I am a fairly new quilter. I tie all my quilts. I don't have a machine capable of handling the queen sized quilts I make. I am on limited income so sending out to be quilted is not in my budget. I also would prefer doing my quilt from start to finish.
I also have used the backing from my quilt to make my binding, by folding it over. Perfectly acceptable. There has been many a discussion on if you can call a quilt a quilt if it is tied. Sure it is. Tying quilts was done long ago, before sewing machines.
Do as you wish, take your mothers comments with a grain of salt. We love our parents, but, don't always agree
It's your quilt, it is made with love. That is all that should count