TIPS: Prepping a Quilt for Your Longarm Quilter

Getting your quilt ready for a longarm quilter is the final step to turning your hard work into a stunning finish. After all of the time and energy invested into piecing your quilt top, if you are handing off the quilt to a longarm quilter, you defintitely want to ensure the best outcome possible. A little prep goes a long way in making the process smooth and stress-free for both you and your quilter.

In this post guest contributor, Susan Smith from Stitched by Susan, shares practical tips drawn from her years of experience as a longarm quilter, having worked on over 1,300 client quilts. From pressing seams to sharing your design ideas, these simple tips will help your quilt look its absolute best! Susan recently quilted a quilt for me and I love it so much. Plus it was extra fun to get to actually watch the process!

And with that introduction, here's Susan!

Tips: preparing your quilt for your longarm quilter

Let me introduce myself - I’m Susan Smith, also known as Stitched By Susan. I absolutely love quilting in my signature free motion, relaxed style. You can see more of my edge to edge work here and custom quilting work here as well as watch me livestream actual quilting projects in process on my YouTube Channel.

Sending your quilt to a longarm quilter can feel a bit like sending a child off to school for the first time—there’s a mix of excitement and a little nervousness. You’ve put hours (maybe even years!) into piecing your quilt top, and you want to make sure it returns looking as amazing as you imagined. With a few key preparations, you’ll set your quilt up for success, and your longarmer will be thrilled to see you coming.

Here are 11 Tips to ensure a seamless longarm quilting experience

From my experience longarming over 1300 client quilts, these prep tips are the things I love to see the most when a client comes through my studio door. The last one is the most important 😄

And can I just say here - creating a beautiful finished quilt is a cumulative and joint effort! We longarmers love to help you get your quilts to the finish line, but also we’re not magicians, so we need your cooperation to get the wonderful results you’re looking for❤️

1. use an online booking form if your quilter has it available

If your quilter offers this option, please use it, even if you’re local to them, or you're good friends. A form like this keeps all your details in one place and printable, keeps communication clear, and usually is used to hold your place in the queue. This MUST include your contact information such as phone # and email address.

If your longarmer posts on social media, it’s a place where you can give details such as pattern or fabric designers. 

This streamlining creates a good experience for everyone.

2. Give the quilt top one final press from the front

Think of this as your quilt’s “going out” outfit check. You’ve (hopefully!) been pressing throughout the piecing process, but give your top a last once-over from the front side, checking to make sure that all the seams are fully opened and flat. You don’t want any pesky pleats to get quilted in.

3. Pick off loose threads

This is SO IMPORTANT! If those wayward threads are on the right side of the quilt top, they’ll get sewn on. And if they’re on the back, especially of a light-colored quilt, they’re apt to show through after the quilting. Not a good look either way. 

Depending on the fraying level, this may take time, so don’t expect that your longarmer will automatically do it for you, and it may result in an extra charge if there are a lot of errant threads. Load up Netflix, and git ‘er done!

4. Trim the edges straight and square

If you’ve added borders, for example, trim off any excess bits so your quilt top has straight edges and square corners. This helps your longarmer get a beautifully square result for you. 

If there are any irregularities in the squareness of the quilt as a whole, (like a wavy border or an hourglass shape) talk these over with your quilter, so you both agree on what steps will be taken, and what results can be expected.

5. If your quilt has pieced edges: sew a seam around the whole quilt.

This is so helpful if your quilt has a lot of seams along the edges, such as a piano key border, or many small-ish pieces. Simply sew a line of stitching about ⅛” from the edge, around the entire perimeter.  This prevents those seams from coming apart a stitch or three during handling. In other words, take a victory lap around the quilt!

6. Prep the backing - press seams open and trim off selvages

Here’s the thing - you want the backing to lay as flat and smooth as possible in the finished quilt. A pressed-open seam works toward that by distributing the layers and keeping the seam unobtrusive.  

