I watched Leah Day do it and she makes it looks so easy, so, I have 15 potholders to bind and thought it'd be a great place to practice this technique.

I sewed the binding onto the back--check

I sewed the binding onto the front--check That was kind of fun! :-D

I worked the corners fine, but the front corners are not as nicely mitered as the back ones. but I've never had nicely mitered back corners. The corners weren't tacked down enough for me, so I just ran a straight stitch from the corner to the outside--check

So--the stitching used on the front shows on the back about 1/2" below the binding. It looks kind of weird to me. It's fine for a potholder, but I don't know if I'd want a quilt to have that line of stitching.

But--that's how it work, right?

Okay--edited to add photos....

Sounds like the way I do it except if you fold the binding in half you will be able to sew almost exactly on the stitching line when you sew it down on the front.

Karla,
I do this a lot. I use the school glue to tack it to the front. If you fold it over so that it just past the seam line and sew near the edge you should be sewing on the back binding. The glue also helps me keep the corners mitered.

Oh--I always fold it in half. I fogot to add that. :D

And Deb--I like the idea of holding the corners in place before I start, but it wasn't much of a problem... it's that line of stitching that I cannot ever see being where it's supposed to be.

When you fold it in half, are you accounting for the seam allowance? It looks like it's narrower on the back than the front. Do you trim your batting a bit larger than the edge of the quilt? If so, that plus the thickness of the batting might be taking up some of the space.

I haven't mastered it either...which is why I usually hand sew it to the back. ;)

Hi katier--
I just always use a 1/4" seam...so that's what I account for. But I don't know if that answers your question. :lol:

These potholders are very thick--batting, thinsulate, two fabric layers, plus the binding... so maybe that's why it's not lining up? They are trimmed up pretty well.

I think I'll finish the potholder this way--because no way do I want to sew them all by hand (like I did the last time! :roll: ). So--they'll just have to look goofy. :wink:

I bet the thickness is the problem then. Not goofy, unique!

Unique.. ahh--yes. I should add a dollar to the cost for that then!! :lol:

LOL I like the way you think!!!!!!!

it looks like you might need to cut your binding a little wider.

what size did you cut the binding? i do 2.5"
then after teh front is sewed on, i press it up and away fromt he quilt..all the way around.

*then i use elmers schoold glue for the back side, doing it in sections,and then press it down with iron/steam.

you can skip that step if you want to.

once the binding is pinned or clipped down..i turn the quilt over, and use the "stitch in the ditch" foot and run the stitch line down the original stitch on the front. i use a straight stitch.

it almost always catches the back all the way around. without it looking bad.

i can't hand stich anymore..carpel tunnel.. this is what works for me..if you need visual. i can take a few pictures for you..

Cut your binding strips 2.25". Makes a difference! Mine still will show like that a bit, but most folks won't be looking that close. It bugs me more than them, so I'm working on that.......

exactly how i do mine..thanks for the link!

Ah---so I'm still supposed to sew the binding onto the front first, NOT the back! Then sew the back down FROM the FRONT. I had reversed those steps--but I thought I followed what Leah Day did.

I wish Ms. Burns had a part 2!! That is a great video--she cracks me up. The only thing I do as good as her is throw things on the floor. :lol:

Okay--potholder #2 I'll try this way tomorrow. Then I'll report in. Oh--I cut the bindings 2.5", but some I cut 2 3/8 just because....

Thanks!!!

I just did some quilts for my moms dogs this way. Instead of using a blanket stitch I used a decorative stitch. It looks like more decorative quilting! The dogs probably won't care though!

Goofy potholders are better than no potholders. Just burnt my hand today using a dishtowel to pull something out of a 450 degree oven. I think I said "ouch".

To machine the binding on all the way I cut 2.5" for quilts but 2-21/4 for smaller projects, I sew it to the back and fold it to the front fold it over and sew it down, If you snug it in it will fold over more, idealy it will be the same on the front to the back, you may have to play with the width a little to suit how you put it on.

When you sew to the back there is the seam to follow in the front, following the line you can fold the binding just past it to make sure it is covered.

To help with the mitered corners when you come to the corner, tuck the side you are sewing in flat and have the corner out, use a small stick if you are to close and can't get your finger in there. it takes a bit of practice.

That's not the way it's supposed to look when finished. Your binding needs to fold so that your second line of stitching is "in the ditch" or exactly on top of your first line of stitching (the stitching that initially secures the binding to the quilt). The binding should look essentially the same on both sides when you do this.

I do mine like Waterstide. I prefer to attach the binding to the front first
because I have better control on the corners. I can never get nice corners
on both front and back. So I choose my battle. ;)

Make a small practice piece with same batting that you will use for your quilt.
I think it helps to get that right width and stitch setting.

I think your biggest "problem" is using too wide a strip of fabric for the binding. It gives you too much to fold over.
If you used a 2.5" strip, try it with a 2" strip folded--That is what works best for me. For a beginner, you might want to try a 2 1/4" inch strip first. There is no hard and fast rule on how wide to make the binding strip--experiment until you find the width that works best for you.

Well, it depends on how you want to finish your binding.
If you stitching it with decorative stitches (like in your picture) you were right to sew it to the back first. If you want to do a hidden (stitching in ditch) row of stitching you would reverse and sew binding to front first. Fold it to the back but sew it from the front side , stitching in the seam line. I find I have to pin my binding down when I do it this way so I'm sure to catch the back side all the way.
Some people glue it down with Elmer's school washable glue, then stitch. Keep practicing!

