Originally Posted by ccbear66
Ok I have a questions for all of you. I'm am ready to actually bind my first quilt. Usually my quilting lady does it for me. I have read several different methods. What method do you use and why. I think that I'm going to cut my binding 2 1/5 in. Does that sound about right? One more question do you sew all of it by machine or do you sew one side and then hand stitch it to the back. I have read both ways and don't know which way would be the best.
Thanks in advance for your help.
I use a two and a half inch binding for my big quilts and smaller bindings for smaller projects. I sew the binding to the top of the quilt by machine and then sew the binding to the back of the quilt by hand. I have a lot of friends who prefer to sew both the front and back by machine but I have noticed it does not look as neat and I have heard quilt judges remark on it when the stitching goes outside of the area it is supposed to (when the back has shifted and is not perfectly aligned it can cause the thread to veer off onto the back of the quilt or too far into the binding, giving a raised edge) and for me, I find I prefer to bind the back of it by hand rather than machine. I hope this helps.
I have to agree, I love putting on the binding. It's probably one of my favorite parts of making a quilt. It's like being in a marathon and suddenly you run over the hill and there, off in the distance, is the finish line. It's energizing! :!: The hardest part for me is sandwhiching a quilt, especially the king sized ones. UGH! It's the least fun part and to me it signifies that I'm only halfway done, which I find a bit despressing for some reason.
~Tiffany