Today's lesson was that when using Red Snappers (which I love) to attach the backing to the leaders AND when wanting to use rulers in the border...you need LOTS of extra backing...luckily I had just enough backing (with like 1/2" to spare at the bottom) for the quilt, so with some tips learned on MQR (Machine Quilters Resource forum), I was able to use the longarm to attach some extra backing; enough to re-attach to the backing leader and complete the quilt. It would have taken a lot more time if the additional backing would be part of the quilt, because then I probably would have unloaded the whole quilt, and used my DSM to add backing, so there would be a nice seam, but fortunately that wasn't necessary, and also I had my speedy red snappers, so it really only took about 10 minutes to be able to quilt again.
So below you can see where I quickly added some scrap to extend the length of my backing enough to be able to connect to the leaders, and also why, if it was a permanent seam, I'd want to do it differently.
This 2nd photo is from underneath, and it shows how lucky I was not to have a seamed backing...you can see the darker shadow at the top is the quilt top, and the 2nd shadow shows where the backing ends. I did have lots of batting, but trimmed it to add the scrap.
Also, I wish I had added a wider scrap, because the extended base plate on the machine kept bumping up against the red snappers and so the final 2" was very finicky and tricky. Next time I plan ruler work in the borders, I think I'll add 14"-16" extra backing length..., but on a regular basis, without rulers in the borders, 8-10" should be good enough.
I look forward to following your blog, Michelle, and learning about quilting. Someday I will dive into it, right now I am enjoying learning how to crochet - a bit more portable than quilting! When I do finally try it, I'll be sure to come to you with any questions.
ReplyDeleteLorrene