienced piecer and you made the best of a difficult situation. Good luck. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltmonkey Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 That quilt turned out great and surely it is going to be used and loved. Everyone will be happy. I've had my fair share of friendly quilts and not a one has come back to haunt me. Nobody is going to question the quilting. Most people would never even notice the poofy or puckers. It's finished so now it can be used and loved and probably washed 1000 times. You did a great job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aktbone Posted March 9, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2012 Thanks everyone for the kind words. All of you are an inspiration to a newbie like me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynne in Iowa Posted March 9, 2012 Report Share Posted March 9, 2012 Help him make a special label for the quilt stating the maker, his age and who it was made for. They will be so amazed a 16 year old boy put so much effort into it they won't worry about the quilting. Take a little time to praise what he did well and some constructive advice for the future and you may have a customer for many years to come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoseCity Quilter Posted March 9, 2012 Report Share Posted March 9, 2012 Those quilts are hard on everyone, don't fret, you did fine...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
connieb Posted March 9, 2012 Report Share Posted March 9, 2012 Tonilyn - I'm quilting someone's first quilt right now. She made it as a wedding present. Oh how I need the experience with all the D cups but they are scaring the crud out of me. Plus to top it off she put flanges (I think that is what those flap things are called) around each block. She picked a panto and it is a major pain. I learned a lesson though. I will never again quilt one of these from the back!! Yours looks great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitomi Posted March 10, 2012 Report Share Posted March 10, 2012 Wouldn't it be nice if everyone learned the correct way to put on a border? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWBowser Posted March 11, 2012 Report Share Posted March 11, 2012 You did a great job on that quilt. He will be proud to display it. Sometimes if you are using a panto pick one where the lines don't cross over each other. That way some of the fullness won't get quilted down and form a pleat. Sometimes using pins to keep the fabric in place and then quilting over them. I keep a close count on the number of straight pins I use to hold the fabric in place and then make sure that I take that many out before I advance the quilt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted March 11, 2012 Report Share Posted March 11, 2012 Tonilyn I agree you did a great job and he will be so thrilled with what you did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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