See we learn something new every day. I am a self taught quilter and I was machine sewing my binding on so different then everyone on here it seems like. I line my binding up on the front and back...and just sew once. So I only have to sew around the quilt once and the front and back sew lines are the same. So no SID or hand sewing for me.

I use a 2.5 inch width binding, which gives me a 3/4 inch binding once sewn. Sew on back using 3/4 inch seam. Fold to front. Fold under & pin in place using the thread line as a guide. Folded edge should be just over the thread line. Then I sew usually @ 1/8 inch, which will show the same on the back. When I do corners I sew to seam line, flip/fold it, tuck it in using a stilletto, pin & sew around the corner.

I can put a nice binding on a large quilt, but have failed miserably on a tiny pot holder; go figure!

I've never mastered doing this...hope you get it to work well for you. I've gotten to where if I'm going to machine apply the binding, I just use a decorative stitch on the face of the binding (and that will hit both the front and back).

I cut my binding 2 and 1/2 inches, fold it in half , iron it and then sew it on the front fold it to the back. I always hand sew my binding with a hidden stitch.

It looks as if your binding was too wide. For instance, the back binding should have been moved over more and then sewn down. That way when the binding is rolled over to the front, the binding edges meet.

Sandy

I tried this the way Leah Day does it, and I just didn't like the results. I'm back to hand sewing the second side.

We did pocket potholders in class last year, and we pinned the binding on through all layers and sewed it together all in one stitch. I used a decorative stitch but it is hard to see in pic.

Also attached is another pot holder using the same technique.

You'd think it would be easier to make a potholder but it's not. Takes
practice to get it right.

I watched the same as you did, I followed her exact instructions, I have a problem with the corners, I will work on that though, but she said when you sew the binding on from the front to follow the same stitching from the back side, if that makes sence, I did that and my stitching landed on the binding on the back side, I would send a pic but the quilt is dark so would be hard to see....

I used 2 1/2" binding and am new to this, but by doing it the way Leah Day explains does not leave the binding "full"...

I fold mine in half, then turn each edge end & fold it again. I have also pinned front & back edges through the quilted project, then sewn it. Play around with it a little, & see what works for you...

It looks like you have tension problems. The top tension is too loose, so the bobbin is pulling too much thread.

The 'formula' for binding width is - cut it 6 x the width of the seam + the thickness of the quilt. So, if you'll be sewing it 1/4", 1/4 x 6 = 6/4. Now add the thickness of the quilt (because it has to fold around the quilt at the edge), probably another 1/4" = 7/4 = 1 3/4". When you sew the binding on either the front or back of the quilt, it should fold to the other side and just meet the stitching line. You can 'stretch' it to cover the line, especially if you use Sharon Schamber's school glue method.

I saw a tutorial somewhere where the binding is wider in the back. She just put the binding on, narrow side in front, and wider in the back and just stitched it down once. Don't know if this helps. :-o

OK I have the Chaud potholder in hand and re-examining it, because it was done in class and was done as per instructions step by step. After looking at it closely (it was done over a year ago) I forgot but we sewed the binding in a regular stitch to the back, right sides together producing a seam. Then folded it over and top-seamed it down with another regular stitch. The decorative stitch was added "after the fact" as just a finished look.

The Heiss potholder is in a cabin out of town so I can't check it out but I did get out the printed instructions for it was done several months down the road.

I guess I commit mortal sin when I make potholders - I don't put a binding on! I pillowcase them - after the top is pieced, I lay the top and backing on top of each other right sides together, put the batting on top (or bottom) and stitch all around the edges, leaving a small space open. Turn the whole thing right side out through the opening, turn in the raw edges of the opening and top-stitch all around the potholder, catching in the opening. Then I quilt it up to the top-stitching line. If I want a hanging loop, I just use a piece of purchased bias tape, folded into a loop, inserted into a corner between the top and the backing before stitching all around. When you turn the potholder right side out, the loop just pops right out.

Another way to avoid the binding is to put your quilt sandwich together as usual (use muslin or some scrap fabric as backing because you won't see it), quilt as usual, then prepare a final backing just like you were making the back of a pillow sham. Sew the pillow-sham backing to the potholder right sides together, turn it right-side out and it's done.

I hope this is all understandable!

My advice....cut your strips smaller (I use 2" strips sometimes even 1.75" strips) or use a larger seam allowance when you are attaching the binding before folding it over!

An easy way to determain how wide to cut your strips is to take a scrap of fabric pin it where your .25 seam allowance would normally go and then fold it over to the back (or front whichever way) and then cover the stitches by about 1/8 inch. then put a little pin in that spot. remove the pins and measure from the edge to where you put the second pin. then DOUBLE that measurment. that is how wide to cut your strips and not have a bunch of space between your stitching and your binding!

That's why I always finish by hand :-D

2.5" binding is fairly standard. How full the binding is with this width depends largely on your batting (actually, on the thickness of your quilt sandwich). If you used 2.5" and the binding was not full, then next time you need to cut the binding strips more narrow. It takes some experimentation to determine how wide to cut binding strips based on your personal preferences for batting.

A different way to make the binding full is to cut the quilt sandwich more than 1/4" beyond the sewing line. This is why I do not first cut my quilt sandwich and then sew on the binding. Instead, I mark the cutting line with a Sharpie permanent marker and use this as my guide to sew on binding. If I think I need more than 1/4" to "fill" the binding, then I can cut beyond the Sharpie line to fill up the binding better.