Originally Posted by Pamela Artman
Here's how I do mine. I fold the quilt in half and lay the border right on top across the middle of the half (so it would be measured at the 1/4 and 3/4 of the top) and then cut the border as it lays on the quilt top. Saves measuring that way. Then I pin the side borders on starting with the middle, then the ends, then in between. Then sew. Then I press the border and lay it out again folded the other way and cut the top and bottom borders the same way. The borders always seem to lay flat.
I do mine this way too. For years I did the measuring the middle process but seemed to have too much or two little border fabric and I was always warned to never just sew a border on a quilt and cut off extra fabric at the end...a guarantee for a rippled border. then I started laying the quilt on the floor and laying the border on top of the quilt to measure. Seems I can smooth out the quilt so much better than trying to measure it with a tape measure. I have had much better success (and it saves time) to lay the border fabric on the quilt to measure. Borders are the one thing I dread in quilting and always try to find delaying tactics to keep from doing them. Right now, I lost my head and an putting 3 borders on the quilt I am working on today. I must have lost my mind. Good lucK!!!