Best method to sew Climashield quilt?

[Paul S]

looking for some examples on how to sew this material to make a quilt

[Jerry Adams]

Is it Climashield Apex?  That you only have to sew around the perimeter.  Possibly, other Climashield also has to be sewn in a grid in the body of the fabric, but probably you don’t need to worry.

There are a number of methods.  I prefer to put the inner/climashield/outer together like in the finished product.  Just have the raw edges of the inner, outer fabric extend beyond the climashield.  You can pin, but I prefer just to put hand stitches through inner/climashield/outer to align them, at 4 corners and a few on each edge.  Otherwise, when you sew, the fabric will slip relative to the climashield so by the end of a row of stitches, they won’t line up any more.

Then, sew all the way around through three layers, near the edge.  Make sure you capture the climashield all the way.  Then finish the edge – fold over the inner and outer fabric to put the raw edges inside, then sew through them all the way around the quilt.

If you don’t capture the climashield all the way around, in use, it will slide inwards and there will be a spot with no insulation.

[Bill Giles]

It’s important to do as Jerry said. Whether you sew it right side out or inside out, Climashield will try to squeeze out of the stitch area. I try to sew my hems in the same direction so that whatever distortion will be linear and in the same direction. I’ve gone as far as to sew hems from the center to the corner, but I think that hand basting the hems will probably make that unnecessary.

[Jerry Adams]

there are many threads about other techniques.  Like having the two fabric layers adjacent and then the Climashield, sewing them, and then turning the one fabric layer inside out – the raw edges are hidden.

Or putting newspaper over the Climashield so it doesn’t get caught on the sewing machine foot.

[Paul S]

ok thanks for the advice

[Jeff McWilliams]

Many thanks for the tips here.  I applied them to complete my weekend quilt project, which I posted separately.

 

 

[Bill Giles]

With regard to Jerry’s comment about newspaper, I used cash register tape over the Climashield on my second quilt. It seemed to work out pretty well.

[Jeff McWilliams]

I wonder how the pros do it?

 

[rick .]

I got frustrated with many jammed needles, and took my half-finished quilt to a seamstress, since I was planning on help with the zipper and such anyway.  I tried to do it: Climashield/fabric/fabric and turn inside-out, which works, but the insulation does get bound up in the foot.  I tried to use fabric (clean toilet paper) to protect it, but after a while some climashield would get hung up on the bottom string and jam the needle (was sewing thru 7.5oz/yd).  Doing fabric/insul/fabric as Jerry suggests might be better.

[Jerry Adams]

The synthetic insulation get’s caught up in the zipper foot, but

If you squish the insulation down and flatten it and guide it to underneath the zipper foot, it can be done

I think it’s easier to just have fabric/insulation/fabric

But that’s tricky too, the fabric will have friction against the zipper foot, so it sticks to it a little, and then slips relative to the insulation/fabric

Lots of pins help.  I prefer to put hand stitches instead of pins.

You still have to squish down the fabric/insulation/fabric ahead of the zipper foot, to keep them aligned, and guide into the zipper foot

Practice on a long strip of fabric/insulation/fabric.  Pin the end together so you will be able to tell if it slips.  Try sewing along the length.  Laugh when they’re not aligned.  Repeat.

Or, you could make one quilt, have lots of learning experiences, then make a second quilt.  The long test strips are cheaper and less frustrating.

[Hoosier T]

This is interesting. I use a pretty standard machine, Singer Sewmate from Amazon and have never had issues with the insulation getting hung up. I, of course, sew with the insulation down but I have had zero issues. Could it be that I haven’t sewn anything heavier than 6 0z/yd2?

[Bill Townsend]

tissue paper is a commonly used method by pros.

If you were going beyond 3.6 oz, I would recommend sewing two layers of that- insulation to shell.

Then proceed to assemble the quilt from there.  You’ll end up with a better quilt doing two lighter layers than one heavy layer if you want an Apex quilt beyond 45* or so.

I use pins personally and a satin foot (closed) with the CS on top.

[Tim Marshall]

Insulation, fabric, fabric. We build 50 a week like this. Insulation down keeps it out of the foot.

-Tim

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Climashield is my favorite synthetic garment insulation because it maintains its loft far batter than any version of Primaloft.

[george carr]

Definitely sew with the insulation down to keep the swearing down :)

[George H]

ACCO binder clips are much better and faster than pins for just about any MYOG project. Apex quilts especially. For under $30 I have hundreds in a couple of sizes.

Build up the whole thing with clips every 4″-6″ and take it to the sewing machine.

Not mentioning zippers, drawcord channels, buckles and snaps, here’s my procedure:

Use a sharp needle. On my machine it’s a #10, thread is Tex-40.

1. Clip together fabric, face to face. Sew with at least ½” allowance. Leave a place for inside-out’ing later. A 12″ opening in the middle of the bottom could do, depending on design. If sewing with the lightest color down it will be easier to see unwanted folds and potential creep in the under-fabric.
2. If possible, serge outside of the first stitch.
3. Clip insulation in place, leaving it sticking out ½”. Sew with insulation down, using a long stitch. Place the stitches on or right inside the serging. Be aware that the fabric feed faster than the insulation by a small amount.
4. Pull the quilt right side out and close the opening, remembering to attach the remaining insulation to the hem. Again use the clips to close things up, then go to the machine.

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