How to Baste Your Quilt Blocks
I can’t believe we’re already basting our first block! Quilt basting is the process of layering the patchwork block with batting and backing fabric and securing the layers together temporarily so we can quilt the designs.
Some quilters love basting, but it’s probably my least favorite part of quilting. Over the years I’ve developed methods and tried many different tools and securing devices to find the absolute fastest way to knock out basting quickly and efficiently. Learn how to baste your blocks in this video:
Click Here to find a Baste Your Quilt Kit with flower pins and Pinmoors to baste your blocks!
Yes, I do prefer to use pins to baste my quilts, not basting spray, which I believe is harmful to our health and the longevity of our quilts. Click Here to read more about dangerous chemicals in quilts.
I mentioned in the video that I don’t tape my backing fabric down to the table when basting a large quilt because the tape doesn’t hold large pieces of fabric very well. If you’d like to learn how to baste a king sized quilt on a regular dining room table, check out the workshop Quilting a King on Your Home Machine to find a detailed video on my super sized basting method.
For this quilt, I’m quilting with Hobbs Heirloom Wool batting because I wanted the quilt to be soft, squishy and lofty to showcase the quilting designs.
In the past I’ve also used Quilters Dream Poly batting when I wanted a very flat quilt with virtually no shrink. If you really want to hide your mistakes, try using a 100% cotton batting as it will shrink up a bit at the end and hide your quilting stitches within a crinkly surface.
What batting do you plan to use? Do you have a favorite batting that you pick for almost all projects? Why is it your favorite?
So now that our blocks are basted up, it’s time to quilt! Check back tomorrow to learn how to audition your thread colors AND get some free motion quilting practice at the same time!
Let’s go quilt,
Leah Day
I use a cotton batting because I like the way the quilt looks after washing and mistakes are not as obvious!
I have used your pin technique and find it so much better then safety pins. So much easier to quilt.
I use ear plugs for my pins. They work well. We brought a new kitty into our home 2 months ago, and she loves them too! Spends hours batting them around and loves to scoop them up with her paw if I leave my container open. My other cat has figured out how to get them off a quilt to play with too.
Thank you so much for all your help and suggestions. I have used so much of what you have taught and bought a 13 inch sit down long arm. I love to quilt almost as much as piecing a quilt.
Thanks again for all your hard work.
I am right at the point of basting together my quilt sandwich. For past projects I have used basting spray but this log cabin quilt is full sized so I am going to try the Pinmoors. I got frustrated with the basting spray as I had to smooth out the layers more than once.