binding
 

Hello... I tried a new pattern for table runners. I do like the overall pattern (triangle frenzy) but I did have some trouble with the binding. I was thinking about giving these as a wedding gift but then I saw the binding.

How picky do you get with the binding? I am trying to decide if the binding ruins the gift..... but then I am sure that I am looking must closer than they will

Do you guys need perfect binding before you would gift? I understand that it would be different if I was selling or making on comission... but this will just be given free.

Yes, when doing especially a wedding gift (that MAY be displayed with other gifts) or a commission quilt, I would be very picky. What happened?? I saw on F&P demo of Patrick Lose doing binding when he sewed off the corner of the binding at a 45 degree angle which gives you a much more accurate corner then the fold does. I can't remember who, but I think it was Jenny of MSQC doing the same technique.

I was also taught by Harriet Hargrave that you should always do your best on any quilt being a commission or a charity quilt.

Have you considered birthing the table topper? This would eliminate the need for binding.

birthing!! wow I should have thought of that :) I may try that with the next one.

I am not exactly sure what happened, that is what I have to learn. I know that these are not normal corners. They are made by laying 60 degree triangles side by side. I think I ended up with too much bulk or maybe I was too far from the edge???

maybe I will pick one of the problem corners out and see if I can re-do it to look cleaner

I agree, but this was my first time on this pattern. So just because I do my best that doesn't mean I did as well as someone else. :)

I have found these helpful. How to bind odd (non-ninety degree) angles:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vci9-li3aYU
How to bind 'innie' angles:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VGNcDoI-R8

The information on that Patrick Lose video is also in text with pictures in the magazine, I ripped it out and saved to a notebook. My gripe is that he does a great job until the point where you join the ends of the binding, then leaves you dangling. I do like the information he gives about stitching off at a 45 degree angle. For the tips on going back and taking out those little hidden tips at the corners, I couldn't figure it out from the photos until I saw the video that gave more detail.

Thank you so much!

You say that you had trouble with the binding, but without seeing it I don't think we can know whether it should be done over or not. It's very possible that you're just being too hard on yourself. (However, if YOU are not happy with it, then you'll probably want to do it over anyway before gifting.)

I think the way the binding looks is very important. A good binding can make a so-so piece look professional. And a bad binding can make an excellent piece look amateurish.

I agree about the importance of the binding. I don't know why but it is the first thing I look at when I am admiring a quilt...probably because it is the thing I find trickiest to do and therefore something I really appreciate when I see it done nicely.

If you are trying to decide, then you should not give the it as a gift. You want to be proud of what you make and give.

I am probably the wrong person to ask....I get myself in knots over dog quilts:). If you are not happy with it....redo or think of an alternative.

I have done this pattern both with a binding and "birthing" method. Usually I prefer to use a binding. However, after doing this pattern using a birthing method (I was in a hurry to complete) I liked the end results much better.

Since you are not happy with the binding then I think I would take it off watch some good videos & re-do it. I know ripping is a pain but I think you will be happier with the gift

Paper Princess your links worked and were informative. Thanks! Tartan, the link says it doesn't exist...??? I have a double wedding ring to bind soon, so would like to check out any ideas for binding that have curves/angles. Meryert, thanks for asking the question! :)

Joining the ends of the binding is not hard if you press a triangle into the beginning of the strip. Leave a tail about 8 inches long before you start sewing. (Start near a corner, so you have only a few inches to the corner.) When you come around to the finish, take the quilt out of the machine. Lay the binding onto quilt edge and cut off the end tail at the base of the triangle. Now the binding is overlapping just as much as the binding is wide. Pick up those two ends, opened out, and sew them together on the bias, just as you sewed all the other seams in the binding strip.

I have made several and did the "birthing" way. The pattern suggests that or binding if you prefer. I prefer turning it, quilting, and top stitching around the edge.

I have the triangle frenzy Safari and it calls for border prints. I can't find them anymore. Where do you guys find them?

Not coming up with anything here except wordpress stuff.

I agree with Dunster. If you are not happy with it, then do what you have to do to make it right. Others will not notice small errors, but we always see them in our own work. "If Momma ain't happy, ain't Nobody happy"

Thanks everyone! I love the support, tips and links that I got from this post :) This particular table runner had 6 corners to be mitered - I picked out the thread on 3 of them and redid those. Now they are much better - not perfect but I think I can live with them

That youtube tute is wonderful. Thank you, PaperPrincess.......:) I've saved it.....

Meyert, can you post a pic of the binding problem? I use a modified F &P method to join the ends that is fail proof---I leave about 10-12" tails at each end (actually the L hand one when it's laying on a table with the edge at the top needs to be about 15" or so--I save all the tails for string quilts). Then I fold back each tail and leave a 1/4" gap between the 2 folded edges(not with a bias binding! I use about a 3/8" gap with them). I press the folded ends and then open back and put the right sides together on the bias, matching the press lines and pinning like crazy! This is just like putting 2 stripes together on the bias to make a long strip---but you will have to scrunch the quilt up to get it pinned. Sew it together and pull it to check to make sure you did not get a twist in it. If no twist, trim and sew the rest of the binding to quilt.
I sometimes get "bad"miter at a corner--any tips there??

I always did the "take it out of the machine, fold it up and fold it back down" way, but found a way to do that easier and without taking it out of the machine.

When you get near a corner, stop sewing as far back as your seam allowance. If the seam allowance is 3/8 inch, stop 3/8 on an inch from the corner of the quilt top. Sew into the corner on a 45º angle. Leave your needle in the fabric at the end of that sew, just so the needle is in something. (If you've left a little bit of back and batting all around your quilt, you will have something to leave the needle in.) Turn quilt to sew down the next side. Lay the binding down the next raw edge. There will be a large "bump" forming in the binding as you turn that corner. Pinch it. Lay that pinched piece down so that the fold is at the top and the two folded binding edges are exactly together. Scrinch the fold up a little so that it for sure is up to the raw edge of the binding. Now lift the needle and move over to the seam line. Start sewing down that side. No need to cut the thread.

I've been doing this for a few years now, and like it so much better than taking it out of the machine, cutting threads and starting over with loose threads.

This is exactly what I do to join the ends of binding. That part is working great Thanks