Here's how! Let say your outside measurements will be 200 inches. TIP: When I cut this piece to join the binding, I always cut the binding ¼” less than the width of the binding. I don’t know why, but I looked at every tutorial on the Internet, and could not get it to work. Three Ways to Cut Quilt Binding Strips. So here is my trick for joining the strips together perfectly (i.e. More. The easiest way to explain is to show you ( thanks for the images, Polly!) Pin FB. You can join quilt batting as much as you want because no one will know if your quilt has Franken-batting on the inside (sorry, Halloween is coming). For either method to work, cut the batting edges to be joined as straight as possible. For this quilt binding method we will attach the binding to the back of the quilt first. You can make quilt binding in any size you'd like, but 2 1/4 (2.25 inches) or 2 1/2" strips are most common - this will give you a binding width of about 1/4" on the front and back of your quilt. My binding looks so much better since I started using this joining technique. The first video covers most of the basics – from trimming the quilt sandwich, joining the binding strips with a diagonal seam and joining the binding ends with a “pocket”. … Generally this will be 2 1/2 inch strips folded in half to make a one inch binding. The black line is where youll sew to join the strips. Attach binding to back of quilt. For joining two blocks you need two strips: – for the front sashing: 1 strip – 1 1/8” wide and as long as your block (15” in my case) – for the back sashing: 1¾” wide and as long as your block (15”); fold it in half lengthwise and press. I really like using the stitching lines for this because I hate drawing on fabric. I'll show you both ways and that way, you can use whichever method resonates best. It's a nice size. When you get to a corner, fold the strip up, away from the quilt top so that it’s creased at a 45° angle. However, you can also use this method for piecing together strips for quilt borders. How to join binding: Using WOF of fabric, cut the number of strips needed; My 8 strips are cut out; This is how I set up to sew a diagonal seam. She says… The key is to fold the triangle away from you – the fold should be closest to your body. Most often, we piece strips together for binding- because you need a looooooong continuous strip of fabric to go around all the edges of your quilt. Line your binding strip up around the edges of your quilt. If you found this tutorial helpful, you might also like to check out my tutorial for How to Match Prints When Piecing a Quilt Back. I am going to link this post to the Tutorial tab at the top of this page. You could mark the diagonal if you prefer. With your binding strips cut, now comes the fun of joining them. I’m going to focus today’s tutorial on the pocket method and a little trick I discovered to get perfect mitered corners. Usually, the last step in making a quilt is to fabricate and attach the binding around the quilt perimeter. Quilt Binding Instructions: How to Join Quilt Binding Ends. Width of binding strips: For most of my quilt projects, I cut my strips 2½ inches by the width of the fabric. straight). Sew on that diagonal in order to join the strips. Divide the total by 40” (safest usable fabric width, especially if pre-washed) to determine how many cross-cut (selvage-to-selvage) strips are needed to make the quilt binding. Place your binding strip on your quilt top so that the open edges are in line with the outer edge of the quilt top. Janet Wickell / The Spruce When you're sewing quilt binding to the last side, end the seam four to six inches from the original starting point, less for miniatures, and then backstitch. Advertisement. Because you’re cutting bias strips instead of a perfect square, it doesn’t matter if your choice of binding fabric has been cut into previously. Joining strips of binding on the bias makes your binding less bulky than if you butt them together on the straight grain. In the final section of my Beginner's Quilt series, I describe a method for attaching the binding - a method I have used for years and have never had a problem with, I have always joined the ends in this way, without actually sewing them together, and they've never come apart. How To Join Quilt Binding Strips "A fabric binding is the final step in making beautiful handmade quilts, wall hangings, placemats, aprons, and many other things. I did forget to mention that the Stitching Lines are also a great tool for making half square triangles. Continue to cut, join and square up until you have the number of pieces of batting you need. But binding most definitely has a place in sewing, and even though the process of joining the strips is easy, I've had my share of sewing misadventures when stitching the pieces together. Sew on the fold line. I’ve simply sewed my binding strips together to form one long piece of fabric. Not to mention the joining seam is smaller. The gray strip represents the binding strip on the left, so its headed across and toward the right. Sometimes, in order to achieve the total necessary length, individual binding strips must be sewn together to create 1 long strip. Happy Sewing! Turn the strip over and press again from the right side. Quilting For Beginners Quilting Tips Quilting Tutorials Quilting Projects Beginner Quilting Jaybird Quilts Strip Quilts Patch Quilt Sewing Binding. On average, a quilt for me generally takes 8 to 9 strips, and I can get that easily out of a 1/2 yard of fabric. If you need to make longer strips to fit the project, we recommend joining extra strips of fabric on the bias to reduce the extra bulk of the seam. Be generous with your estimate! June 6, 2013 by Mary H 6 Comments. I use a line marked on my table to guide me when sewing the diagonal. 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