My Best Techniques for Making a Quilt Binding at Home
Making a quilt binding is generally the component of a project where I sense a weird blend of total exhaustion and pure exhilaration. You've spent days, maybe even a few months, picking fabrics, trimming pieces, and wrestling that heavy quilt sandwich throughout your device. You're so close up to the finish off line that you can almost experience yourself curling upward under it with a good guide. But before that will happens, you've got to wrap those raw edges in a way that will looks clean plus, moreover, stays place after a few trips through the wash.
We used to think of binding since a little bit of a chore, but honestly, it's the frame intended for your artwork. In case you rush it, you might finish up with wavy edges or edges that look more like lumpy pockets than crisp points. For just a little extra care during the process, it makes a world of distinction.
Choosing Your Fabric and Cutting the Strips
The first thing you have got to decide whenever making a quilt binding is how you want to cut your fabric. You've basically got two choices: straight grain or bias. With regard to most rectangular quilts, straight grain is totally fine plus saves a lot of fabric. You just reduce strips across the particular width of the fabric (WOF). Nevertheless, if your quilt has curved sides or if you're making something that's going to obtain a ton of heavy use, bias binding is the way to go. Because bias pieces are cut from a 45-degree position, they have got a great deal of stretch plus the threads won't wear through as quickly on the flip.
Most individuals prefer their binding strips to become either 2. 25 inches or 2. 5 inches wide . When you like a really narrow, delicate edge, go with 2. 25. In the event that you want a bit more "meat" to get onto when you're finishing it—especially if you're machine-stitching the particular final side—2. five inches will be your best friend.
Once you've cut your own strips, you need to join all of them together. Don't simply sew them end-to-end with a straight seam. That produces a big lump of fabric in one spot that's a nightmare to sew over. Instead, sew them collectively at a 45-degree angle . It seems fancy, but a person just lay one particular strip perpendicular in order to the other, sew across the diagonal, and trim the particular excess. This propagates the bulk of the seam away over a few of inches, making the whole binding much smoother.
The Magic associated with the Iron
I cannot stress and anxiety this enough: your own iron is your most important tool whenever making a quilt binding. After you've joined all your strips into one very long, continuous ribbon, head over to the ironing board. Press all those little diagonal seams open so they lay toned. Then, fold the particular entire long remove in half lengthwise, wrong sides together, and press the particular whole thing.
Now you have a long, double-fold binding. This "double-fold" is standard for most quilters due to the fact it provides 2 layers of fabric on the advantage of the quilt, which usually means it's two times as durable. While you're pressing, do not pull or stretch the fabric, especially if you're working with bias strips. You want it to stay nice plus relaxed.
Obtaining Started on the Quilt
When you're ready to start sewing the binding to the quilt, don't start in a corner. It's a recipe regarding frustration. Pick a spot about halfway down one of the long sides. Leave a tail of about 7 to 10 ins of binding just dangling there—don't sew it down yet. You'll need that additional length later to participate the ends collectively cleanly.
Line up the raw sides of your binding using the raw edge of your quilt best. I usually pin the first few inches just to get my bearings, yet after that, I simply guide it along with my hands. Use a quarter-inch seam allocation . If your own machine has a walking foot, today is the time to make use of it. A walking foot assists feed all individuals layers (the binding, the quilt best, the batting, plus the backing) via at the exact same rate, so nothing shifts or puckers.
Nailing Those Mitred Corners
This is the part that usually trips people upward, but as soon as you obtain the rhythm down, it's actually pretty satisfying. As a person approach a corner, stop sewing precisely 1/4 inch from the particular end . Backstitch, cut your threads, and take those quilt out from underneath the needle.
Right now, fold the binding strip straight up, away from the quilt, so it creates a 45-degree angle. Maintain your finger upon that fold, plus then fold the strip back down therefore the top flip is flush with the edge you just sewed as well as the raw edges fall into line with the next side of the quilt. You'll have got a little triangular "pocket" of fabric tucked inside. Begin sewing from the very top of that new edge, and you've just produced a mitred corner. Once you eventually flip the binding to the back, that corner will amazingly snap into a perfect point.
Joining the Finishes Without the Mass
So, you've gone all the way round the quilt, mitred all edges, and now you're back to where you started. You've got your beginning tail as well as your closing tail, and so they need to meet up. This is usually the component where I keep my breath.
You will find a several methods to do this particular, but the "overlap" method is the particular most reliable. Put the starting tail flat against the quilt. Lay the finishing tail over the top of it. You want them to overlap by precisely the width associated with your binding strip. So, if a person cut your strips 2. 5 inches wide, they should overlap by 2. 5 inches. Trim the excess, then join those two ends at a 45-degree angle just like you did when you were making the long strip. It's a bit of a squeeze in order to get it underneath the needle, but it's worth it intended for a seamless end. Once it's stitched, finish that last stretch of the seam.
Hand Stitching vs. Machine Finishing
Right now comes the best argument: how do you finish it? You've got the binding sewn to the particular front, and today you need to fold it over the raw edge in order to the back.
- Hand Stitching: This is the "traditional" way. You fold the binding to the back again and use a needle and thread to do a blind stitch (or whip stitch) in to the backing fabric. It's slow, it's meditative, and it's totally invisible from the particular front. If I'm making a quilt for a competition or a special gift, I usually go this path. It's ideal for carrying out while watching a movie.
- Machine Finishing: If you're like me plus sometimes just need the project done , machine finishing is the way to move. You can possibly sew from the particular front and "stitch in the ditch" (sewing right in the particular seam in which the binding meets the quilt) so the needle catches the binding on the back again, or you can sew the particular binding to the back first and flip it in order to the front to topstitch it straight down.
Topstitching from your front is actually becoming a great deal more popular because it's incredibly sturdy. If you choose this, I recommend using a line that matches the particular binding perfectly therefore the stitches blend in.
A Few Final Thoughts
Don't defeat yourself up when your first try at making a quilt binding isn't perfect. My initial few quilts acquired corners that looked a small bit like "shrek ears, " plus you know what? They will still keep individuals warm. The greater you do it, the more your hands may just "know" just how much tension to put on the fabric and how to fold these corners without believing.
The almost all important thing would be that the raw edges are covered and the particular quilt is safe. Once you've completed that last stitch, give the whole edge a great press with plenty of steam. It assists the fabric settle into place and gives the binding that professional, "crisp" look. Now, move grab that guide and enjoy your own hard work!