I like the "piano key" border. You can use any many, or as few different colors as you like and it looks good.

I agree that piano key can add a beautiful and interesting finish to almost any quilt.

You can also do a crazy quilt border using adding machine tape as a base. It's a good way to use little bits.

a braid border is a neat look too.:)

Just type "piano key border" into the search function of the QB (which you'll find at the top of the screen) and press enter. You'll find lots that's already been written about it and plenty of photos.

I saw a posting for several borders made with half square triangles, sorry I could not find it again, but that is a place to start?

I really like the piano keys border too. made placemats for my sister with this type of border and she loved them. sorry, no camera, so no pics.

I made a border of 2" strips cut at a 45 degree angle. Turned out really nice on my scrappy quilt.

It just means that you cut all the strips to whatever width you want the border to be (plus seams obviously) then join them randomly by their long edges until they're long enough to make the border. It supposedly looks like the piano keyboard. ;-)

I think they look best if there's a skinny border to match the binding (preferably a darker solid fabric) between the 'piano keys' and the centre, so it's kind of framed. Otherwise it can look a bit messy. :-D

This is the EQ5 layout of the quilt. The greens are different than what I actually have and I decided to go with a solid black instead of a tone-on-tone. I'm digging the piano key border and I like your idea of putting in an inner border. I already have solid black so I'm thinking maybe I could use a tone-on-tone black for the inner border and binding so it doesn't blend in with the solid black and frame the quilt nicely.
[IMG]http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q...rAlternate.png[/IMG]

The picture in my avatar is a quilt with a piano key border, as well as a thin separating border. I made the "keys" in my border scrappy as well, but usually each key is a single fabric. Here's the link, if you'd like to see it bigger- http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-134899-1.htm :)

Thank you! I'm actually leaving the four-poster cutouts just as you see them in the photo. When I eventually finish quilting it, I will bind it all in the red.

look here for some ideas that will work with your quilt.

http://www.quilterscache.com/B/Borders.html

I use the piano key border a lot. Here's an example - http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-23986-1.htm

That is gorgeous!

I'm not sure that piano keys is the best border for your beautiful quilt, because it is all straight lines. I think I would try to preserve the curves of the center portion of the quilt. This is one idea.