Spray glue
There are also spray adhesives made
especially for quilting. They offer a quick
way to fix your layers together, but if you
need to press your quilt during the
process, the heat of the iron can cause
the glue to pucker your fabric. It’s
important to read the instructions on the
pack before you start. If you do choose
this method, always work in a well
ventilated area and protect surfaces with
scrap paper or a sheet. Lay out the
backing fabric with the batting on top,
then turn back half of the batting. Shake
the adhesive well and spray the turned-
back batting lightly from a distance of
about 10in. Fold the batting back over
the backing fabric and smooth in place.
Repeat with the other half of the batting.
Now flip the quilt over and repeat this
method to add the quilt top to the
batting. Afterwards, you’ll need to wash
the finished quilt to remove any glue.
Securing your quilt
Option 1: Quilting
Once you’ve assembled your layers
together, the next stage is to secure them
in place permanently. There are two main
methods you can use for this. The most
commonly used method is quilting.
When quilters talk about quilting,
they’re referring to the actual stage of the
process where you stitch the three layers
together, either by hand or machine,
working in straight lines or more decorative
stitches. For more detailed instructions on
the different methods of quilting, see our
in-depth guide on page 70.Option 2: Tying
The second method that some
quilters like is ‘tying’ a quilt. With this
option, no quilting at all is done, but
instead, the batting is held in place with
individually tied knots, made by hand or
machine. This method creates a puffier
quilt, compared to the flatter effect of
quilting. Quilts can be tied simply with
strong cotton or linen thread, or there
are more decorative options, such as
a variegated perle cotton, which looks
great if you prefer to leave the knotted
thread ends longer for a decorative
effect. Tying a quilt is a useful when
sewing with thicker fabrics, such as denim- turn to page 144 for our guide to
sewing with other fabrics.
If you’re tying your quilt, use pins or
safety pins to mark where you want the
ties to be. Usually it’s easier to position
the ties in the middle of units or blocks,
to avoid going through too many thick
seams. How close you place the ties
together depends on the thickness of the
batting you’re using but about 4–6in
apart is fine. Next, take some thread and
a sturdy needle and start from the back
of the quilt. Leaving a long tail of thread,
make a stitch through all the layers, once
or twice depending on the strength of
your thread. Remove the needle and tie
the ends securely together at the back of
the quilt. Trim away any thread ends or
leave them long for a decorative effect.
If you’d like your thread ends to show
on the front of the quilt, or want to tie the
ends in a little bow, then start the stitch
from the front. To tie your quilt using a
sewing machine, simply sew on the spot
several times and then trim the thread
ends close to the back of the quilt.To finish, add binding!
So you’ve made a quilt sandwich, secured
the layers together and stitched it all in
place using our quilting guide. Now for
the finishing touch – tidying up those
messy edges! Binding finishes off a quiltWhen quilters talk about ‘quilting’,
they mean the bit when you sew the
three layers together, either by hand
or by sewing machineHOW TO PIN A QUILT HOW TO GLUE LAYERS
05 06 07BACKING FABRIC
(WRONG SIDE)FOLD THE BATTING IN HALF,
THEN SPRAY GLUE THE TOP HALFSPRAY GLUE ON THE OTHER
HALF OF THE BATTING