Squaring up before adding the binding strip
 

I thought I read somewhere that it's ok to sew your binding strip along the edge of your quilt before you square it up. Am I way off base with that? In otherwords, can I just leave my quilt sandwich bigger around the edges (not square it up), sew on the binding and then trim? Is there any advantage to this? Thanks!!

How would you know where to sew the binding, or am I missing something here?

Well, I ran a basting stitch all the way around the edge of the quilt top.

You'd cut your binding off when you trimmed. It should be squared up first.

Obviously I had something mixed up big time. Thank you for clearing that up for me.

I sew my bindings on then trim. Started doing it this way after watching a tutorial.

That's the way Fons & Porter books do it. I tried it once, but didn't like it.

You must square the top up before you sandwich it. You then sew the binding on, and by doing it this way you make sure to have batting in the binding, then you cut off the batting and backing to the left of the binding. This is not squaring up the quilt as the top has already been squared up.

I read a suggestion somewhere to use this technique on quilt tops without borders. It will preserve the pieced seams and the fabric edges while the quilt is being handled during the quilting process.

I square up then sandwich and quilt. After I sew the binding on the front and then slice off the extra.

Interestingly, the second thread on this topic today. Here's my perspective on squaring quilt tops. I square up each element of a block as I go along. Square up each block as it's completed. Even when chain sewing, I still press/square up at each step. It's unlikely, at that point, that your top will not be square. When measuring for borders, I measure the center length and width. Ease or stretch as needed. My quilts are certainly square enough after this (to within a 1/8" measurement and who is going to notice that!) After sandwiching, I will trim off major excess of backing/batting to within about 4" of the quilt top. I hand quilt so I'm sure my distortion is less than those that machine quilt so that may be a factor. Once the quilting is finished, I sew on my binding strip to the front lining up raw binding edge to the edge of the top. Sew with 1/4" seam. I then trim the excess backing/batting to 1/2" from biding seam. I have never cut off my binding doing this. I then proceed to hand sew my binding to the back of the quilt.

I squared up my quilt if needed since I usually make my borders a little wider then attached the binding. I use 2.25" binding so with the 1/4" seam, it always seems to come out perfect.

I just eyeball it and don't square up. I am not too worried about my quilts not having perfect 90 degree angles or perfectly straight sides. So far everyone I have given them to loves them despite all of the imperfections.

adding that when I fold them (when they're all finished) they fold all straight and symmetrical.

I have always kept everything square, quilted, squared up the borders and then sewed on the binding. The last quilt I did, my Brother sewing machine tried to eat the edge of the quilt. I had to rip out several inches because of creep. I know that I really do need to use the single hole plate, but I have busted several needles because I have forgotten to change the face plate back after sewing. I am going to try the method of marking the quilt using a large T bar, pinning my binding on. Then I will sew and square up. I always use borders so this method might be what works for me.

Thanks for all the suggestions. This really helps me alot.

I'm careful to keep things square as I go along so I've never had to square up a whole quilt. I think that and using a walking foot and not pulling the quilt while quilting is key. When I lay my ruler along the edge it is square. After I quilt I sew a narrow seam all along the edge of the border to hold the sandwich together at that point. I then trim away the excess backing and batting. I always have some sort of a border on my quilts so I use a 3/8" seam to sew my binding on with with 2.5" binding folded in half. Because I have a border I don't have to worry about cutting off points or elements of the piecing by using a 3/8" seam which happens to be the width of my walking foot. It also fills the binding up nicely with batting. I know that it is unconventional but it works for me and I like the look. To get nice mitered corners I then stop 3/8" from the end before turning.

This is a good idea. I usually use a 3/8 seam to sew on the binding, but if you have points to save, you'll need 1/4 inch. This method works especially well if you put on a very wide binding. Have each element of the quilt top square before you sandwich and quilt. Then after it is quilted, do as NJQuilter does. Cut off the excess batt and back a little less than half the width of the remaining binding (not counting the seam allowance). You need to allow room for the thickness of the batt, too.
If you are turning the binding to the back and SITD from the front, you need a little more room for the 1/8 inch over-lap on the back.

If you do it this way, your binding will always be "full".

I was taught to always attach the binding first then cut the excess off, I have been doing this for many years. However, these days everyone seems to do things the way is easiest for them, that being said you have to do what you're most comfortable with.

I like this idea...
 

I've been seeing more and more quilts made without borders these days and I often wondered how they keep it all together while handling the quilt top. So, to do this, do you add an extra row and line of the pattern, or possibly a narrow border, just so that it can be lopped off?

