For me doing the binding by hand is my favorite part of making a quilt.

I am love the hand sewing of bindings. I learned to do had work when I was very young it is just instinctual now to pick up that needle and hide those stitches. But I understand. I am not crazy about other parts of quilting, so I understand.

THANKS - but about the only hand work I still do is sewing the binding down,.....I find it does relax me, and I like the look of it much better than when sewn down by machine,.

I love all hand stitching and have recently taken up hand embroidery again. I am also knitting more often, it helps keep my joints lubricated and working smoothly.

I love hand sewing the binding as it is the last stage of completion.

That is a cool system with a nice neat result. I usually enjoy hand sewing, but I've also discovered Susie's Magic Binding from a link I found here. It gives an accent color along the edge of the binding and is quick and secure. http://www.freequiltpatterns.info/fr...ic-binding.htm

Having raised four daughters, all I can say here is, "Ladies, please be nice to each other!"

Oh, now that looks very interesting! Thanks for posting, I'm going to have to look for one of those feet and give it a try!

I machine sew every binding; if I had to hand-sew I would never get any done. Quilt police aside, nobody seems to mind - non-quilters never notice the difference, and my fellow quilters have given me ribbons at the fair for my machine-sewn quilts, so thankfully not everybody pooh-poohs machine binding!

I have several quilts from both of my grandmothers (both of whom were avid quilters) and once I became a quilter too I examined their quilts in detail. I was a little surprised to notice that neither grandmother hand-sewed their bindings. One never used separate binding at all, she just wrapped the backing over the top on every single quilt. And I never, ever noticed until I became a quilter myself.

Makes me feel a lot more free in my quilting. There's no "right" or "wrong" way...just ways that work and ways that don't work. I wish I had taken up quilting when either or both of my grandmothers were still living, I wonder how many tips and short cuts they could have taught me...

I end up machine binding the majority of my quilts. I don't 'mind' hand binding but the dang arthritis in my hands does!

Binding the quilt isn't interesting - it's a necessary evil - so I machine bind. Then I have more time to play with fabrics and design for the next thing.

I do have a Pfaff felling foot. I thought it would help with flat felled seams, but it's easier too make a felled seam manually.

I have been doing this for years but I just use my straight stitch foot. The secret I discovered is to fold the binding into equal thirds and crease before you ever begin sewing it to the back. This tells you exactly where your needle should stitch in order that when you turn the binding over to stitch it down on the front of the quilt, you can land spot on, on the first line of stitching. I use a stiletto to pull the fabric around and take my time. I have bound hundreds of quilts this way, perfect every time!

I enjoy sewing the binding by hand. It looks better to me. I make it a game to see how much I can get done before a program goes off. I also plan the next quilt I will be starting as soon as I finish the one I am working on.
I will leave the machine sewing to others, for now.

Actually, I kind of like hand sewing the back binding. I know all Bernina feet are expensive, so I'll stay with the hand sewing.

This system makes perfect binding with straight, even stitching on the back side of the quilt and sid on the top.
There is a learning curve, but it's perfect.

http://www.martellinotions.com/videos/#zipbind

Love to do hand sewing. Just wish all of my projects were at this point.

To me 'hand' sewing is a dirty four letter word. Ha! Ha! I hand sew binding if it is going to a quilt show but otherwise I stitch on the machine.

Oh dear, it seems I have offended with my honest opinion. I'm not saying your machine stitched bindings on quilts are not lovely, but I believe the market also reflects my opinion -- if you look at sales of quilts, they will always command a prettier penny when hand bound than machine.

And dear girl who suggested that I have not quilted long enough to have my opinions -- in my 85 years, some 78 of them spent in quilting, I have most definitely made my fair share of quilts. Certainly enough to entitle me to my opinions. Many I have gifted or given to charities, many others are heirlooms, but please do not presume to guess about my output. The numbers I have made are in the hundreds. All of them stitched most joyfully with hand bound bindings and these 10 arthritic digits.

I also like sewing my binding on by hand. I find it relaxing.

I love hand sewing in front of the t.v. I was having a problem when I needed a magnifying glass to thread my needles, but once I took care of that obstacle, I'm good to go. I even started to do some hand embroidery work now. So much fun to make pictures with thread.

