A quilt should be basted before quilting if it is quilted by hand or by machine. In the summer, I baste using safety pins and clamps on a 4 X 8 basting table. It is quick and easy to baste a large quilt. The quilt is very heavy with the added weight of the pins. The table is in a shed and I don’t slog through the snow in the winter to bring it into the house.
In the winter I thread baste on a PVC pipe frame. I could pin baste, but I enjoy thread basting while watching TV.
The pipe frame goes together easily.
The backing is centered with the right side down and clamped on the rails. The under side is checked several times during the clamping to make sure the backing is taut.
The batting is and top are centered and the pipes are re-clamped. Again, the underside is checked. This is the time to make sure that there is enough backing and batting to cover the top. If the backing and batting are cut several inches bigger than the top, there should be no problem.
I use my “bad” thread for the basting. There are some threads that shouldn’t be used in the sewing machine. I have a lot of thread that I inherited from my Grandmother and Mother. It is old polyester and old clunky threads that say they are hand quilting threads. These threads have a wax coating and would damage your machine. I like to use thread with a contrasting color to the top as it is easier to see when removing it after quilting.
I baste, with a big needle, in a grid of three inches horizontally and vertically,
After the center if completely basted, the package is moved to baste the edges. Again, checking the bottom to see if the backing is taut and smooth.
After the quilt is completely basted, I fold the outer edges over to the top and baste around the completed quilt. This prevents the batting from fraying while you are quilting the quilt.
Now that this quilt is basted, I’ll get busy and quilt it. It will return to the blog when it is finished.
Have a great day and happy quilting.
Miss Molly quilts 