Also, selvages have a very tight weave and are apt to shrink a little tighter when they’re washed.  So sew the connecting seam a bit wider, and trim off the selvage edge.

7. Allow sufficient extra backing 

On a longarm, the backing is attached at the top and the bottom to the frame rails. Also, in order to keep the backing smooth and wrinkle free, your longarmer needs to be able to attach some type of grips to the sides of the quilt when it’s loaded, so the backing needs extra width and length.  

A good standard is 4 extra inches on EACH side. 

Also, it’s critical to have plenty of extra for custom quilting where rulers and other tools are involved. Different quilters have slightly different equipment and preferences, so check with YOUR quilter as to their preferred allowance, but 8” on EACH side is a pretty safe bet. 

As this photos shows….it pays to measure twice and cut once 😉

8. Mark the TOP clearly on both quilt and backing

If your quilt top or backing has a directional design, do your longarm quilter (and yourself) a favor by marking the top. A simple slip of paper pinned to the edge with “TOP” marked in big, friendly letters is all it takes. 

Likewise, if there’s a seam in the backing and you have a preference for where it’s placed, note that too.

9. Fold the backing anywhere BUT on the seam

Sounds weird…but here’s why. You’ve gone to all the trouble of pressing the connecting seam open, so the last thing you want is to fold it closed again. It’s as simple as making that first fold a couple of inches off center.

10. Bundle all the bits (top, backing, perhaps binding or batting) together

A tote, or zipped bag, or box all work to hold your project, but be sure to attach your name very visibly. (Trust me, there’s no worse feeling than finding a quilt in this week’s lineup that has no name and I can’t for the life of me remember who handed it to me in passing.)

11. Communicate clearly

I just can’t emphasize this enough - your quilter cannot read your mind. If you know exactly what quilting you want…say so. Or if you want your longarmer’s help making design and thread choices, still provide some guidance as to your taste. 

If you like geometric quilting better than curvy, swirly stuff…say so.

If you like subtle thread choices, or you prefer a bold and high-contrast look…say so.

If you prefer traditional feathers, or a more contemporary look…say so.

If you like ½” spacing, or 3” spacing…say so.

Perhaps ask your quilter to see some samples or a photo portfolio of their work. This will give you a good starting place to know what you like or don’t like. I keep my portfolios on Pinterest here (edge-to-edge designs) and here (custom quilting).

And finally, ask about details that matter to you:

• costs: quilting rate; other charges like loading, thread, or backing seams
• extra features such as trimming, attaching binding, etc

• turnaround time
• forms of payment
• quality guarantee

Ready, Set, Quilt!

With these tips, you’re making your longarm quilter cheer when they see you coming! 

Please keep in mind, your quilter may be working with several (or even several dozen!) quilts in a week. For a great experience, it is absolutely critical that all your contact information and quilt details are at their fingertips, and that you communicate your preferences clearly. The online form I mentioned in the first tip is ideal, but if that’s not available, make sure your quilter takes notes, or give them your own written notes. Remember, they may be handling many, many quilts, so don’t rely on memory to keep the details clear.

Well done! Now sit back, relax, and look forward to that gorgeous cuddly quilt ❤️

See More of Susan's Work

Thank you so much for these super practical and do-able tips, Susan! If you're looking to hire a longarm quilter, be sure to check out more of Susan's work in her galleries here: Edge to Edge and here: Custom.

If you are a longarm quilter and want to improve your skills or you want to become one be sure to check out Susan's amazing YouTube channel: the World’s 1st Quilting Reality Show (live streaming actual quilting projects from start to finish). As well as her Free class - All-Over Feathers: beautiful, graceful feathers ALL OVER your quilts, taught step by baby step in this machine quilting class.

She also offers a Free Porch Swing Pattern - scrap friendly, and easy piecing for any quilter!

I met Susan in person for the first time last fall and got to see her amazing work quilting this incredible hexagon quilt hand-pieced by the makers of One Common Thread. It was fun to find that we both love supporting this organization.