IQ2

I've added borders to a l'il twister table runner and I'm planning to back it without batting. I know that I should top stitch around the outer edge of the runner, but should I also add stitching (like quilting) to the body of the runner to keep the top and backing together?

Nammie to 7

Any stitching you do really won't do more than anchor the quilt as it will need the batting to give it definition. You might try making a few tacking stitches over the top.

IQ2

thanks Nammie. is this something that should be done in this case? My question really is "does the piece need to be tacked"?

quilttiger

Quilting without batting is rather challenging...I tried it once, and I won't do it again. Consider flannel for batting. It is thin and will provide stability to the piece without being too thick.

Candace

If you don't secure it, it will likely not hold up well to washing and use.

ckcowl

I've done this in the past- the one runner I made, choosing not to quilt in the body- turned out to be ...not so great! it looked good freshly done- when it was washed the first time the back kind of...twisted/shrank, in a different way than the top- it took a lot of ironing, working, with mixed results- finally wound up taking it apart, replaced the backing, added a layer of muslin, and quilted it- much better second time around. my mother does not like runners with batting in them-she likes them flat- so I always add either pre-washed muslin or flannel- and quilt it very well- then they do not take a ton of ironing after laundering.

Quilt-Till-U-Wilt

Suppose you didn't want to quilt the top, would you still need batting? I'm thinking of a table topper for one of those round decorative tables. It would be more like a tablecloth. The table has a glass top so I'd want it to be thin.

PaperPrincess

For me it depends on if the item is just going to be used in the center of the table, like a runner or will cover the entire table, like a tablecloth. If the item is pieced, and will cover the entire table I think you need something in the middle like flannel or thin batting to sort of even out the pieced surface. This is so glasses and stemware will sit on it without wobbling.

lfletcher

I backed a quilt with flannel once and decided not to use batting because of that. I have regretted it since. The quilt would have looked much better with some definition to the quilting stitch that the batting would have provided.

IQ2

Settled! I'm going to add a thin layer like flannel. With all of the seams of the twisters, I can imagine the bumpy mess that would result from washing if I don't quilt it. I appreciate the input of those with experience. I kind of suspected that would be the case, but I really did want it to be pretty flat so hoped I could "get away with it".