Quilt Binding 101 - Preparing and attaching binding strips
This was a lucky week - for you, and for me. I had four quilts that needed binding prepared, so I was able to take lots and lots of pictures for a binding tutorial!
This is the first part of a binding series geared towards new quilters - we'll go over how to cut and prepare your binding strips and attach them to your finished quilt top here and then you can jump to either binding by machine, or binding by hand.
Binding 101 - Binding by Machine
If you prefer a video tutorial, it's in the works and coming soon!
In general, binding is a highly variable part of the process and there are several different methods out there. We mostly cover common beginner-friendly methods for simplicity, and with practice you'll develop your own preferences! Remember - there's no rules. It's your quilt!
Step 1: Trim your quilt
Yes - this part is a pain. Yes - you should do it even if your long-arm quilter already trimmed it for you. Yes - you'll be sorry you didn't when you realize after putting the binding on that you have ravels and batting showing and have to rip the binding off to fix it.
Just trust me on this one.
Commandeer a large space of hard floor or a large table, and grab your rotary cutter, longest straight edge ruler, and cutting mat. Maybe knee pads. (I hate this part) Lay the quilt out as flat as you can and using the borders or blocks as a guide, trim your edges straight and corners square with a little scoot-and-trim, scoot-and-trim all the way around the quilt.
I prefer to start with two corners, then trim the edge between. You can trim a little off, or a lot - it just depends on the design you're working with. I typically take ~ 1/2" off a quilt with borders so I know it's good and straight.
(The quilt pictured doesn't have borders, so I trim much closer to the real edge of the fabric so I don't lose any of the design.)
Step 2: Cut and join binding strips
No matter which binding method you use, you'll cut binding strips from yardage. Most throw size quilts will use 1/2-3/4 yards of fabric, but it also depends on what width you cut your strips. We write our fabric requirements for 2 1/2" binding strips. Personally, I use thin batting and my presser foot sews a scant 1/4" seam, so I typically use 2 1/4" binding strips. If you're not sure which size to use, you can cut a small piece of binding 4-6" long and test it by going through all the steps below using a large stitch length that's easy to rip out.
I recommend always double checking what the pattern asks you to cut for binding strips. Most patterns are written for 40-42" Width Of Fabric (WOF). Below is a math example:
Example: for a 68" x 90" quilt:
- Add up the length of all sides = total length of binding needed in inches
- 68" + 68" + 90" + 90" = 316" inches of binding to go around the quilt
- Add 10" - this is a buffer to allow for seam allowance and corners and joining your binding.
- Divide by your width of fabric (in my case - 42") = 7 1/2
- Round up to the nearest whole number -> 8
- I'll cut 8 strips for binding this quilt.
Cut the amount of binding strips you need, at the width you prefer. Trim the selvage off the ends, and stack them up while still folded in half. Now, we are going to make a long, long strip of fabric. (Yay! Ack...)
With the stack of binding strips in front of you, pick up the top layer and peel it back so it is out of the way.
Next, pick up the next two layers (they should already be right-sides-together) and sew the ends together with a 1/4" seam - the SIMPLIEST way to do this is a straight seam along the edge.
Repeat, using either joining method, until you have all the strips sewn together.
Now over to your iron which should be on and hot. Using the tip of the iron, press all the seams OPEN and then press the entire binding strip in half length-wise: WRONG-sides-together. (I somehow didn't get a photo here, so enjoy a random binding from the archives instead!)
Now you're ready to attach the binding to your quilt. Take your quilt and the wad of folded binding over to your sewing machine. You could roll the binding up and place it around something to keep it organized as you sew it on, as Cait does with a spare thread spool holder. With all the cats in her studio she's careful to keep it up on the table to the right of her machine and off the floor where it more easily tempts cats. A lesson learned after one of them ate a hole right through the middle of that long mess of binding! ....or you can do what I do and promptly toss it on the floor with one end in your lap.
Step 3: Attach the binding to the quilt
Here is another area where you can chose to do this one way or the other, there is no right way, just preference. You are either going to attach your binding to the front of your quilt and finish on the back ( as I prefer and show here) or you can start on the back of the quilt and finish on the front ( as Cait prefers ).
