Professional Longarm Machine Quilting
Services and Pricing
The quilting that I do is where I use my Gammill Vision 2.0 longarm quilting machine to quilt the tops that someone else has already put together.
For quilting your top, I charge by the square inch and by the complexity of quilting, so it really depends on how big your quilt is and what type of quilting you want done on it. To calculate square inches, multiply the length of the quilt in inches times the width of the quilt in inches. For example, a quilt that is 60" x 80" would be 4,800 square inches.
EDGE TO EDGE QUILTING: Edge to edge quilting is an all-over design, from top to bottom and from side to side, using a single color of thread. This is the most economical way to quilt your quilt, and generally looks best on quilts where you want the quilting to not upstage the piecing. I have dozens of patterns to choose from, and can also do a simple meandering quilting all over the quilt. Prices for this category of quilting are:
Meandering - $0.015 per square inch
Edge-to-edge patterns - $0.020 per square inch
CUSTOM QUILTING: Custom quilting uses a combination of techniques and patterns to highlight the uniqueness of your quilt top. In general, this is much more labor intensive than just edge to edge work because it involves considerable planning, as well as much more stop and go stitching, etc. My charge for custom quilting starts at $0.045 per square inch and goes up from there depending on if more elaborate quilting is desired than what I would normally do with custom quilting, or if I need to draft special pattern sizes, do straight-line ruler work, etc.
THREAD: I charge $1.50 per bobbin for thread. A queen sized all-over quilt will generally take about 4-5 bobbins, so a baby quilt or lap quilt will take 1-2, etc. I have hundreds of colors, including variegated threads, so will be able to choose the perfect thread to match your quilt.
BATTING: You can supply your own batting, or I can offer it to you at an even cheaper price than you can generally purchase it since I buy it in bulk 40-yard rolls. And since I charge for batting by the square inch based on how much is needed for your quilt, you are only paying for what is needed, i.e., the exact size of your quilt plus 4" on all sides. The price for all the following is $0.003 per square inch.
MDG Natural Cotton 80/20
Hobbs White Cotton 80/20
Hobbs Black Cotton 80/20
A few words about batting....it can make or break the quilt. I am used to using the above battings and can achieve good thread tension as a result, which is why I use them. Some other brands of batting are so sheer and lightweight that it is difficult to achieve a consistent stitch with them. Battings that are all polyester have a known fire risk with them, in that they can spontaneously combust when used with electric blankets (which is why I don't like polyester battings, aside from their light weight). And if you have a quilt top that has a lot of black or very dark colors in it, please, PLEASE, consider using the above black batting. Nothing looks worse than seeing a beautifully pieced black quilt where white batting was used so there is a "salt and pepper" look from all the needle holes in it.
OTHER CHARGES
Binding: I can bind your quilt, too, and generally only do this as part of a commissioned quilt. The cost is $0.15 per linear inch of the perimeter of the quilt. All of my binding work is done by machine, meaning that I attach it by machine to the back edge of the quilt and then flip it to the front side of the quilt and machine stitch it down.
Backing Preparation: For backing fabric that is not already pieced and ready to load, I will cut, piece, and press it for $15 per seam.
Minimum Charge: I have a minimum quilting charge of $40.00. This is due to the fact that the quilting charges on smaller quilts cannot cover the time spent preparing and loading a quilt onto the longarm quilting machine.
Basic Expectations and Tips To Prepare Your Top For Quilting:
* Iron your top and press all seams. Otherwise, it will look quite lumpy when you get it back because the seams became twisted during quilting.
* Trim excessive threads from the backside of your top - dark threads will show through light colored fabrics, especially after quilting.
* Inspect your seams to ensure they are all sewn closed. I have received quilt tops before that had open seams in the top which can cause a rip in the top if I don't notice it and the longarm machine head grabs the open seam as I'm quilting.
* Your backing fabric MUST be at least 4" wider on all sides than your top. This gives me the extra amount I need in order to attach the backing to the quilt machine frame. For example, for a 60" x 80" top, the backing would need to be AT LEAST 68" x 88". Likewise, batting needs to be at least 4" larger all around, i.e., batting size should match the backing.
* I will trim the quilt free of charge after quilting. If you do not want it trimmed, please let me know. All excess backing fabric is returned to you.
