Mary Bird

Has anyone ever done this? I've made the quilt top, have it all quilted, now to add the blue velvet binding. I've washed & dried it, it looks great, but there's a lot of fluff coming off it. If I try to cut strips, will it all fray out? Do I need to stabilize it? No double fold binding, I'd guess. Is it best to sew by machine on the front and hand stitch on the back, or do it all by machine? Oh the questions! Hope someone has done this and can give me some tips. Thanks!

Prism99

I have not done it, and I think you are extremely brave to try it!

My suggestion is to cut a strip and handle it for awhile. That will tell you a lot about how much it will fray. I'm thinking it will fray and shed fluff a lot. Not sure that stabilizing it with a fusible will help, as the fluff will be coming off the top -- not the fused part of the velvet. Plus fusing will stiffen an already thick fabric, making it harder to turn it over the edge.

Have you considered that the purpose of a binding is to take a lot of abuse for the quilt? Velvet does not take abuse well.

Velvet is slippery, and will show marks from the presser foot. I think you could sew it to the front by machine, by I would definitely recommend finishing it by hand.

Will be very interested to hear how this goes.

Mary Bird

Believe me, this wasn't my idea for a binding! It's for a friend. Thanks for your input. I'm waiting to hear from someone who has actually done a velvet binding before I jump in!

Tartan

How are you going to do the corners? The reason for cotton binding is because you don't end up with too much bulk to sew over when doing corners. If you have extra, do up a small quilt square and try the velvet around the edge for binding it. If it's too bulky for mitered corners, how would rounded corners look? If doing rounded corners you may have to cut the strips on the bias. Good luck. I'm sure someone will be able to help. Some have done quilts with Minky and might have some pointers for doing the binding.

Mary Bird

Hmmm...hadn't thought about rounding the corners. I'll still hope someone with experience doing this will respond!

PaperPrincess

I would serge or zig zag the edges. If it's velvet, it's going to be slippery to work with. I would pin heavily or even baste. when you stitch the back, make sure that you are actually catching the fabric and you're not just putting a stitch into the pile. Also I would do a wider binding than normal, like about 1". this will give you enough room to turn the corner.

Mary Bird

Thanks for the good advice. Hope to tackle this in the next few days...keep your fingers crossed!

Glassquilt

I've sewn velvet in clothing. Need a needleboard for pressing. Can't imagine making a binding with it. Good luck.


http://www.fashion-era.com/velvets/v...#Needleboards_

sewwhat85

i would think about using velveteen it is cotton

susie-susie-susie

I agree with glassquilt and sewwhat85, Velvet isn't washable and mixed with cotton it will deteriorate. Also very thick and the corners will be a problem. Does the person who asked for velvet have any sewing experience? I agree, it would be very pretty, but not practical. I'm looking forward to seeing how this turns out. I also think the binding will wear out quickly since it gets so much use.
Sue