I do usually finish my quilt tops but not all are quilted - it really depends on whether the quilt is destined for a particular purpose. Sound familiar?
However, I decided to get four quilts ready for some longarm quilting with Leeanne @quiltmekiwi.
So, I'm having a week doing all those little tasks that need to be done to get a real finish and I thought I'd share my progress & process & photos as I went.
First up, I wanted to get my recently finished scrappy Jacob's Ladder quilt ready for quilting. I did a lap around the perimeter of my quilt, securing the outer edges of all those small, pieced sections.
It's all looking like more of a scrappy pieced backing now, an easy peasey fun fix. 
First up, I wanted to get my recently finished scrappy Jacob's Ladder quilt ready for quilting. I did a lap around the perimeter of my quilt, securing the outer edges of all those small, pieced sections.
I decided to use a very old Jacob's Ladder quilt top in calico, blues & purples for my backing ...
... I made this Jacob's Ladder top 21 years ago, pre blogging days. I think Glenys & I went to classes for 6 weeks to make this one.
For me, it was a great learning curve in chain piecing & rotary cutting, both of which I hadn't mastered in my earlier quilting attempts.
And finally, I prepped my 'stars upon stars" quilt for quilting as well, which I finished in March, pop back here for more details. Finished quilt top is quite big, measuring 81" x 65". This quilt top needed a backing too ...
For me, it was a great learning curve in chain piecing & rotary cutting, both of which I hadn't mastered in my earlier quilting attempts.
Anyways, it has remained a quilt top ever since! 
I checked out the measurements of both quilt tops, making sure my backing quilt was at least 4" larger all round than my top quilt and then ironed them both.
Excited to see this double-sided Jacob's Ladder all quilted up.
I found a delightful pair of vintage sheets at a local
hospice shop recently, perfect for backing quilts. I washed the sheets and checked the sizing. I'll only need one for this quilt✅
It's a square quilt, which I rather like for a change. So, I spent quite a bit of time looking through the wardrobe of quilt tops to see if there was anything I could use, something that could be adapted to fit for the backing ... 
I had to spend quite a bit of time trimming threads ... I thought I was a messy quilter now, but obviously I was just as messy back then!
It was interesting looking at all the fabrics I had in my stash then, a trip down memory lane with lots of late 80's? early 90's fabrics, {wink wink} modern day vintage maybe?
*Wanda has just advised some of these fabrics are from the 1990s, thanks for the info.
Excited to see this double-sided Jacob's Ladder all quilted up.
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Next, I added a couple of borders to my 4-patch chain quilt top, see back here for earlier details. Lots of sweet blues & purple Tilda fabrics in this one.
hospice shop recently, perfect for backing quilts. I washed the sheets and checked the sizing. I'll only need one for this quilt✅
And now it's all ready to be sent off too.
It'll be a nice size for a donation cuddle quilt, I think.
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On a roll now ... so I also pulled out my recently finished 'old maid's puzzle' quilt to get ready for quilting too, see back here for more details. I thought maybe I could use another finished older quilt top for backing again - gotta use those UFOs for something, right?
It's a square quilt, which I rather like for a change. So, I spent quite a bit of time looking through the wardrobe of quilt tops to see if there was anything I could use, something that could be adapted to fit for the backing ...
... and I ended up selecting a top I made in Feb 2020, 'meadowland' quilt.
This quilt was rectangular, but it was a simple solution to add a couple of wide side borders in a grey soft floral, so that I now had a square quilt for the backing too.
I had dialed back the use of large colourful florals & used lots of soft greys in this one, so it really appealed to me to use as backing.
(I've already settled on a binding fabric too, one that will blend b.e.a.u.f.i.fully with both back & front.)
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... and I found a 16 patch St Louis quilt top in the wardrobe. It was made up in a scrappy selection of pinks & peach with a little splash of blue, very vintage looking to my mind and looked so pretty teamed up with my stars.
I've sliced things and added a few asymmetrical pieces to get it up to a suitable size.
I left some selvage visible on a fabric I'd kept for years - a Laura Ashley stripe.
- off to the Post Shop
More often or not, I usually piece a scrappy backing from my stash.
I find making quilt backs is one of my favourite parts of the quilting process, another chance to play!
Other times, I might source a vintage sheet from somewhere or use a wide backing fabric.
However, there’s a real satisfaction that goes with using up three of those old UFOs.
Linda
7 comments:
very interesting to use an older quilt top for the backing of the new quilt - looking forward to see how this one finishes up
I recognize some of the fabrics in your 21 year old quilt top as being from the mid 1990s. I was the buyer at a quilt shop at the time and saw a lot of fabrics.
You've been busy and great organization getting all those quilts ready for finish! Super inspiration Linda.
Fantastic idea.
Great post Linda!! You have a real mix of fabrics in those quilts, great find with the vintage sheet, I've had trouble finding any around Howick but bought a 10" square pack. Looking forward to seeing the quilting patterns when you have them back from Leeanne. s
I'm getting the distinct impression that you have quite a few quilt tops in that stack of yours! How great that you've decided to finish some of them. I'm smiling about the old one, with all the threads to clean up. Our quiltmaking habits change (improve) over the years, don't they? And a sheet as backing? Well, I learned to never use a sheet because they're more densely woven, so they're difficult to quilt through. No doubt a longarm has an easier job of quilting through a sheet than a home machine. It's interesting to see how many of your projects are made with a wide variety of prints. You've always leaned that way in your making, haven't you? Or have you ever made a planned quilt, using only two to five prints? I bet that would be a real challenge for you! :-)
Hi yay Linda, as I take a coffee break & have a look at my computer, I smile to see your post. I am working my way through these very quilts for you now! The purple Jacob's Ladder quilt we are using for the back has some fabrics that I had back when I started making quilts...probably 20 + years ago. Your idea of using up some of your abandoned quilt tops as quilt backs works just fine, a true double sided quilt. I do like a minimum of 5" larger on all four sides than the quilt top, I do believe I have this & other tips on my blog. It's MOST helpful for loading onto the big long arm machine.
That vintage sheet you provided is in very good condition & quilted up nicely.
As always I'm interested to see what binding you choose when you get your quilts back from me.
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