# Yellow brick road backing help



## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

I'm working on my second quilt. Yellow brick road. I have all the squares cut out and all sewn together. (making the lap size) I have the directions and they have seemed pretty easy up until now. 

I bought some wide fabric for the backing of the quilt and was hoping to have enough left over for the border. But now I can't figure out how to prepare the fabric so I can figure that out. I don't see anywhere in the directions what size the backing fabric has to be or how to make it ready? I know the pattern says I need 3 1/2 yards for the backing but that's it. And since I'm new to quilting, I'm not sure what my next step is. 

I'd like to cut/prepare the backing so that I can see if I need to buy fabric for border or if I have enough of the backing fabric to use as the border fabric, but just have no idea what to do.

Here is where I'm at on this quilt now.










Can anyone help or point me in the right direction?


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## buslady (Feb 14, 2008)

You will need to measure the quilt top and add the border width to that. Say your quilt measures 40 x60 inches. You will probably want a 4 inch border all the way around. That would make it 48x68 inches. your backing will need to be a little bit wider and longer than the top. 
I allow 4 inches longer, and 4 inches wider. That would be 52x72.
You may not require that much. I longarm mine, and that gives me room to pin the quilt to the frame. If you use your sewing machine, you will not need that much. You just safty pin the top to the bottom,(add batting in middle if using), . Pin about every 4 inches. hope this helps. Buslady


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## Tinker (Apr 5, 2004)

You are doing a great job! 

I usually allow about 4 inches on each of the 4 sides of my quilt. I am new to quilting too, and want to make sure I have plenty of room.

Let us know how big your top is right now, and how big you backing is (both legnth & width) & lets see what we can figure ot.


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## Chixarecute (Nov 19, 2004)

Nice job - I envy your corners!


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## Terri in WV (May 10, 2002)

If you bought 3 1/2 yards of backing fabric, you'll have more than enough to cut your borders from it, from the looks of it. Like Tinker said, give the sizes of the top and backing and someone will be better able to help you.


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

Ok... I just measured and I hope I got this right.

The quilt top measures width- 45 1/8 inches- 45 1/4 inches (two different spots measured) and the length was 63 1/8. (in both spots I measured)

The backing fabric was wide fabric so I hope I get this right. From selvage to fold (which is the width?) measured 55" so I times that by two since it's folded and have 110 inches? (can that be right?) And the length (?) was 55 1/2 inches. 

I bought the back soo long ago I have no idea how many yards I got. My sewing friend was with me and she helped me pick. But she lives an hour away and it's been so long she can't remember how much we got.

The yellow brick road pattern is calling for 6 1/2 inch strips to make the border.

When I made my first quilt, (see in http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/country-homemaking/sewing-quilting/462588-i-did.html ) I had to somehow cut it and sew it back together to make the backing. Will I have to do that for this quilt?


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## Ruby (May 10, 2002)

If you got the extra wide fabric then 110" sounds about right. You will have to turn the quilt side ways on the backing fabric. If it don't have a pattern on the backing fabric it won't matter. You don't "really" have to make your border as wide as the pattern calls for, and you don't have to make the border out of the backing fabric. You could pick a color in the top you pieced and get some fabric for the border to help bring out the color in one of the blocks.

By the way, you did a great job. I really like that dark blue with the gold color.


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

I can take a pic of the backing fabric. I'm guessing I need to just buy some different fabric to make my border just to be on the safe side. I live an hour away from the nearest city and I'm going tomorrow to do some fabric shopping, so hopefully I can get lots of advice before I leave tomorrow mid-morning.


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

This is the backing fabric.










Close up.


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## Terri in WV (May 10, 2002)

You're not going to be able to use that backing unless either:

A) you want to piece the backing 
or
B) make narrower borders
or
C) get different backing and use what you have for the border

With A, the backing would end up being 3 pieces, pieced together if you were to use a 6 1/2" border and there would be no backing left to make the border with it and it would be a tight fit with even piecing the back.

With B, a narrow border might not look as good and it wouldn't leave much wiggle room when quilting. The top is 45 and the backing 55, so that only leaves 10" total for border and quilting wiggling room.

C would be the easiest, if you like the wide fabric for the border. Use it and then buy the size backing you need to finish it up. If cost is a factor, a sheet can always be used for backing, with the pretty fabric on the front.

