Loading a quilt on the frame

I took some pictures lately, showing how a quilt was loaded on the frame... I thought this might be interesting to share here on my blog. 

First the backing is pinned (wrong-side up) to the canvas leaders on the back bar & the lower front bar....  The fabric is not pulled tight, but just enough tension so it will lay flat between the 2 bars. 

Then one side of the quilt top is pinned to the leader on the top front bar, and the other side is loose. 

Then, the bar that holds the quilt top is raised, so that the batting can be laid in between the two layers of fabric.

I lower the bar again, and baste around the edge of the quilt top with the quilting machine. See how the batting is sandwiched in between the quilt top & the backing.... 

After this, I can quilt a section of quilt, and then roll up each completed section on the back bar. 

Eventually, the whole quilt will be rolled up on the back bar, and will be completed.  Then I can un-pin the quilt & take it off of the frame. 

And, here are some pictures of the quilt that was on the frame when I took the pictures-  this was made for a 4-H project, and it's her first quilt!  She really did a great job with piecing a large quilt.  The stars seem to dance across the quilt top, with the lighter & darker purple fabrics & the way it's pieced.  Very pretty.

It was quilted with an all-over swirly design, using light purple thread.