Pin Basting
Basting is temporarily holding the three layers of a quilt together so they don’t shift as you quilt them. Pin basting is a relatively quick and easy way to do this. (You can also try thread basting with our Thread Basting Tutorial.)
To begin you will need to lay the backing, batting, and quilt top on top of one another in a quilt sandwich. Here’s how…
First, press the Backing and then, with the wrong side facing up, lay it down on a clean, hard surface, most likely a floor.
Using masking tape, tape the fabric down to the floor around all four sides, pulling it taut as you tape. First tack down the centers of the opposite sides and then tape along each side, from the center out.
Cut a piece of the batting just a little bit smaller than the backing fabric, and center it smoothly over the backing.
Finally, place the quilt top, right side up, onto the backing and batting layers, centering it so that the batting and backing show around all four sides.
This is the quilt sandwich.
Using curved arm safety pins, begin to pin baste by placing the first pin at the center of the quilt. Make sure to pick up all three layers: backing, batting, and quilt top. Then, pin outward in concentric circles 3 to 5 inches apart. Pin all the way to the corners and edges. That’s pin basting!
Update 2024: You can explore our current collection of beautiful fabrics and supplies on our page of Sewing Tools + Notions!
Hello- I have never quilted. I like the simplicity of the blue and white squares used here and the binding used in the tutorial. Have I missed finding a kit, pattern or the materials used to replicate this as a first time quilt? My dream would be the prism and liberty quilt but I believe something simpler would be better! Thank you,Cindy
Hi Cindy,
Thank you for your message! We are so excited that you want to try quilting! I recommend checking out our Learn to Sew A Patchwork Quilt Pattern. This is an excellent beginner-friendly pattern that will provide you with a great introduction to quilting, and the Patchwork Quilt design is very similar to the checkered pattern in this post! If this pattern looks like something you want to try, the Patchwork Quilt Bundle provides all the fabric you will need for this project, and the “Creek” colors closely mirror the blue tones you liked so much. Hope this helps!
Best,
Margaret