A Simple Guide to Creative Quilt Backing Ideas

The quilt top is finished and now it’s time to get to basting! But to baste the top into a quilt, batting, and backing are needed to make a quilt sandwich.

This page is full of fun and creative quilt backing ideas. Some of the tutorials are simple, and some are complex, but all of them are a great way to finish that quilt!

What is the easiest quilt backing?

The most simple way to back the quilt top is to purchase a 109” wide piece of fabric. This fabric is just like quilting cotton, but it is on a bolt that is 108” wide instead of the typical 44-inch wide fabric. These wide back fabrics make creating a quilt backing easier and can make the perfect backing fabric.

This option is the best choice for beginning quilters because it eliminates seams and backing prep. I have even seen bed sheets used as quilt backing—this is what my grandmother did with my first quilt.

A similar way to make a back is to use a quilting cotton fabric that the quilter is used to sewing with. This quilting cotton can be used on the back and the top of the quilt.

Simply use the 44-inch wide fabric, cut it into the necessary number of lengths, and sew the selvage sides together to make a large piece of one of the fabrics from the front of the quilt.

Several quilting backing calculators below will determine the amount of fabric necessary for the backing.

If the quilter is going to sew a quilting cotton from the front vertically for the back, it is recommended that a nondirectional print or a solid be used for the backing. This makes it much easier when sewing the vertical seams together.

Another option is to use a totally different type of fabric for the quilt's backing, such as minky or flannel. This can be tricky as the quilt's top and backing will be made of different materials, and it can be difficult to keep from slipping.

This option is often used in baby quilts, using a soft flannel or minky fabric as the quilt backing.

What is a quilt pieced backing on a quilt?

When a quilter uses up fabric pieces, scraps leftover from cutting the quilt top to sew a pieced design on the back, they have made a pieced backing. Such quilt pieced backing ideas are very unique, and oftentimes, the back of the quilt is as beautiful as the front.

A portion of the design from the front can be designed into the back of the quilt. Perhaps the front of the quilt has a disappearing nine-patch or half square triangles. This motif could be pieced with fabrics from the front into a large disappearing nine-patch or a row of half square triangles on the back of a quilt.

I have heard of quilters using a pieced quilt as the backing of another quilt, making a reversible quilt. This would be the ultimate pieced backing, but I can’t bear to do this!

Another option is to use extra quilt blocks from the front that may have been left over and sew them into the backing fabric. This is the perfect opportunity to use up those quilt blocks and ties the front of the quilt and the back of the quilt together nicely.

Piecing the back of the quilt can be as elaborate or as simple as desired. Some quilters make beautiful quilt backings that look like works of art! Stop at your local quilt shop for more helpful tips!

Scroll down this page to find many ways to make a backing for a quilt. Whatever you decide, the quilt will be loved! And don’t forget the quilt label.