Mastering Binding: A Step-by-Step Guide for Quilt Enthusiasts
Are you ready to elevate your quilting game?
One of the key techniques to achieve a polished and professional finish on your quilts is sewing on binding.
In this blog post, we’ll guide you through the process step by step, ensuring that you not only understand the technique but master it with ease.
**Understanding Binding**
Binding is a fantastic way to add a beautiful frame to your quilt, providing both durability and a clean edge.
Materials You’ll Need:
1. Quilt in need of binding
2. Fabric for binding
3. Sewing machine
5. Walking foot
4. Matching thread
5. Pins
6. Iron and ironing board
Step-by-Step Guide
**1. Cut and Join Your Strips**
Begin by cutting your fabric strips. The width of your strips will depend on your preferred finished binding width.
A common choice is 2.5 inches. Join the strips on a right angle with right sides together and sew diagonally in place. Check that the strips are straight and redo if you require. Once you are happy they are in place trim 1/4” from your sewing line, you’ll end up with a small triangle of fabric as a scrap. Keep sewing strips together until you achieve the desired length. Iron the seams together in one direction
**2. Prepare and Attach the Binding**
Fold the binding strip in half lengthwise and press it with your iron. Place the raw edge of the binding onto the top side of your quilt along the raw edge of the quilt. You can pin the binding in place or leave it loose and hold in place when sewing.
**3. Sewing the Binding**
Using a ¼ inch seam allowance and your walking foot, place the binding part of the way down one edge of the quilt and leave approximately 6” of the binding unsewn. Start sewing the binding to the quilt. When you reach a corner, stop a quarter-inch away from the end. Stop and cut your thread. Take the quilt out of the machine and rotate to the following edge, lift the binding up and hold the folded corner then straight down to get the right angle and continue sewing down the next side. This technique will create crisp corners.
**4. Joining the Ends**
When you approach the starting point of the binding stop approximately 8-10 inches from the beginning.
Cut a few inches off the excess binding. Open this piece out and place at the end of the bottom piece of binding making sure you are using the 2 1/2” width. Lay the top piece of binding on top of the cut off piece and using this as a guide cut the excess off. Open both ends of the binding and place them at right angles with right sides together (same as in the first step for joining the strips) making sure not to twist them. Pin and sew diagonally then check that the binding is correct with no twists then once happy cut the corner off a ¼ inch from the sew line and iron to one side. Sew the binding in place onto the quilt.
**5. Finishing Touches**
I like to check that my binding has been sewn in place correctly and resew any missed area if need be. I do this by placing the quilt top side facing up on my ironing board and ironing the binding away from the quilt, you should be able to see if you have missed sewing any of the top in place. Fold the binding over the edge of your quilt to the back and secure it in place with pins. I pin as I go about 8 inches along. This last step I do by hand sewing the binding in place. If you prefer using a sewing machine I would then pin the binding in place around the whole of the quilt with the pins on the top side of the quilt and then stitch in the ditch. Make sure you catch both the front and back sides of the binding.
Your quilt is now complete
Happy quilting!