OK, I need help! I know it's something I've done wrong...I cut some strips for a border on a quilt and they have a slight bow or arch to them. What did I do and how do I not do it again?
Many thanks in advance!
KimUK

Kim as you know I am not very experienced but when you attached the borders did you fold it in half length wise? I was told to fold my borders in half length wise to find the middle, do the same with the quilt and then pin them together there. work out from there to the end and sew, it was something to do with the stretch.
Sorry if I am being as clear as mud but I am sure someone who is much better than me will come along soon

Jacqui

Thanks for the suggestion Jacqui, I meant that when I CUT them they came out with an arch. I haven't sewn them on yet.

It may be that they weren't properly cut on the straight grain of the fabric. I bought a massive amount of pink fabric at a charity shop...about 8 meters! For £2 I would have been stupid to pass it up...and I am not stupid! I'm talking £2 for all of it!

I shall wait for more advice before attaching to the quilt.
Cheers.
KimUk

Oh sweetheart I am so sorry, see this is why I rarely open my silly moouth, I usually get it wrong lol
Could it possibly have been stretched do you think? Before you cut it I mean?

Sounds like you got a real bargain there
I need to come back over to Donny and have a scout around by the sounds of it lolol

JAcqui

Jacqui, you come anytime! We ought to plan a UK get-together sometime...
Cheers
Kim

Now that would be good Milica, Pam and I met up in Manchester once and Milica and I have been trying to get back together since.. however money and health have conspired so far to get in the way lol
Now getting to Doncaster is no problem lol

Jacqui

It sounds like you may indeed have made an infamous "V" cut. This can happen when the fabric is cut while folded and is slightly off grain. Before you cut the fabric to straighten the edge, straighten the grain by pulling the bias. You will need someone to help you with this. Each of you takes a diagonally opposite corner and pulls gently several times. Then take the other set of diagonal corners and repeat. This should align the threads so the grain is straight.

One thing that I do with my fabric is first, I prewash everything! When I go to press it, I press it flat first, the whole width laid out on the ironing board. After pressing, I start at one end, fold it in half and hold it by the selvedge edges. I move the one layer of fabric one way or the other to make sure there are no folds in the fabric, that it lays nice and flat. When it lays flat, I press again, keeping the edges lined up even.
I have a link that shows this, give me a minute or so to find it.
Jami

Okay, she talks about squareing up wide backings, but shows how to do it with 44" fabric. The principal is the same for both jobs.
http://www.christianlanequilters.citymax.com/squaring.html
This is an awesome site for getting Fat Backs for your quilting. Excellant service, no affiliation, yada, yada, yada!
I don't fold the 2 edges of the fabric onto each other, I just square one end UNLESS I'm actually working on a quilt backing. You should then have a straight edge of fabric after trimming. You strips should be perfectly straight when you cut them. Do I "never" get a bow when I cut? Nope! But you can adjust from there if needed.
Jami

Also, Kim, when you are cutting the strips, if you are not perfectly "square" (90 degrees) with the folded edge when you cut, you will get a slight bow in the strip.