Binding
 

Hi I'm attempting to bind for the first time without much success on some placemats! Should I sew to the front or back and how wide should the binding be? Thanks

You will get several different ideas, Im sure. I cut my binding 2 1/4 inches and machine sew it to the front, and hand stitch to the back. Good luck!

Yep, me too. I'm sure there are some tutorials on how to do the corners and connect the ends. I think that was the hardest for me to master.

Just a couple more hints. Cut the binding on the bias and press your seams open where you have to connect pieces together. I sew the cut edged along the edge of the quilt so the folded edge gets wrapped around to the back. That way there aren't any raw edges of fabric to deal with.

Good luck. Let us know how it goes.

Same here.

I cut my binding to 2 1/4 inch strips, machine sew it to the back of the mat and hand stitch it down on the front.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uf7Mm_m...%3Duf7Mm_mkbCc This is a Kaye Woods YouTube video. Her method works well for me. And this link is a PDF from her website I keep on hand for reference for binding sizes and instructions as well. http://www.kayewood.com/tips/bindings.pdf

For the folks who cut strips at 2 1/4"...what seam allowance do you use?

I was taught that different quilts may call for different sizes of binding. the smaller the quilt, the smaller the binding usually. The math rule given to me was to decide on the width of the finished binding (or the seam allowance to be used) and multiply it by 7 to determine how wide to cut the binding strip ( this is for the folded binding). this provides enough to hand finish the binding. Since I always finish my bindings by machine, I multiply finished width by 7 then add a quarter inch to give me (after folding) and extra eighth of an inch to allow for machine stitching. Since I finish it by machine, I stitch to the front, fold to the back, pin carefully and stitch in the ditch on the front.

unless it is a very special quilt, i use the 2 1/4" folded binding, sewing it 1/4" seam allowance on the back and then sewing down the front. i don't pin the front... just make sure the binding covers the from-the-back seam.

I cut my binding strips 2-1/2", sew it to the front using a 3/8" seam, fold to the back and hand stitch it down. Just what I like.