Hand Quilting
Hand quilting is the method of sewing together the three layers of a quilt (the backing, the batting, and the top) in patterns of hand sewn stitches. It’s certainly not fast, but it is stunningly beautiful. This tutorial only covers the hand quilting stitch itself. Before you get started you will need to thread baste your quilt top, batting and backing together.
You will also need some special equipment and materials. Please check out our Windowpane Wholecloth Baby Quilt (pictured above) for a full list of these materials.
Place the section of your basted quilt sandwich that you would like to quilt on the inside of the quilting hoop and then attach the outside of the hoop. You can start quilting wherever you like. Tighten the hoop slightly but do not stretch the quilt itself. You want the hoop to hold the fabric in place but not to pull it as taut as you would for an embroidery hoop.
Tie a Quilters Knot at the end of an 18-inch piece of hand quilting thread and thread this onto a hand quilting needle.
Before you begin quilting you need to anchor your thread. First find where you would like to start quilting. You will anchor your thread 1-inch before this point. Bring your threaded needle through the top of your sandwich and the batting layer, then back up through the top, coming up at your start point, careful not to puncture the backing fabric.
Pull the thread until the knot pops through the top fabric and is thus hidden in-between the layers of the quilt. Do not pull it so hard that the knot comes through the exit point as well.
Now it’s time to arm your fingers against the sharp quilting needle. Place your thimble on your right index finger and your under thimble on the tip of your left index finger.
Hold the quilting hoop on your lap. Place your left hand under the hoop with your left index finger directly under where you’ll be stitching.
Keep in mind that you will be stitching towards yourself. Insert your needle 1/8-inch or less from the thread’s exit point. Press it perpendicularly through all three layers of the quilt using only your right index finger, until the tip of the needle hits your left index finger on the opposite side of the quilt. Meanwhile, push the fabric in front of the stitch downward with your right thumb.
While pushing the fabric down with your right thumb rock the needle back with your right index finger while pushing up with your bottom left finger to create a little bump on the fabric. With your right finger push the needle though the bump so it come out back on the top. Pull the needle and thread through the fabric so that it just barely puckers it. This is your first quilt stitch! It is important to make sure that this stitch has gone through all three layers of the quilt sandwich.
Do not be discouraged if your first stitches (or even all of the stitches on your first quilt) are not very even or very small. It’s more important to get the rocking motion and the idea that you are only using three fingers; the left index, the right index, and the right thumb to make each stitch. The beauty of handquilting comes from the irregularities so it’s best to embrace them early on!
As you get a more comfortable with the handquilting stitch you will be able to take more than one stitch at a time before pulling your needle through. Once I get rolling I can usually take 3 or 4 at a time. But remember this isn’t a race, there is nothing wrong with taking one stitch at a time.
When you reach the end of a length of thread stop while you still have 3-inches of thread left. Tie a quilter’s knot close to the last stitch. Push the needle back into the quilt for the last stitch but only go through the front and batting layers, not the backing. Bring the needle out 1-inch away from the last stitch and pull the thread to pop the knot to the inside. Cut the thread end at the exit point to hide it and then start another row of stitches.
Update 2024: You can explore our current collection of beautiful fabrics and supplies on our page of Sewing Tools + Notions!
I’d love to learn it
Hand piecing was what I learned first. I was able to achieve the tiny stitches which are desired for hand quilting (something I’ve yet to attempt). It’s very calming after tense-filled day. It turned to machine piecing and stitching when my mom’s friends teased me about trying to be perfect with my stitches. Best advice I got from one of the quilt guilds in the country was that if the quilt was being made for function or for my enjoyment, getting it done was more desirable than dragging out a project. Perfection can never be achieved but skill will in crease with experience. In fact, the ladies told me that it was the imperfections which made the quilts endearing. 🙂 I think this site is a good reference so I don’t think you’ll go wrong here but joining a guild (I prefer smaller ones with ladies who laugh and are of different ages) is a great source of support and advice!
When hand quilting do I use a single or double thread? Thank you for the wonderful instructions.
