How and Where to Begin Quilting

When it comes to quilting, figuring out where to start can be both confusing and intimidating. See how to take the worry out of the quilting process with expert tips from Heather Thomas.

Plan Ahead

Whether you are making your first quilt or you’ve been piecing quilts for years, planning ahead can help eliminate a lot a quilting fears. When you first start a quilt, begin thinking about possible quilting designs or motifs you think would look good on your quilt top. Doing this from the very beginning can make it seem like less of a process when the final quilt top is pieced.

Begin Quilting

When you first learn how to start a quilt, there are generally instructions that tell you how to piece a certain block or part of the quilt. There aren’t, however, instructions that tell you where to begin quilting. Heather explains that she likes to start in the center most part of her quilt and then work outwards. For the example quilt she is showing, this means starting on a center most row made up of blocks and sashing strips. Heather then breaks it down further, explaining what areas of the blocks and sashing strips she starts quilting and why.

Heather explains that how you decide to quilt your quilt can depend on the quilt designs, but that once she has found the centermost part of her quilt she begins by quilting the smallest area. Quilting small areas first and then moving on to larger areas allows you to more easily deal with areas of fullness in the quilt. Once you have learned how to start a quilt in terms of quilting, Heather then explains how she decides what type of quilting to do in different areas of the quilt to enhance the overall quilt design.