Quilt Binding 101 - Binding with hand stitches

December 17, 2024

Welcome to the most thorough tutorial you may ever read about binding your quilt with invisible hand stitches! For those of you who learn best with words and pictures, this is for you, and written for beginners to be able to follow along.

For those of you who prefer video - that's in the works and coming soon!

This tutorial jumps from where we left off in the Quilt Binding 101 - Preparing and attaching your binding strips. If you need guidance on how to cut, press, join, and attach your binding strips to your quilt, start there.

Now - let's get started!

Binding by Hand

Pros:

My favorite thing about hand binding is the invisible finish from the front of the quilt.
I find something very therapeutic about hand stitching. Some people really love it for that reason.
You get to spend some time snuggled under your quilt while you put the final touches on it.
The ability to be creative and add decorative or interesting stitching

Cons:

Time - if you're fast, maybe it only takes you an hour to two. If you're like me and get distracted every ten minutes, it can take days.
Some people don't like the "puckered" look hand stitches can give.
Plain and simple, some people just don't like to stitch by hand. That's ok!

Don't let anyone guilt you into feeling like you SHOULD hand stitch your binding. You do whatever you want - it's your quilt. I do both depending on the quilt and my mood - done is beautiful.

Get snuggled on the couch with your quilt, turn on a favorite movie, and have the following supplies within arms reach:

Needle - you can use any sharp needle, but if you're looking for a recommendation I love these small, sharp needles by John James: Gold'n Glide quilting needles, size 9. They are quite small and that takes a bit of getting used to, but they are my favorite for binding and have a nice big eye on them for easy threading.
Thread - many people like to match their thread to the binding fabric. I use either gray, black, or white since I don't like to stock lots of thread colors. Any thread will work, but if you find cotton thread shredding on you try switching to a wax coated thread or polyester - I now use this Gutermann quilting thread exclusively for hand stitching and love it. Just keep in mind you CANNOT use waxed thread in your sewing machine!
Scissors
Thimble (a matter of preference on how many and which fingers to put them on - your sore fingers will tell you quickly where you need one.)
Clips - 4-6 is enough

To knot the thread (a quilter's knot), wrap the end of the thread around the needle four times, then use your fingernails to gently slide the wrapped thread off the end of the needle (towards the eye). Continue sliding it all the way to the end of the thread, pulling it tight 1/2" or so from the end. You're looking for a nice, neat little knot. This can take a little practice!

Start by folding the binding over, covering the raw edge, and place 5-6 clips spaced about 3" apart. (I like to hold my quilt with the binding facing me, and stitch from right to left. If this feels awkward, play around with holding it different ways.)

We'll be stitching what's called a "blind stitch" - the thread runs in between the backing and front fabric, poking up in little "nabs" to grab the binding fabric. This stitch, with tiny little nabs, can be virtually invisible.

Insert your needle a inch-ish from your starting point, coming up in a tiny little "nab" in the binding fabric. Be careful not to stitch through all the layers - the needle should run in between the front and back fabrics. Once in a awhile I'll get a stitch that shows on the front and it's not a big deal.

Pull it through until your knot is resting on top of the backing fabric - now give the thread a good tug, and your knot should "pop" under the fabric. (This is called "burying" the knot.) Invisible!

If you're having trouble getting your knot to bury, pull the thread back out (or snip it and re-knot) and simply take a stitch under the binding instead. Once you fold the binding over, you won't see the knot.

Now insert your needle into the backing fabric right where you came up, and come up again 1/4" or so from your last little nab.

Insert your needle into the backing fabric right where you came up again. Keep repeating this stitch. If you look carefully, you can see a row of tiny white stitches:

Once you reach the end of your thread, I like to take a double stitch over my last nab to secure it, and then tie a little knot right on top of the fabric. Insert your needle as if you're taking another stitch, but come out 1" or so away from the backing fabric and bury the knot. Trim the excess thread.

I often have trouble burying my knot here - if your thread snaps, it's not a big deal. The knot is small enough you won't notice it. You can also take a double stitch and instead of tying a knot next to the fabric, take a long stitch that comes out where you'll fold the binding over and tie a knot there. Once you fold over the binding, it will hide the knot.

Start your next piece of thread a few stitches back so you have some overlap.

Corners

There are multiple ways to hand stitch a mitered corner. I'll show you the way I do it, though it's not the most invisible method. If you search the internet, you will come across other tutorials with different methods - choose what you like!

Take a double stitch right where the fabrics meet in the corner, then take your next stitch up through the middle of the corner. Take three whip stitches in a row to secure the two sides together, then on the fourth stitch come back out in the corner where you started. This method is simple, quick, and secure. If the stitches showing bother you, try other ways! There's no rules.

Keep stitching in tiny nabs all the way around all five..ahem..four corners of your quilt. (It always feels like five, doesn't it?!) When you get to the end, tie off your thread in a knot and bury it the same way you started it!

Wrapping it up...

In my experience, binding seems to be the area where new quilters are the most unsure of themselves. Largely because there are several different methods and preferences out there and it takes some time before you develop you own! (Don't even get me started on the Quilt Police...) My hope is by teaching you 1-2 methods it gives you a confident place to begin, and the rest will follow.

Happy sewing!

Rebecca