A Must Read Custom Quilt Shopping Guide

When you buy a custom quilt you get more than just a quilt, you get an experience.

When we bought a customized Mini Cooper, it was fun to pick the options we wanted. The resulting car is one we love. And seeing it in person for the first time was a memorable experience.

My wife’s clients, who’ve bought custom quilts, have left reviews that are so full of emotion and joy that I thought it might be helpful to share how you can have a custom quilt made.

Custom Quilt Shopping Guide

Quilts are perfectly suited for customization. You can’t walk into a department store and easily customize the bedding you want (other than perhaps adding embroidery). But it’s easy to do online. Plus the costs are typically similar to a ready-made quilt. Some of my wife’s clients don’t stop with a custom designed quilt, they’ve also ordered matching pillow shams.

To get the most out of your experience, below are some things to consider.

1. Ensure you’re the right fit for custom work
   • Are you extremely detail oriented or a perfectionist? If so, your best bet is to find a local quilter who can share progress with you in person. That may help if you need complete control over fabric choice, exact details and design at every step.
   • If you’re ok with providing general direction and having the artist use their own inspiration to create the work, that’ll offer the best experience. Things that are good to suggest: colors in the room where the quilt will go. Often photos will suffice, but if you’re unsure, you can order fabric color swatches.

2. Decide on the quilt’s purpose and a size
   • Will the quilt have any special meaning? Perhaps it’s a memory quilt that includes clothes from loved ones – your children’s baby clothes or from parents who’ve passed.
   • Is it a wall hanging? Measure the space where it’ll be hung and consider the hanging mechanism you’ll use.
   • Is it for a bed? Don’t just rely on the size noted in a sale listing (full, queen). Check the measurements of both the quilt and your bed. Consider how much you’ll want hanging over the edge (called the drop).
   • Is it for wrapping up watching TV? If you want to cover just yourself while sitting, then a throw size may be fine (depending on how tall you are). But you if you want to wrap up in it completely or use it for two people, you likely want a larger size.
   • Do you want standard cotton fabric or something else (possibly flannel)?

3. Get inspired
   • Find designs that you like. An easy starting point is to share photos of what you like with the artist and suggest modifications and color choices. For some modern art quilt ideas take a look at this gallery. If you find some you like, consider Ramekin Quilts as your custom quilt artist (see her active listings or click Gallery to see some of the hundreds of quilts she’s made and sold).

4. Plan ahead
   • Typically making quilts is measured in weeks. It’ll usually take longer than 2 weeks and some quilters estimate delivery in 12 weeks or more depending on their queue. But timelines vary significantly for each artist and even from month to month so it’s worth asking.

5. Research the artist
   • Narrow down a list of artists. Find artists who’ve made quilts you like. If you have time you can follow them on social media (like on Instagram where you can see new quilts as they’re released to the world).
   • Check out the artist’s About page – what gives their work meaning? Here’s an example.
   • Do they have any reviews from previous custom work or photographs? With custom work it’s especially important to find an artist with a body of work that shows a range of what they can create.
   • Has this artist created custom designs in the past? If not, it’s not a deal-breaker. But an experienced artist has already run through the gauntlet of challenges and learnings. A custom quilt isn’t the best situation for a new artist to learn their craft. Of course, everyone needs to start somewhere, you just need decide if it’s risky (weigh your options and consider how critical it will be to get your quilt in the timeline you need).

6. Communicate
   • Communication is a critical step. Clearly express any concerns or questions you may have upfront. Also set expectations. What amount of interaction do you want to have about the design? Every custom order I’ve seen has had a positive experience. That’s because clients let the artist’s inner muse guide the quilt creation. And they provided general guidance like this…
     • Share your timeline if you have one and ask about the artist’s estimated timeline for completion
     • Let the artist know the purpose of the quilt and why you are commissioning it (the things you considered in step 3).
     • Perhaps it’s for a certain room where you want colors to match or you’re pairing the quilt with a sofa.
     • Do you have any color preferences? Perhaps the colors in a room or of a sofa. Often photos will suffice, but if you’re unsure, you can order fabric color swatches (or sometimes the artist may have fabric on hand that they can send to you if you know you’ll be purchasing a quilt from them).
     • Whether you’re sending any clothes
     • Do you want a standard or a lighter quilt? You could specify a lighter batting.
     • The quilt size. You’ll need to have some flexibility since fabric shrinks after the quilting process during the first wash. Even though it’s not an exact science, experienced quilters can work with you to design a quilt that should be very close to your needs. Some quilters don’t wash the quilt before shipping – you’d hope they include that information on their web page, but you can always ask.
   • The artist should respond to you with any clarifying question or to offer several options to find a design that works for you.
   • If you can’t reply promptly, be nice and let them know you need some time.
   • Also be upfront about your intent. Are you just starting to think about a purchase or in the final stages? Are there several other artist you are considering? It takes someone’s valuable time to answer your questions.

7. Deposit
   • Expect to pay a deposit (usually half of the total price) when you commit to the purchase. This will cover artist’s costs such as materials.
   • Usually the deposit is non-refundable. Even if an artist can resell what they make for you, they may not recoup their cost.

8. Be prepared to have fun