Q&A: Common Questions about Quilting at Doodle
Well it seems to be the season for new folks joining the quilting family at Doodle! Or some of you coming back after building up a pile in preparation for the Holidays! So, I wanted to just go over a few common questions we get at Doodle - and give you their answers! If you have more that we missed here, leave a comment and we’ll get it answered asap!
I’ll include a few links throughout to places on our website where you can find more information on some of the questions and answers below!
Q: What services does Doodle offer?
A: At Doodle we offer edge-to-edge quilting, which means that we are quilting one design from one side of your quilt to the other. These types of designs are run with our computerized longarms. So, while they are set up and managed by us (the humans), the work of stitching is done by our automated machines.
We also offer prep and finishing services such as: piecing quilt backs, cutting, prepping and attaching your binding, finishing your binding (by machine) and creating a custom embroidered label for you quilt with the option for us to stitch it onto you quilt once the quilting is finished!
You can find more information on these services here: Getting Started with Doodle Quilting Studio
Q: How does Doodle charge for quilting?
A: At Doodle we charge by the square inch for edge-to-edge quilting. We offer designs in a tiered system. So, our economy designs (most basic, simple textures, etc.) are $.03/per square inch. The tiers go up to Standard ($.035) and Premium ($.04) from there - these are determined by a few factors such as detail of the design and/or density of the quilting. You can view a preview of the designs that meet each category on our website here: Edge-to-edge Quilting Designs.
If you are looking for an estimate on how much your quilting will cost, you can use our handy calculator here to find out: Quilting Calculator.
Q: What are my batting options? Can I bring my own batting?
A: We have quite a few battings to choose from at Doodle. We are happy to give recommendations on which might be right for your quilt based on the recipient, use, destination, etc. We have the following battings on hand:
Quilters Dream Wool
Quilters Dream Puff
Winline 50/50 Bamboo/Cotton
Winline 6oz 100% Bamboo and Winline 4oz 100% Bamboo
Dream Cotton (Natural and White)
Quilters Dream Bamboo (previously Orient)
Winline 100% Cotton
You are also welcome to bring us batting if you have some already. We encourage you to use high quality batting for the longevity and integrity of your quilt.
Q:What if I only have a quilt top? Can you help me?
A: If you only have a quilt top that is A-OK with us! We have a selection of extra-wide (108”) backing for you to choose from, as well as a selection of pre-made bias bindings. So, feel free to stop by with your quilt top and let us help you sort out the rest!
View our selection of wide-backs and bindings on our website: DQS Fabric Shop
Q: How do I get my quilt to you?
A: Doodle is what I like to call an “open working studio” meaning that we spend most of our time working on projects for folks without other people in the studio, we are open for you to come on in. We have in-person hours Monday through Friday and Sunday from 11am to 3pm.
You can also mail in quilts to our studio if you are out of town or just can’t get in to us. You can find out more about our Mail in Services Here!
Q: What is the largest quilt you can accommodate?
A: We can quilt a top up to 120” in width! We are not limited by quilt length. Your backing fabric can be up to 130”, which is the max our largest frame can handle.
Q: What is the smallest quilt you can accommodate?
A: We can quilt one block if you’d like (and have done that before). We do have a $50 min fee so we recommend bringing in a few small things at one time and quilting them on a single backing fabric to maximize the value of our time and your money!
Q: What thread colors do you offer?
A: So many! We have a full Rainbow of thread colors. We use Isacord 40wt Poly in our studio and it comes in hundreds of colors so we’ll be sure to find just the perfect shade for your quilt! We also have a small selection of variegated threads - however, it can be a challenge to stock variegated threads that work on specific colors of quilts. The majority of our variegated threads are some sort of rainbow or 3-color variation.
Q: Can you quilt with bag making foam like Soft & Stable?
A: Yes! We love to quilt on foam - it gives such a great texture and is a fun alternative to grid or line quilting to get cute designs for your quilted bags!
Q: How do I know how to prepare my quilt top/batting/backing for Doodle to quilt?
A: We are always happy to offer advice on how to prepare your quilt and other pieces for quilting at Doodle. We have written and video resources for you and if you still have more questions after reviewing those please feel free to stop by the studio in person or give us a call (907.764.4086) or email hello@doodlequiltingstudio.com.
Hopefully this quick Q&A helped answer some of your most burning questions about Doodle! One of our biggest goals at Doodle is to help quilters learn - we feel like there are always ways to improve our quilting (and ourselves) and we want what we do to make your beautiful work even more amazing!
Please let us know if you have any other questions I may have missed here and we’ll get them answered as quickly as possible!
Happy Quilting! :) Enjoli