Tying A Quilt

Day 150: Quilts generally consist of three layers: the top, internal batting, and a backing. Unless the three are bound together somehow, the batting has a tendency to shift and clump with repeated washings. I generally prefer to hand-quilt around the edges of each piece, but I have been known to machine-quilt occasionally, and sometimes I even tie. Hand quilting takes the longest. A quilt the size of this one would take me about a year. Machine quilting would take a week or so, but since I only have a standard sewing machine (as opposed to a long-arm quilting machine), it is very difficult to wrestle half the bulk of a quilt through the arch. Tying (also called "tufting") is by far the quickest method, and the spacing of the ties is often determined by the design. My mother and grandmother both tied their quilts, and although it is faded and stained, one of my real treasures is a Double Wedding Ring hand-quilted by my great-grandma, who we lovingly called Old-old. I have just finished tying a Double Wedding Ring I made, destined for a new home in the chilly wilds of Alaska as soon as I get the bias binding put around the edges.