Using a wool blanket to back a patchwork uilt

[JamNan]

I am not using any wadding just the patchwork squares for the top and a fab brightly coloured woolen blanket for the backing. Can it be done?

Will it work if I did 'stitch in the ditch' to attach the top to the blanket ? Then bind the outer edge. Does anyone have any tips please?

pre wash the backing in case of shrinkage. quilts look nice with a little shrinkage but wool will shrink a lot more than cotton, it could end up a little shrivelled.

Of course, it can be done like mating a zebra with a donkey but whether it should be done is another matter. As Nipers says the cloth will shrink and stretch at different rates and this might also be an issue when you sew them together... I think you will certainly need to drop your dogs and use a walking foot.

I think I might consider using a hand tied method rather than stitching it if you are really set on this...

Latte I hadn't thought of hand tying. That would look a lot neater but it could take me forever.

I had the blanket washed at our dry cleaners and it looks in tip top condition. It was the colour and the warmth of it that attracted me but I don't think it will work too well. I am making the quilt for a dear friend who gave me the fabric to make something lovely for her family and I want it to be perfect for them (she and her DP have been a great help to our family through some very troubled times).

Luckily I have a nice large bit of batting stashed away and I think I am going to use that instead of the blanket idea. And while I think of it I have got a lovely old red cotton tablecloth that could do as backing. And a couple of yards of another red that will do for the binding.

Thank you so much for the input ladies. Isn't it strange that when you write it down and talk to people the right idea falls neatly into place? It is such an emotional piece of work.

Just make sure that the red table cloth is colour fast... says the Quilt Harbinger of Doom!

And hand tying would be as quick as quilting in the ditch... especially if you were a brownie or a girl guide!