Starting in any random part of the quilt, not too close to any corners, lay your binding down so the raw edge of the binding and raw edge of the quilt are together.
Leaving a 6" tail behind your starting point, begin stitching the binding on with a 1/4" seam - remember to backstitch at the beginning to secure it. Binding tends to shift, so hold it down tight with your fingers and go slowly! If you are lucky enough to have a walking foot with a 1/4" edge, use it. Otherwise, lighten up your pressor foot pressure significantly, this reduces shift while sewing.
If you notice the layers shifting badly, go ahead and allow a tiny pleat in the binding to get it back on track. Typically, a little pleat will only happen in top-most layer of the binding that is folded over in the end, so it's not a big deal.
When you approach a corner, check to see if your presser foot has a small 1/4" tick mark in front of the needle (most do, but not all). If it doesn't, pause before the corner with enough room to mark either with fabric safe pen or a pin a 1/4" from the edge you are approaching. Stop stitching exactly on the 1/4" mark with the needle in the down position. (Either by pushing a button or turning your hand crank.)
On my foot, the first red tick mark is exactly 1/4" in front of the needle. You can barely see the white fabric under the pink binding, lined up with this tick mark. If I didn't have the tick mark, I would have stopped when my needle reached my line 1/4" from the corner and have the same picture.
Leaving the needle in the down position, pivot your quilt 90 degrees. Your foot edge should now be lined up with the new quilt edge (pictured here in white).
Backstitch right off the edge of the quilt and pull it away from the needle a bit. (Don't break the thread - but if you do, just go back and backstitch where you stopped at the corner to secure those stitches and move on.)
Fold the binding edge up, making a 45 degree angle that leads all the way to the corner.
Keeping the 45 degree fold in place, bring the strip back down on itself so the second fold is parallel with the quilt edge.
To double check the folds - if I lift my finger holding the binding down, you will see the 45 degree fold is still in place:
Holding the folds down carefully, start stitching again with a 1/4" seam. If you cut threads, be sure to backstitch here to secure it.
Once you stitch down the strip a bit, you can double check your corner by folding it to the back - you should have a nice miter on the front side of the quilt:
A quick note on corners - they are hard! Don't sweat it if your miters aren't perfect - it takes some practice to get nice, neat corners. Once your quilt is done and couch-ready, not a single person is going to care two wits about what your corners look like!
Keep going all the way around the merry-go-round until you get 8" or so from where you started and backstitch, leaving a tail and a gap in the binding.
Take your quilt to your cutting mat and overlap the tails. Again - there are two methods for joining binding at the end.
Straight join
The simplest way: measure and trim the tails so they overlap by 1/2", roughly in the middle of the un-sewn gap.
Sew the two tails right-sides-together with a 1/4" seam - this is somewhat tricky, but if you pinch your quilt in half you can get the tails to meet more easily. Finally, finger press the seam open. I don't bother with using the iron in this step and have never had a problem.
Alternate: Diagonal join
The other method is a diagonal join and preferred if you need to reduce bulk. Overlap the ends, marking and trimming an overlap that is the same width as your binding...example: cut an overlap of 2 1/2" if you have 2 1/2" binding. (An easy way to measure this is with the unfolded end of your binding strip!)
Fold one edge on the diagonal to give you a nice crease to follow, line up the ends at a right angle, and sew a diagonal seam corner-to-corner. Trim it to a 1/4" seam allowance and finger press the seam open.
After joining the ends either way, refold the binding, lay it flat to the quilt, and finish stitching it down. (Backstitching to secure your start and stop!)
Now you get to decide - are you going to fold the binding over and machine stitch it down, or hand stitch? There are pros and cons to both - if you are undecided or need some guidance with either option, we have tutorials for both!
At the June Thimble, we aren't about the Quilt Police. We recognize there are several ways to bind a quilt, and we support each and every method that helps you finish your quilt and start enjoying it! Remember - if you find a preference that works for you, or like us, switch your methods depending on your project, there is no right or wrong way.
Happy sewing!
Rebecca
