WestieMom Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Up until now I have only quilted for friends. I accepted my first customer quilt recently and I could use your opinions please. When meeting with my customer I examined the quilt, took some preliminary measurements, talked about what she would like quilted (she picked out a pantograph), and picked out a thread color. I provided her with an estimate for the quilting. So far, so good. Later I started pressing the quilt and immediately realized that there were several spots where the blocks intersected that had D cups. I finished pressing the quilt and took some more accurate measurements. Measurements on the length of the quilt are 113 1/2" on one edge, 109 1/2" in the middle and 112 1/2" on the other edge. Uh oh. I then started examining the border. Not only is it waving but it looks look like a crooked road on one side. I knew I would need to contact the customer and discuss these issues with her. My concern was doing a pantograph from the back of the machine and not being able to control any fullness issues not to mention the border. I phoned my customer and explained the fullness within the quilt body and told her that I thought I could get these areas to lay flat with starch and steam. I also informed her that my original estimate would be more. She agreed to the starch and steam. We also talked about the borders. I gave her the option of picking the quilt up and fixing the borders herself or I could attempt to fix them at an added cost. She declined both options and asked that I just do an all over meander on the quilt and forget about the pantograph. Here's where I need your opinions. I only starched and steamed the body of the quilt...not the borders. Should I try to starch and steam the borders? Will this distort the edges even more? There is no fix, I think, for the wiggly orange strip up the middle of the borders without re-piecing them. How do you think an all over meander in the body of the quilt will look with some other type of quilting in the border? Suggestions? I can't believe my very first customer quilt has all of these issues! It is what it is and I will take away some valuable lessons from this I think. Thank you for any advice you can provide. By the way...the starch and steam worked beautifully on the D cups (thanks Bonnie!). Here's a picture of the border in question. The other three borders are not quite as bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestieMom Posted September 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Here is a partial view of the quilt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Yes, starch and steam those borders. You will be amazed what you can correct. Load (float) the quilt so the problem border is at the side. When you load the top, mark on your leaders where the narrowest width of that orange zinger strip is. Mark both sides of the strip and on both the left and right side. (I use blue erasable pen on the top un-used leader but you can use tape or quilt clamps.) Those are the marks you will use as you advance the top. Use your channel locks to make sure the top orange strip is exactly horizontal. Use a curvy overall and start at the top. Your steam treatment and the curvy overall will be very kind to the borders. As you advance, make sure you hit the marks you made. This will mean extra fabric will be isolated in the center of the quilt to keep the glaring orange strips straight. The narrowest area of the interior between the orange strips will be flat. As you work up or down the top, push and prod the fabric so the orange strips hit the mark with each advance. You will be forcing the extra fabric into the center, but it's so busy even if you have pleats or puckers it won't be so noticeable on the busy-ness of the center. Making the orange strips straight will make all the difference with this one. Each time you advance, use your channel locks to run down a horizontal seam. If it's off, prod the blocks until it's straight. This will isolate puffiness in each quilting field to be corrected as you go. Then when you get to the bottom, that last border won't be slanted and can be dealt with then. You will do great! I like the brightness of this quilt. If you get in trouble on the first border, change to piano keys to nail it down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestieMom Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Linda, thank you, thank you, thank you! You said what I was thinking. Those orange strips need to be straight and true otherwise it will stick out like a sore thumb. I'm glad she didn't insist on the pantograph. I'll feel a lot better working from the front of the machine where I can help guide things. Really, I can't thank you enough for your great advice! I won't be able to work on this until later in the week, but I'll let you know how it turns out! It is a pretty quilt (minus the issues) and I really want to a good job since this is my first customer. Thanks again! p.s. when are you going to write that book? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra Darlington Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Carol - Linda gives great advise, as always. Follow it and all will be fine. It is amazing what a meander and piano keys can do for a quilt like this. It is pretty and will be even more beautiful after you quilt it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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