Are you ready to learn the super helpful steps to load your quilt on your longarm quilting machine?  Are you, maybe, a little intimidated when it comes to avoiding the common mistakes quilters make when loading a quilt onto their longarm machines?

If so, this blog post guide is for you!

Loading Your Quilt on Your Longarm Machine in 2024

After buying your longarm machine (or renting time at your local quilt shop), you’ll likely get some lessons on the operation of your machine.  At Handi Quilter, we host longarm education events all over the country, making sure our customers (that’s you!!) have access to in person and high-quality education.  We want to make sure you truly understand how to load your quilt onto your longarm, as well as understand a lot of other processes.

During these education events, you’ll learn things like how to thread the machine, how to wind a bobbin, how to adjust tension, how to load a quilt on your longarm machine.

This is all good information and essential to finishing that first quilt.

Heads up!! This blog post was originally published on July 1, 2023.  It was last updated on August 5, 2024.

Common Mistakes When Loading a Quilt onto a Longarm Machine

But there are a few things that quilters, in their excitement to quilt that first quilt, might have to learn the hard way. And a lot of those hard lessons come when loading your quilts! I’m going to tell you things beginners need to know for successful longarm quilting.  This list is not a complete list. A quilter is always learning, after all! But I do include extra resources at the end of this post, to help you level up your longarm quilting game.

There are many more things you’ll learn along the way. But these tips will maybe help to avoid some tears and/or un-ladylike words!

OVERALL TIP: Make sure you load a quilt SMOOTHLY!

Don’t take any shortcuts when loading the 3 layers of your quilt. Making sure the 3 pieces, top, backing and batting, are smooth and wrinkle free, is very important to getting good results in the end.

The name of the game is a “SMOOTH” loading of your quilt.

When loading your quilt, it can be tempting to rush so you can get to the good stuff!  But don’t do it!  A rushed lo lading process will often have you pulling out your seam ripper!

Below, I share how to be sure to load your quilt smoothly on your machine, discussing your backing, quilt top and batting!

Section #1:  Loading Backing onto Your Longarm Machine

In this section, I share the steps on how to prepare and load backing onto your longarm quilting machine. These steps are critical to loading your quilt onto your longarm machine.

Step #1: Ensure You Have Enough Backing Fabric when loading your quilt!!

The side edges can be a little off,  just make sure you have extra fabric on both sides of the quilt top. 4-5 inches on each side is ideal. (you’ll want that on the top and bottom as well.) I use a laser level to achieve this. It gives me perfectly straight lines of light that intersect at 90 degree angles. I’ll write about the process I use in a future post. Here are 2 that I have:

My favorite is the tall one. It was made by the 3M Company. I tried to find it online but was not able to locate it. I’ve had it for many years. They might not make this particular one anymore. Just be sure to get one that locks the 2 beams at a 90 degree angle.

Step #2: Press Your Backing Fabric!

It is critical to press your fabric backing well. This is not as easy as it sounds, because often you are dealing with a HUGE piece of fabric.

You’ll want to use a steam iron, or a spray bottle with water.  A large ironing surface helps tremendously. Just like everything else, you’ll get better at this with practice.

Step #3: Square Your Backing Fabric

Once the fabric is pressed, take the time to square the backing. When you buy fabric, it often is not perfectly squared (with each of the corners at 90 degrees.)  The top and bottom edges must be straight and parallel with each other.

Note: It is critical to press your fabric before checking that it is squared!

Step #4: Pin to Leaders

I pin to my leaders. Whatever method you use to attach your backing to the leaders, be sure to do it straight and evenly.

Step #5: Roll

Roll carefully and try not to stretch the fabric when smoothing along the way. When you have the backing loaded, It should form a nice flat table top with no puckers, wrinkles, or sags. If you squared the fabric well, you’ll have no issues. If you have wrinkles or sags, try rolling the fabric all the way onto the take-up pole. And then all the way back onto the belly-bar. You can do it again if needed.

It is miraculous how doing that rolling fixes things right up!

Section #2: Prepare Your Quilt Top to Load Onto Your Longarm Machine

Step #6: Attach Your Quilt Top to Your Leaders

When it come to things beginners need to know about loading the quilt top, my best advice is to attach it to the leader. It is tempting to float. Floating is when you simply lay the quilt top on the batting and baste the top edge in place. The bottom edge floats freely, not attached to anything. You cannot control the movement of the fabric as you stitch if the top is floated.

Step #7: Examine Your Quilt Top as You Load It

The second-best advice I have is to examine the quilt top and measure, measure, measure, before you load it. That way, you’ll know what you are dealing with. One side might be longer than the other, you might have wavy borders, you might have extra fabric in some of the blocks. Use painter’s tape to mark the issues. That way as you advance through the quilt and you come to a piece of painter’s tape, you’ll know there is an issue and you can deal with it right then and there.

Just like the backing, roll carefully, smoothing as you go. Watch the seam lines as they go across the pole, massage the fabric to keep those horizontal seams lining up with the pole. (The laser level can help with this as well)

Section #3: Prepare Your Batting to Load Onto Your Longarm Machine

Step #8:  Prepare Your Batting

If you use batting off a roll, there is usually only one fold or crease you have to deal with. When you use packaged batting that has been folded up and trapped in that tight plastic bag for a long time, there are plenty of creases and wrinkles. Take the time to get your batting smooth. My favorite method is to invite the ironing fairies to do the work. I’m not sure what they look like, but they must be beautiful. They are so helpful!

Use a steamer or hover a steam iron over the wrinkles to steam them out. Be super careful to NOT stretch your batting.

Step #9: Monitor Your Batting

The batting should match the size of your backing for best results. If your batting is narrower than your backing, as you advance and the finished quilt accumulates on the take-up pole, the backing fabric will get saggy at the sides. This can result in tucks or pleats in the back if you are not careful.

Video Tutorial: Loading Your Quilt on a Longarm

We hope you enjoyed this blog post all about the steps to load your quilt on a longarm!  You can also watch this video tutorial here, to see Kim and Kristina, Handi Quilter Studio Educators, load a quilt!

Quilt Every Day!

by Mary Beth Krapil