Hi Susan-
You should use a single thread for hand quilting. Thanks so much for getting in touch and please let us know if you need any more help!
Molly
I am attempting my very first quilt and I am very intimidated of quilting process any advice for a beginner
Hi Lisa-
This is a tutorial for a beginner! If you have any specific questions along the way please let us know!
Best-
Molly
Love the tutorial, but I have a question. Why should you run your needle towards yourself? What if it feels more natural to go away from your body?
Hi Sara,
Thanks for writing in! Partly, this is preference but additionally, by moving from the inside out and towards yourself, you will help to move any wrinkles from the center out. This makes for a smoother quilted surface!
I hope that this helps!
Cassy
Interesting
Thank you for the tutors! I want to out line the animals on a fabric panel as my quilting. I’m thinking I need to wait to attach the back panel since this would show on the back fabric. Any suggestions?
Thank you!
Hi Janette,
Thanks for reaching out! The main purpose of quilting, whether by hand or machine, is to attach all three layers of the quilt – the top, the batting, and the backing fabric – so they stay sandwiched together, and it does need to go through the backing fabric to keep it from bagging out away from the rest of the quilt. If you would like to outline something without it showing through the backing, you could do some surface embroidery before assembling the quilt sandwich, but you will still need to do some sort of quilting that goes through all three layers to hold it together.
I hope that helps!
Julianna
When quilting should you start from the edge and move towards the center or start at the center and go towards the edge?
Thanks
Hi Stacey,
Great question! Generally, you will want to start from the center out to the edges. This will help to smooth any wrinkles to the outside of the quilt, creating a smoother finished surface!
Best,
Cassy
Hi, I am going to hand quilt for the very first time. Is there a certain kind of quilt that is best to start with? Is there a pattern or directions for a quilt somewhere?
Thank you Ginger
Hi Ginger,
Thanks for writing in! If you are new to quilting, I think our Learn to Sew a Patchwork Quilt Pattern For Beginners is a wonderful place to start! The pattern will walk you through all the steps to create a simple patchwork quilt that is a great background for basic or complex hand quilting.
Best of luck and happy stitching!
Julianna
Aloha,
First time hand quilter here. I made my own appliques. My question is are they just basted on the top layer and then quilted all the way through the three layers, or ar they completely quilted on the first layer only?
Thank you!
Hi Pohai,
Thanks for getting in touch! Applique quilts involve several steps, but are quite gorgeous after putting in the necessary work! After basting the applique to the background fabric, you will need to secure the edges to just the top layer of the quilt first. Once all the appliques are complete, you will then create your quilt “sandwich” with the batting and backing fabric and quilt through all three layers. You can see one method for this in our Circular Applique Mini Quilt tutorial!
I hope that helps!
Julianna
How close together do my rows of stitches need to be when hand quilting?
Thank you!
Hi Sarah,
Great question! This depends on both on what kind of batting you are using in your quilt, and how you would like your quilt to look. Different brands or types of batting will have information on their labels about how close together your stitches must be at a minimum. For instance, both Quilter’s Dream Cotton Batting and Wool Batting have a maximum quilting distance of 8 inches, so if your stitches are any further apart than 8 inches, your quilt may separate or look baggy. As long as you keep that maximum in mind, you can place your stitches as close together as you would like to create different patterns or effects!
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Do I sew the binding on before or after the hand-quilting?
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for reaching out! Attaching the binding will be the final step of your quilt after hand-quilting the layers together and trimming and squaring up the edges.
Best,
Julianna
Your link for the windowpane wholecloth baby quilt does not work, therefore I don’t have access to the list of special equipment and materials. I’m curious, what thread do you use for hand quilting?
Hi Siggi,
Thanks for reaching out and bringing this to our attention! Here is the pattern: Windowpane Wholecloth Baby Quilt. You can find the thread in the Materials sections of the pattern! We used GUTERMANN Hand Quilting Thread, and GUTERMANN Cotton Sewing Thread (for the binding.)
I hope this helps!
Warmly,
Gianna