Hanging Sleeve Instructions

Direction for Making a Hanging Sleeve

Please note, all quilts submitted to the 2009 YVQG Quilt Show are required to have a 4" hanging sleeve attached to the quilt at the time it is delivered to the show for display.

1. Begin by measuring the top of the Quilt that you are putting the sleeve upon. Subtract 1 inch from this measurement.

2. Use the measurement in number 1 and cut or construct a 9 inch wide piece of material by that length.

Example: I have a 20 inch quilt so the material I cut for my sleeve will be 9 inches by 19 inches.

Note: Material is the strongest from selvage edge to selvage edge. If my quilt was over the width of the material I was using, I would probably cut more than one strip, join them together with a half inch seam, press and stitch the seam open. (The person threading the rod into the sleeve to hang will thank you for doing this.)

3. Hem both ends of the strip with a ½ inch hem. This will make your length 2-3 inches less than the top length of your quilt.

With wrong sides of the sleeve together, stitch a ½ inch seam the length of the sleeve.
Press the seam open and center it in the middle of the tube you have just made. (You should now have a flat tube with two creased edges and the seam pressed open between the creased edges. The seamed side of the tube is the back of the tube.)
Place the back of the tube (seamed side down) on your ironing board. Take the bottom creased edge and fold it forward and up about ½ inch and make another crease with your iron. (You now have a small pleat on the bottom of your tube.) Unfold the pleat and pull the material upward. Run the iron along the bottom crease of the open pleat. (You will use this second crease to sew down the bottom of your sleeve so you have extra material in the front of the sleeve for the rod and your quilt will not bulge upon hanging.)

You are now ready to sew, baste, pin etc. the sleeve to your quilt. Remember all quilts except Silent Auction ones must have a sleeve to be entered in the show. Quilts over 90 inches should have their sleeves placed at 90 inches from the bottom. All other quilts should have the sleeves at the top of the quilt. This is not the only way to make a sleeve but remember we need at least a 4 inch sleeve.