Preparing a Quilt Sandwich

  1. Mark a straight line approximately 2” across your backing fabric from side to side on the wrong side of the fabric. Then mark the center of your backing fabric.

2. Lay your quilt backing wrong side up across a table or the bars of your frame with the marked line facing towards you. 

3. Lay out your batting across the backing, aligning the top of the batting with the 2” line on the backing fabric. Let the remainder of the batting hang down.

4. Beginning at the center, pin your batting to the backing. Using your regular sewing machine baste the batting and backing together, making sure to keep the edge of the machine’s foot with the edge of the batting. 

5. Now mark the center of your quilt top.  Lay your quilt top across the backing/batting sandwich.  Beginning at the center mark pin your quilt top to the batting/backing sandwich, matching its top edge of your quilt top along the stitched line you created in step #4. 

6. On your regular sewing machine baste stitch your quilt top to the backing/batting sandwich. 

7. Take the entire "sandwich" to your quilting frame.  Lay the completed sandwich across the bars of your machine and attach the top edge of your sandwich to the take-up roller. Remember to start at the center and work out in both directions. 

8. Throw the quilt top and batting over the take-up roller out of the way.  Line up the other edge of your backing with the back roller of your frame. Again starting at the center and working out in both directions attach the backing to the back roller. 

9. Roll your backing fabric taut onto the back roller. Straighten and remove any wrinkles in the backing fabric so it is completely flat. Now flip batting and quilt top back into place. Straighten and remove any wrinkles in the batting and the quilt top so it is completely flat and square. 

10. Now you can begin your quilting.