simplydivine Posted November 7, 2005 Report Share Posted November 7, 2005 I just finished quilting a small quilt and once I removed it from the longarm, the borders are rippling. Wavying like a flag! I, myself, made this simple quilt top (yard + 4 borders) as a sample, so I know the borders were not full, and the entire top was squared up. I have mctavishing in the borders and the center is also heavily quilted. Once I blocked the quilt, it is a flat as a board. However, I am wondering if I am doing something incorrectly when loading? I have not had any trouble with larger quilts. Any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoAnnHoffman Posted November 8, 2005 Report Share Posted November 8, 2005 Quilts that have heavy quilting might need to be blocked. I sometimes use double batting to handle heavy quilting. I usually use Hobbs 80/20 and polydown on top of it. Waving will happen if there is an unbalance of heavy and medium quilting. The more quilting you do on a quilt the more it tightens up and kind of shrinks. I was amazed to watch the new Ricky Tims dvd Grand Finale on quilting. He took this huge beautiful heavy quilted batik quilt and threw it in the washing machine. He flattened it out on a blue tarp and put fans around it. I found the dvd on Ebay under Ricky Tims. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Linda S Posted November 8, 2005 Report Share Posted November 8, 2005 How do you clamp your quilt when you are quilting it? I had always used just the clamps on the backing and would sometimes end up with slightly rippled borders. I now use part of a Q-Snap quilting frame on the sides of my quilts, with a cord run through them that I attach the clamps to. This makes the underside of the quilt very nice and smooth and has eliminated any rippling.. Linda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Circle Square Posted November 8, 2005 Report Share Posted November 8, 2005 I did a baby quilt with a super thick batting, and quilted it fairly close together. The same thing happened to me: ruffled edges! I thought it was the combination of the close stitching and the thick (high loft) batting. I now wonder if it might also be that I got it too tight on the frame when I was quilting it. Some quilters leave the quilt very loose. I will try that next time I want to use high loft batting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LindaSusieQuilts Posted November 9, 2005 Report Share Posted November 9, 2005 Linda S Can you post a picture of the set up you use? and how do you get close to the q-snap if they are on the edge of the quilt? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simplydivine Posted November 9, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2005 I used the side clamps to the backing only. Maybe it was too tight and maybe not enough extra backing on each side (3-4" on each side.) I'll check out QSnaps. I've heard double batting is great for taming fullness in a quilt too. thank you for all the suggestions! I am learning more and more each daY! Julie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoAnnHoffman Posted November 9, 2005 Report Share Posted November 9, 2005 Sherry D. Rogers taught me to only clamp the back of the quilt, the batting has a memory and if you stretch it, it will show. I also put yard sticks under my straps so they don't sag and pull too much. I have also learned when I roll my quilt to the tightness I like, which is too tight, I know to release the top and back a bit. Supposedly you should be able to push your finger from the bottom of the quilt towards the top and be able to kind of wrap your thumb and forefinger around the tip of your finger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacksong Posted November 9, 2005 Report Share Posted November 9, 2005 simplydivine Where did you get the QSnap? What I have seen doesn't seem to have the strength to hold the fabric and then be pulled with the straps/grips that come with the table. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Linda S Posted November 10, 2005 Report Share Posted November 10, 2005 I'll try to post a pic so you can see this. I'm amazed at how well it works. I don't have a quilt on the frame at the moment, but I'm working on a wholecloth sampler from a class I took with Sherry Rogers, so may have one on by the weekend. I do just clamp the Q-Snaps to the backing. The batting and quilt top are free to be smoothed out and basted down with each pass. Linda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LynnQuilts Posted November 10, 2005 Report Share Posted November 10, 2005 This is not Linda's picture, but here is a picture off Webshots showing how it is made that I used to create mine. http://community.webshots.com/photo/67669698/67669698EYdhzv It works great as is, as long as your backing has enough extra that the Q-snaps don't get in the way of your machine. However, when I get a chance, I'm going to modify mine, by sewing a tube of muslin over the Q-snap that I can pin onto the backing. I'll make a tube out of muslin, bigger of course than the Q-snap, sew a line of stitching beside the Q-snap, creating the flap that I will pin to. Either that or I will just staple a strip of canvas or something to a little strip of plywood, maybe 1-2" x 12" and clamp my clamps onto that, which I'll pin onto my backing. The clamps as they are work fine for most things; in fact, for most of my simple quilting, pantos, etc., I usually don't even use or need them. But for intense, heirloom or custom quilting, that's when the Q-snap method is a big help!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Linda S Posted November 11, 2005 Report Share Posted November 11, 2005 Ah Lynn - you are obviously not the queen of lazy, as I am!! I don't pin anything (zippered leaders!). I simply took two sides of a QSnap frame, ran some cording through the tube, stitched the cord securely to itself, and clamp into the loop the cord forms. I should have a piece on the machine this weekend (I still am plagued with an 8-5 day job ), so I'll post a pic. This makes it really easy as you advance, all you have to do is pop the snap off, advance, and snap it back on. Linda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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