Myself, I would do C. I can't see having to piece wide backing when the fabric's pretty and could be used on several different projects for one piece borders.


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

Thank you very much for giving me my options. I went today and bought new backing and a different fabric for the binding. It's not what I wanted to do and I spent a couple of hours talking it over with my quilting shop to see if there was any way to make the current back work, but in the end, my options were just as you said. So then I was left trying to find fabric I liked for the backing. I have it...not sure if I'm happy with my choices, but it's been purchased and hopefully tomorrow or the next day I can get it all pinned together and read to start quilting.


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## Ruby (May 10, 2002)

It will make up pretty no matter what fabric you bought. Never saw an ugly quilt.


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

I decided to add a small border (only had enough wiggle room to make it a 3/4 in finished border) to the quilt before adding my bigger border. I just didn't like it without something else there and I didn't think of it until I got home and scrounged up some fabric leftover from my first quilt. Hopefully it will look ok.

Here is a close up. It's brown with blue dots in it.









A larger view.









And it against the larger border fabric (former backing fabric) and against the binding. Sadly the binding color doesn't look nearly as nice in the pic as it does in person. 










I'm anxious to work on it and get it pinned so I can start trying to quilt it. I don't know how to free motion quilt, so I will be trying to figure out a way to stitch in the ditch.


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## Tinker (Apr 5, 2004)

It looks great--your 2 borders work in perfectly. I can't really see your binding very well.

Stitch in the ditch would probablt work best for you, or even just do a diagnal. That is very easy to do, and looks nice.

Here is a good tutorail:

crazy mom quilts: grid quilting mini tutorial


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

Ugh...I responded last night to you to Tinker, but now it doesn't show my response.  

I wanted to say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! I had actually be wracking my brain last night drawing diagrams trying to figure out I could ditch stitch this and it would look nice. I wasn't coming up with anything I liked. So thank you for the link!!!

Here is the quilt just prior to my pinning it. I just trimmed the edges and need to make the binding. Sorry that it's a crappy photo, I took it on my ipod.


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## Tinker (Apr 5, 2004)

You are welcome. I have dones several quilts on the diagonal, and have been very pleased with the outcome.

We want more pics once the quilting is done!


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

Very disappointed. Picked up some quality painter's tape today and laid it on the diagonal, and the tape doesn't stick. It doesn't help that my house is made up of very small rooms so I either have to quilt in my living room or bedroom and neither give me much space to work with. I'm beyond disappointed. I really was hoping that this would work. It would also be easier if I had some adhesive spray instead of my pins which happen to all be in the way for diagonal quilting.  Not sure what I'm doing wrong that the tape won't hold, but I chose to just stitch in the ditch on this one until I can figure it out better.


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## Tinker (Apr 5, 2004)

I usually don't use the tape. I just use a yardstick, and with chalk make a big X from corner to corner. Once you quilt those lines, you just follow on either side, using the guide on your walking foot. Stitch in the ditch will be great too!


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

That's one thing I need to get.....a walking foot. I did all the work on my other quilt without one. This quilt too, I guess. But I think if I'm going to keep quilting I want a walking foot. I hate the puckering of the fabric without one. 

Thanks for the tip and the idea of the chalk. Is it special fabric chalk and do you have to wash the quilt to get it off? 

And if I was doing the diagonal quilting, would I still use invisible thread?

I have a Janome sewing machine. Would this walking foot work?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Even-Feed-W...645?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4160fd65cd


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## Tinker (Apr 5, 2004)

I'm not sure if that will fit your machine or not. Search your model # and walking foot, and you should find recomendations of which one to use. Mine looks like that, and you just sew your next line by allowing the giude on the left to run along your previous row.

I use taylors chalk, and it just rubs off--if you mark it and don't sew right away, you may have to remark if it has been handled a bit. I have white to use on darker fabrics, and blue to use on light fabrics.

I on't use invisable thread. I tried it, and just hated it, as I could not see it to thread the needle, and it unravels and tangles on the spool--some people love it, but I just use cotton thread.


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## bknthesdle (Mar 27, 2011)

I have the Janome DC 2010. I sent an email to the seller asking if it would fit my machine.


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