Time to sew the whole thing together. Take your time and handle the pinned quilt carefully as you move it around.

Approximate time: 2 hours

I set up my sewing machine, chair, and work board so that the underquilt lies on the board to my left as I sew. That lets is slide around easily as I progress. If you have to work on carpet, frequently check that the insulation isn't grabbing and pulling. Try to keep the underquilt as flat as possible to minimize your chances of having anything come out of place.

Before you start, it's very helpful to put in a full bobbin. One bobbin will do the whole thing and it's a real pain to have to change it out halfway through.

Okay, starting from the opening at the foot, sew all the way around the permiter (remember that you're leaving that opening that you marked off with pins in the last step -- don't sew over it). Sew with the insulation side down. I was instructed to do the opposite on my first top quilt and I think it's a huge mistake. With the nylon facing up you can very clearly see what you're doing and that everything is lining up correctly. Also, when I did it insulation up, it was constantly catching around the foot. Since doing insulation down, I get four or five snags for the whole thing.

Be careful nothing is snagging, especially underneath. My sewing machine has a metal clip for the cover on the edge below the floorplate. That thing loves to catch the insulation. Also, be careful of the table corners, sewing machine foot, and everything else. Insulation loves to hang onto stuff.

Work slowly and carefully. It takes a long time to do this. If you get sick of it, take a break and read about working with down.

I sew this part with a slightly larger seam. Because of the insulation underneath, the nylon will fold up around the foot a little. I sew with enough of a seam that it's just nylon folding back up not insulation. Again, start with a good length of bartacking, sew the first line with the needle centered, then the next with the needle offset so that you have two lines of stitching a half inch or so apart.

Don't bother trying to sew "up and back" on this part. Just sew the two lines separately. If you start and end them at the same place, you'll still wind up with two threads on each side of each end to knot together.

For the other parts of the quilt I often pull the pins out after the first seam to avoid sticking myself as I work. For this part I leave them in for both because they help hold the shockcord housing and Grosgrain in place.

Here's the foot opening we left to pull everything right side out.

The underside of the foot opening. Note the threads waiting to be tied.

Once you're done, lay the whole quilt out and trim the insulation, leaving about 3/4" around the whole perimeter. You want enough to keep the stitches holding over the years, but will probably find that trimming the excess saves about an ounce.

Time to hold your breath and turn everything right side out. There's a real giving birth vibe to this part. Reach in the foot opening and pull everything carefully right side out. If it gets tight, try pushing from the back side. If everything went well, you should see all the drawcord channels and their openings and all of your Grosgrain loops.

The last step is to top-stitch the foot opening together. Again, pin everything first and work carefully. This and the reinforcement patch stitching are going to be your only visible stitches on the whole thing. It's better to get the insulation in the seam, but it's okay if you can't. It's a small area and the quilting will keep it in place anyway.

Top-stitching completed. Only one more big step to go.