Then at that age you should know when something said is rude. Just MY opinion. How could you not offend with a statement like that?

I find it relaxing although I have done some by machine. Hand-work (at least mine) just looks much neater.

Gale, she did state that it was her opinion and as such, I don't think it was meant to offend. You have to give someone permission to offend (or to hurt your feelings). Does the original statement sound judgmental? Sure, but it is a judgment I don't have to live by. The nice thing about quilting is that there are 6 ways to Sunday how we pursue that hobby of ours.

I just bought the binding set for my Janome after seeing it on a video. I used to hand bind and still do some hand sewing. However, my hands don't really like it anymore. I like both kinds of binding and find it a matter of personal preference.

I love, well, love might be a bit strong, but I enjoy the hand binding part. I do it while watching TV in the evenings. Now baby quilts I sew by machine or simply use the birthing method, avoiding the binding.

I need to find that foot and give it a try

Oh! I forgot about this. I made a quilt last year with the magic binding and it came out great!
http://www.quiltingboard.com/attachm...d=491724&stc=1

Cari

I'm not a fan of sewing thebinding by hand. no fun for me. sewing by hand takes forever and therefore I keep pushing it further and further in the future ..

I sew my binding down. I saw this video and went and bought a foot like this for my Viking--I hated it and used by left edging foot instead--much happier with that. Don't think I will ever use that flat felled foot for anything again.

I enjoy spending some quiet time finishing the binding on my quilts, especially if it's being given away. It's like a protracted goodbye session.

Another vote for hand sewing it. I love hand sewing, my arthritis doesn't let me do too much any more. Binding are easy, I sew it until ithurts too much and it keeps well until next time!

I despise hand sewing the binding! I've tried machine binding but I just can't do it nicely. So thank you so much for this tip! I'll need to look for this foot for my machine.

/michellesews I'm also interested in your method. Can you explain it with more detail please? I'm having trouble picturing it.

IMHO, I believe you either love or hate hand sewing. I love to hand quilt. Find hand sewing the binding down to be soothing and have a lovely feeling of closure for all the hours spent making the quilt. Almost feels like I'm sitting down with a comfortable friend.

"Do you hate hand sewing down your binding?" NO, because I down hand sew it!!:D

Me too! It's my favorite part -- when it's done I get to see the whole quilt & I find the binding actually goes really quickly. All straight lines for the binding unlike all the hand applique work that takes me so very long. :)
Guess it's all relative.

I enjoy handsewing the binding, in fact, that's the part I look forward to. Not only do I find it relaxing, but, it signals the end of the quilting process.

I have used the flat-fell foot with success. I really does make a neat binding that catches the back in all places. along with fettertim, I recommend it for those who don't want to hand sew the binding.

I don't mind hand sewing the binding but for deadlines so use the machine. Tried the Zip Bind system & didn't like it. Tried Elmer's glue & pressing the binding to the back then used my zipper foot to stitch in the ditch on the front. Just nudged the needle to the right a click or 2 & it worked great. The glue kept the back in place & my stitching line was very even. Will have to use this in order to get things done for the craft show in 5 wks:eek:!

I have seen and heard of this method however I love to sit and stitch my bindings down by hand, it is so relaxing and it gives me something to do in the evening when watching TV with hubby.

This is a favorite way for me to relax also, after all the work I put in on the quilt project. :)

Judy in Phx, AZ

Ladies, to each her own. My bindings look better when I hand-sew them, but that is me. I had capal tunnel syndrome many years ago, had surgery, then another to shorten one of the bones in my forearms, then another to remove the metal plate. That has been about 20 years ago and I don't have problems with that anymore. I am still (as long as my back permits) working full-time, I knit, I hand-quilt and a lot of other things. There are no "quilt police" as far as I know, so the quilt belongs to the maker and she makes her own decisions on binding!

Jeanette

I also enjoy the hand sewing of the binding…it is the final touch to my quilts.

Since I machine piece and FMQ, hand sewing the binding isn't all that bad... in fact, since I know it is the finishing touch to my quilt... I kinda look forward to it.

Thank you for sharing the link, I can think of some other projects where the Flat Fell foot would come in handy.