NQA Week #7 - Binding

Well, Murphy's Law certainly did enter full force while I have been working on this Quilt-Along.  A couple of weeks ago my new laptop died.  And by died I mean...worked fine one day and then wouldn't turn on the next.  Luckily the hard drive was the only thing that didn't fail, so they ended up putting it into a new computer.  Weird.  I still had all of my content but having my computer gone meant I didn't have access to any of the pictures of my binding post.


But, all of that is over with now and I can finally conclude this Quilt-Along.  Assuming lightning doesn't strike me down or something.


Just a reminder.  Seams are 1/4" unless otherwise specified.  WOF stands for Width of Fabric.  You are now back to using your all purpose thread.  However I recommend keeping the 14/90 needle on your machine.


Making your binding:


Step 1 - Cut (9) 2 1/4" WOF strips.  We are cutting more than we need so we have extra to work with as we close up the binding at the end.  (And it helps in case you make a mistake.)  Trim off the selvages.  (***We don't make bias binding because we will not be going around any curves.)

Step 2 - Place one strip right side up, and at a 90° place a 2nd binding strip right side down.  Pin these together as in picture #2 (above).  Use a fabric marking pen or a pencil to mark a diagonal line from the bottom left to the top right corner.


Step 3 - Stitch along this line remembering to back stitch at the beginning and end.  Continue doing this with all of your binding strips adding one strip to the longer strip you are piecing together until you have one long pieced binding strip.


Step 4 - Once all of your binding is pieced together trim the seam allowances of your stitching down to a 1/4".  Pictured in Step 4 above.  Press these seams open.


Step 5 - Fold your binding in half lengthwise and iron it so that the long raw edges meet and wrong sides are together.


Attaching Your Binding to the Front:

Step 1 - Starting about 1/2 - 2/3 of the way down the side of your quilt, and leaving a 10" tail loose, begin pinning your binding to the quilt top edge.  Raw sides of the binding along the raw edges of your quilt.


Step 2 - As you approach the corner use a ruler to mark with either a fabric pen/pencil, or a pin, where a 1/4" in from the edge is.  This is where your stitching will stop.


***Your stitching will be easier and you will avoid puckering on your quilt top if you use a walking foot and go slowly.  Stitching is 1/4" in from the edge.  So you can use a 1/4" walking foot or place painter's tape on your machine to mark where a 1/4" is.  If you use a walking foot be sure to read the instructions carefully for your foot.  Remember...go slowly.  A walking foot is a slow paced foot.  Going fast will mess up your stitching.


Step 3 - Begin your stitching where you began pinning, remember to leave that 10" tail hanging loose.  When you get to your mark or pin 1/4" in from the corner back stitch and remove your quilt from the machine.  You don NOT want to stitch all of the way to the edge here.


Step 4 & 5- Now take your loooong binding (not that little tail we left) and we're going to miter the corner.  Flip the binding straight up and away from you to create a right angle.  Hold that fold in place and then flip the binding back down and begin pinning the raw edge along the raw edge of your quilt.  The cleaner you can get this corner to look the nicer miter you will have for hand stitching on the back.


Step 6 -  Beginning at the top edge back stitch and continue.  Repeat steps 2-5 for the next 3 corners.  After the last corner we will change our procedures to get ready for closing off the binding.


Closing your Binding - 

Step 1 - After your last corner stitch until you are about 10-12 inches away from the very start of your binding stitching.


Step 2 - Fold each side of the binding back on itself, leaving a 1/2" gap between.


Step 3 - Trim your ends measuring back from the folded edges you just created half the width of your binding strip.  (We used a 2 1/4" width so we would measure 1 1/8" and trim.)  See picture below.

Step 4 - With the raw edge of the quilt closest to you, (reference the step by step picture above) open the binding strips, place right sides together.  Put the right side on the bottom (right side up) and the left side on top (right side down).  Sew diagonally from the top right corner to the bottom left.


***Be sure you don't get your tails twisted up all crazy.  If you do you'll have to rip out stitches.  So before you trim your seam allowance, fold your binding to match the rest and make sure it lays down flat.  If it doesn't you need to pick out your stitches and try again.


Step 5 - Once you know your binding will lay correctly trim your seam allowance to 1/4" and press the seam open either with your fingers or an iron.


Step 6  - Pin down your completed binding to the quilt edge, and beginning 1/2" above where you're stitching stopped begin stitching down the rest of your binding remembering to back stitch at the beginning and end.  End your stitching about a 1/2" down into the start of your original binding stitches.  Your binding should now be closed.


Stitching Your Binding to the Backing:


Now that you have your binding secured to the front of your quilt, we need to secure it to the back.  We will do this with a hand needle and the all purpose thread from your machine.  I used to hate this part, but now I find it to be very relaxing as I can sit in front of the TV and veg while I stitch.


Step 1 - Fold your binding over to the back of the quilt and hold in place with binding clips.  By doing this we hide the seam allowance and raw edge of the quilt.  Nifty, huh?  Make sure that your binding is covering up the stitches you just made on the front.

Step 2 -

Step 3 -
When I refer to the "seam allowance" here I mean between the stitches from putting your binding on and the edge of your quilt.  This area will be hidden from view as we stitch our binding down.

Step 4 -  I find that I have an unusual binding stitch in that I use a blind stitch.  There are other ways of doing this, but this is how I do it.  I like it to be invisible.  Be careful not to stitch through the quilt top.  You only want to go through the backing and batting.  My stitches are about an 1/8" below the stitch line.

Mitering Corners:

Step 1 - 

Step 2 -

Step 3 -

Step 4 - 

Step 5 -

As you come close to the end of your threads, just make sure to knot off in the seam allowance.  I do this by taking a couple of stitches in the seam allowance and then passing my needle through the last loop I create in my last stitch 2-3 times.   I then take the needle through the backing/binding up through the folded outer edge of the binding and trim off the loose threads there.  When I start a new thread, I start back a stitch or two into my previous stitches to make sure everything is secure.

I'll be back in a few days to share my completed quilt.  As always feel free to ask questions here or on Facebook!  Thanks for being so patient.

Sew long for now!

-Amanda-