Quilt Backing - a Longarmer's Perspecitve

I wear a lot of hats in my little quilt business, with those as quilt maker, designer, and longarmer most important - without them, there would be no QuiltFabrication.

As I was loading a quilt back onto the frame for one of my Paradise quilts, the thought hit me that Susan, the longarmer, would not be very happy with Susan, the customer because of her pieced backing.

Now, because this is my quilt, I'll put up with my faux pas. But when giving quilts to a longarmer for quilting, make her life easier when she loads that backing onto her frame.

So, what did I do that annoys a longarmer? Well, I created a vertical seam in the backing.

And why is this annoying? Because, on a large quilt, it causes the backing to sag on the sides of the seam due to a tighter seam allowance buildup on the roller. 

Instead of one piece of fabric rolling around on that roller, there are two to three pieces at the seam, depending on how the seam is pressed. Notice in the photo, my vertical seam is pressed open, which helps minimize some of the buildup, and lessen the sag.

And what will longarmers love? Horizontal seams, which run along the length of the roller, totally eliminating any sag.

So, whenever possible, make your seams horizontal - your longarmer will love you!

Happy Quilting!