Quilt in a Day Forums

Has anyone ever done the "Pillowcase" turn on a quilt? The directions say a Pillowcase finish can be used and I am not sure about how to do it. It is just a crib quilt for the hospital. Help anyone? lol

I do the pillowcase method on my baby quilts.

Lay out the quilt sandwich with the batting on the bottom, the backing fabric next facing up and finish with the quilt top facing down so that the right sides are together on the backing and quilt top.

Sew around the edges. I sew around all four sides. Trim the extra batting away.

I then go back and find a place in the middle of one of the sides to open up the stitches about 4" in length. I choose a place where the quilt top fabric is sturdy.

Then I resew the backing to the batting in that 4" length so the batting doesn't shift.

Then, just reach your hand into your opening, grab a far corner and start to bring it back out the hole. You have to be gentle as you tug and pull, and you may need to open up a few more stitches, but eventually you will turn the quilt right-side out.

Go back and push out all 4 corners from the inside.

Then you just have to close the opening back up by hand stitching. The stitches I did to re-secure the backing to the batting make a good stitching line to follow. If it was a bulky quilt and I had to make my opening bigger, I try to turn the edges out and resew what I can with my machine, so that the opening I close by hand is as small as possible.

Lay the quilt out smooth and pin with safety pins to hold the 3 layers together and place your ties where you want them. (I'm assuming you are tying the quilt!)

It is an easy way to finish a quilt and makes for a soft edge.

Karlene

Thank you for your help. Sounds easy and I appreciate your help and comment back to me. I have not mastered the binding yet or the machine quilting, but we cannot run forever, right? lol

Judy

I've been quilting for over 20 years and it took me until 4 or 5 years ago before I even tried the FMQ. It isn't bad and I'm not sure why I made it so big in my mind - you can do it! And the binding is an easy thing also. I should state that I am not a perfectionist quilter and I like to find the easiest method with the fewest steps, so I don't always go by standard quilting procedures. So just keep that in mind with any techniques I share!

Hi Karlene,

Thank you again. Your directions are clear and will let you know my results. Should be easy and do not worry, the results are my responsibility. lol

Happy Quilting
Judy

Thanks for sharing your tips Karlene. What a great way to finish - bindings just take so darn long and sometimes I just don't have the time. I am anxious to try this technique!