question: how to you mock miter a quilt border?
 

I am reading Marti Michell's book, "Machine Quilting in Sections", because this is how I will have to quilt my queen-sized guilt for my granddaughter's bridal shower gift. I am using a domestic machine with a 6 1/2-inch throat.

My quilt calls for a mitered border that is about 16 inches in depth. Because the quilt is so large and my throat is so small, I have no choice but to section it.

(Go to this link to see the depth of border that I'm talking about. The ruffle shown in the pic is not part of the quilt, but underneath it...possibly a bed skirt or some such.)

Marti has an example in her book where she added a quilt border using the stitch-and-flip method. She just stitched the straight part of the edges to the center of the quilt, then fliped it and then she says she 'mock mitered' the rest. She says, "this corner is actually more easily completed with a mock miter; that is hand stitching from the top, like appliqueing one border edge to the next."

I'm thinking that she is just turning in the seam edge and doing a blind or ladder stitch...but the 'applique' term is throwing me off. Is this what you think she means?

If someone has done this could advise me or can send me to a tutorial link I would appreciate this.

Also...I'm wondering what the difficulty would be to just machine stitch it...however, that may be a dumb wondering because I've never mitered a border before.

I really have no choice but to quilt the middle and add the borders to the top lastly because of the small throat of my machine....but just stumped as how to miter that border if I'm adding to an already-quilted middle.

Suggestions?

TIA

What page is this on? I can check it out in my book & see if I can help.

I couldn't find that section in the book either, but what you described sounds right. Fold under a seam allowance and hand sew. I have done a few mitered corners the regular way and glue basted before sewing - that might help in this situation too. Starch would also be helpful for the mitered border.

"...I'm thinking that she is just turning in the seam edge and doing a blind or ladder stitch...but the 'applique' term is throwing me off. Is this what you think she means?..."

Yes, this is how I understand it. Fold press and blind stitch. I would trim some of the excess fabric also.

This may be the technique Sharon Schamber uses for mitering. She glues the miter using long ends then sews. There is video on youtube.

The quote is on pge. 43 of the book Machine Quilting in Sections, by Marti Michell, 2004. It is the Case Study: Cabin by the Lake.

She is using the whole back and batting, but centering the middle on it...quilting...then adding the borders that will be mitered. On the Issues and Answers concerning this quitl, her comment is under Answers, note #4.

Looking at the picture in her illustration, this is not a 'back to front' procedure...it is cut borders that are being sewn using the stitch & flip method. She is calling it the four-layer seam method.

oops...I forgot to give you the link showing the borders of a quilt made like the one I'm attempting to do in sections. Sorry..here is it: http://lostquilt.com/wp-content/uplo...-CountryBr.jpg

I think you meant page 32...... :)

What I would do is mark the 1/4" mitered area seam allowance on the already in place borders.

Before attaching the side borders I would turn under the mitered edges 1/4" and press just those mitered areas.

Attach (sew in place) the straight side borders.

Slip stitch (hand sew) the miter(s) together.