FABRIC: Use quality 100% cotton quilting weight fabric. Choose prints and colors appropriate for the intended age group and gender of the planned recipient. DO NOT use sheets, thin, stiff, or scratchy fabrics. Avoid holidays, religious, or political themes. Avoid scary images that could frighten a child.
PATTERN: You may use any of the free patterns prepared by the Community Service Committee, an open source (not copyrighted) pattern or a pattern you have purchased. Please choose a pattern that closely matches the sizes recommended. Many kits are made available at our meetings for you to take, assemble and return for quilting. Minimum acceptable size is 36" x 40".
QUILTING: DO machine quilt any charity donation quilt. You may use a movable head or stationary machine. You may use free motion, zigzag stitching or straight-line quilting. Batting for donation quilts can be obtained from the guild. If you use your personal batting, use only low loft 100% cotton or 80/20 cotton blend batting. DO NOT use polyester batting of any loft. Quilt all areas of the quilt (blocks and borders) being sure no area larger than a 5" square is lleft without stitches.
LABEL: The Quilting Sisters labels are attached to the bag of our kits for quilting. Additional labels can be obtained at meetings. When attaching the label turn under or zigzag the edges of the label. Please attach the label using your machine to sew two of the edges into the binding of the quilt.
BINDING: Use straight cut or bias cut double fold binging, joining pieces with a diagonal seam. Apply binding neatly by machine. DO NOT fold backing over to form a binding. DO NOT use a serge finish in place of a double fold binding. Please double check your binding once sewn to ensure it is covering all edges of the quilt.
WASHING: Launder the finished quilt using only an unscented laundry product. DO NOT use any fabric softeners or dryer sheets as these contain chemicals intended to be retained in the fabric and can cause allergic reactions in some persons. We do recommend including a Color Catcher in the wash to absorb any excess color dyes that may be present.
