• Please remove any animal hair before dropping off your quilt. As careful as I am, I can’t guarantee the hair won’t migrate to other people’s quilts potentially raising allergy issues. Also, hair left on the quilt can actually be stitched into the quilt and will be difficult to remove after quilting.
• Any embellishments (i.e. buttons, crystals) should be applied after the quilt is quilted. If there any elements that are not completely attached to the top, please baste them down before dropping the quilt off. This includes pockets, pleats, trims, and flanges. I’ll baste one or two for free but if extensive basting is needed I charge $10. A good example of this would be a flange that acts like a border.
• Mark top edge of quilt if there is one.
• Trim all threads that are on the top of the quilt top. Long threads may get caught in the machine and wreak havoc. Threads on the back may be left untrimmed, however, if they are dark threads they might show through a light colored fabric.
• Seams should be pressed neatly. Seams that are lumpy are difficult to quilt over and can create problems including ripping of the top and we don’t want that!
• Do not baste or pin quilt. Machine Basting is available upon request for quilts that will be hand quilted or for quilts that will have a combination of both machine and hand quilting.
BORDER TIPS
The way you apply your borders can make or break your quilt. Improperly applied borders may not lay flat and can cause puckering, tucks, poofy areas and all kinds of mayhem during the machine quilting process. I am very good at handling wavy borders, but more often than not, the quilt will not hang straight and will not lay flat when finished. If this is a concern of yours, there is a very fast and easy way to apply borders without measuring. Go to my Measureless Borders page for a tutorial complete with pictures. While there, you will also find directions on how to apply borders with measuring. Enjoy!
BACKING PREPARATION
Mark top edge of backing fabric if directional.
Cut the backing 8-10 inches larger than your top on all sides, and trim so that the fabric is square. This will allow the backing to roll up evenly on the machine.
Before piecing your back, remove any selvages that will be included in a seam. Selvages may be thicker than the main body of the fabric and could cause an unsightly lump on the back of your quilt.
PREWASHING FABRICS
If you prewash your top fabrics it is a good idea to prewash your backing fabric.
SHIPPING
If you are mailing your quilt to me and are not including batting, please use a box in good condition and big enough to fit the finished quilt plus batting. I will use the same box to mail your quilt back to you.
© 2010 It’s a Zizza Machine Quilting. All rights reserved.