~ C

My quilts get some distortion when they are quilted. They pucker up a little and seem to always be a little off square after the quilting process. So I always square them and trim them before I apply the binding. Maybe I'm quilting them wrong?

As with all things...there are as many ways to do something as there are folks to do them. I am a long arm quilter...when I am going to be binding the quilt...I trim fairly close to the edges of the top...except...when I know the top is wonky...I then leave some space (1/2" or so)...that way when I sew on the binding I use the binding to determine a straight line. I trim if needed after I put the first sewn side of the binding on. Works for me...probably not the "standard" way, but it's my way.

I measure and square up quilt as best I can, then trim allowing a quarter inch for attaching binding. Works for me.

If you squared it up after sewing the binding on, you'd have to cut the binding in order to square up your quilt.

I am self taught and I am thankful for this thread. I have always trimmed of my extra batting and backing before I sew the binding on. I will now try the other way. When I do cut the extra off I have been leaving about 1/8 of an inch more because it seams to fill the binding better. My binding is always 2 and 1/2 folded in half and pressed. I square up my blocks as I go or before I sew them together. I would square up the entire quilt if it needed to be.

I do the same except I don't hand quilt - I use my HQ Avante - I've never had a problem with this either.

before I even quilt, I sew a /4" deep seam around the edges of a quilt top that has no borders. Then I don't have to worry before stitches coming out while the quilt is being quilted.

Hi

I have been doing some searches on the internet for the creative grid rulers and realized where your original question might have come from. If I am being overly simplistic here, I apologize; I just don’t know what your skill level is.

First, before any batting or backing is added to your pieced quilt top you will square your pieced quilt top. Here is the advantage of making sure each block you make is square. If you have sewn accurate 1/4 seams, each block should be pretty square and if it’s not, it gives you a chance to correct the problem before you get too wonky of a quilt top.

Once your quilt top is square, you measure your backing and batting to be at least 3 inches wider on all sides of your quilt top. Example: If your quilt top is 84 x 90 inches, you would cut your batting and backing at 90 x 96 inches. Center your quilt top leaving a 3 inch margin around your quilt top. After you have centered and basted you layers together your quilting takes place. Having that extra margin around the quilt top allows for any minor movement or possible stretching that might occur during quilting. If you are making small quilts you can reduce the width of the margin around the quilt top proportioned to the size of the quilt.

Here where I think you might have gotten confused. Once all the quilting is done, you can measure 1/4 of an inch away from the edge of your quilt top onto the batting and backing and trim the rest of it away. However, if you are going to do this, you need to do the trimming before you sew on your binding so don’t accidently cut you binding. Once trimmed, you will line up the raw edge of your binding with the raw edge of your quilt top and sew a 1/4 inch seam allowance.

Not everyone does it this way. This way is suggest so the binding is filled out and supposedly wears better over the life of the quilt. Most people just trim the batting and backing off right next to the edge of the quilt top, then bind.

Here are the links to a couple of video which I think will help you make sense of what I just wrote.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnARfOO5otE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgaXP6kd8bc

Here is one for hand binding, but the preparation is the same.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6k63ZGAS2Xo

Well that was an eye opener. I watched the 2nd video and see that it doesn't matter if the excess batting is a tad bit bigger than the space inside your binding. She folded the binding over and it folded the batting just a tiny bit but it didn't matter-I suppose since it didn't have fabric on the front and back. I am going to try this next time. I have the hardest time having the binding full without a lot of tedious trimming. That is with fabric on the front and back since I trim to the quilt top itself.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all this wonderful info. Now I just have to weed through it and decide which works best. You girls are the best!

You will not be accidentally cutting your binding. The binding is laying on the quilt with the raw edge near the raw edge of the quilt. The only way you would cut it would be if you trimmed the quilt right on the edge of the binding raw edge. Then you might cut some of the folds on the corners. But you don't want it trimmed that closely. If you do, the binding will not be full. I try to trim the quilt (batt and back) measuring from the seam line that sewed on the binging: half of what's left of the binding minus about 1/8 inch (to accommodate the thickness of the batt).

That way it doesn't matter how wide your binding is. A three inch binding strip folded in half is 1 1/2 inches. After it is sewn on, what's left is 1 1/4 inches. So trim your quilt a little more than one inch from the seam line. Then you fold the binding to the other side and finish it.
Hope this makes sense.

And I sure didn't like how she closed up the last binding seam on the video. There are much better ways to do that.

If you mean how she closed up the last seam on the 2nd video that juneayerza posted, I agree. She did do it the way I do it (minus the tool-I just measure) on the video about hand sewing the binding (but I still machine bind).