Quilt backing - how should I piece together?

[quiltlady]

hi, my quilt top is roughly 55' x 93" and so I need to piece together the backing. What is the best place to put the seam....down the middle, or should I have one wide middle piece and 2 narrow end pieces? Another issue will be matching up the print, which I'll put in another post! thank you for any help quilt experts!

[Vonnie]

At 55" wide, I would just have a seam down the middle. My preference is to us a 1/2" seam allowance and press open. That way I'm not surprised by a thick seam while quilting.

Actually, my preference is to buy wide enough fabric that I don't have to piece. There are a lot of nice fabrics that are 60" wide.

[Hulamoon]

Craftsy has a class that is called Creative Quilt Backs. It's free and has some fun ideas to check out.

Learn How To Back a Quilt In: Creative Quilt Backs

[songbird857]

He he.. I just looked on pinterest and typed in 'creative quilt backs' - oh boy, certainly gives me ideas!

[songbird857]

Craftsy has a class that is called Creative Quilt Backs. It's free and has some fun ideas to check out.

Learn How To Back a Quilt In: Creative Quilt Backs

Thanks for that tip Lorie - I just signed up!

[quiltlady]

thank you all! I will just done one seam down the middle. I checked out that free Craftsy class and it did explain things too! now I understand how to do it! awesome! if only I had a washable glue stick now! ;-)

[lourixe]

Why, thank you very much for the link, Hulamoon! I am going to need to piece the backing for my Celtic Solstice Mystery Quilt, and this is going to be very helpful. I'm joining Craftsy right now. I never attended any of their on-line classes, but they seem to be appreciated by many forum members, so I'm giving them a try.

[Pandabear]

I'm a fan of the 108" wide backing fabric. But I'm certainly going to look at that craftsy class

[Peggi]

In my opinion, it depends on how it's going to be quilted. If it's going on a longarm frame, it's better to have the seam across the middle horizontally. A vertical seam on a longarm will have a lump in the center.

Having said that - when I can, I piece my backs diagonally, using John Flynn's method.

Diagonal Quilt Backing Calculator

[pcbatiks]

I like the idea of a creative pieced back........it will be one of a kind!