lovelyl

My longarmer prefers the same amount of excess on the sides as on top and bottom, 3-4 inches. However, if you are in doubt you might want to call and ask.

caspharm

I agree. You need to check with your longarmer. Most that I have seen prefer a minimum of 3" on each side.

duckydo

I am a longarmer and it is great when there are at least 4" on each side on the width and 4" on each side on the length. It has to be longer and wider so longarmer is able to attach clamps on the sides to hold the backing and batting taught so that it doen't wrinkle, and also when attaching a quilt to the leaders you have to drop down about 2" to start quilting... Hope that helps.

ctrysass2012

The last quilt I had longarmed I had only 2 in. on each side(top/bottom were fine). I was told to just add about 3" of waste fabric or muslin to each side. Worked great! The extra was trimmed off before binding.

cat-on-a-mac

I have a LA, and I like to leave extra on the sides for my "test" stitching -- an area where I can calibrate the tension when I change threads or needles. Also, if you're asking for custom work with rulers, a wider backing makes it easier -- at least on my machine, the ruler base hits the side clamps if the sides are not very wide. I can "lift" the clamps up a bit with dowel rods, but it's a lot nicer when I don't have to do that.

Lilrain

Check with the longarmer. They need a certain amount to center the quilt on and load it on their rails