27/04/2013: Almost May already! This year is going so fast!
02/04/2013: Happy Easter. I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend.
01/01/2013: Happy New Year!!
24/12/2012: Merry Christmas!!
13/11/2012: Getting hand-made presents ready for Christmas!!

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Basting with Safety Pins

Ready to baste

After adding a black border to my quilt top I constructed a backing from two lengths of black cotton and some left over floral. Creating a back from two kinds of fabric I hope will add interest as well as having saved me a little money.

To baste I laid out my bacing piece and secured it with masking tape to the floor. Then I smoothed out my backing fabric and secured that as well. Both of these layers are approximately an inch bigger than my quilt top all the way around. Next I smoothed out the quilt top to finish off my quilt sandwich.

To baste, beginning from the middle, I secured safety pins a couple of inches apart ensuring that none of them laid across an area I planned to quilt. The pins I used are Number 2 nickel plated safety pins and to close them easily I used a soup spoon to lift the points. The pins went through all the layers easily and were simple to close without moving the quilt layers.

Once all the pins are in - almost 100 of them - the quilt is able to be moved around and manipulated through the sewing machine. Time to start quilting!

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