Today I cut binding strips for this quilt (which still doesn't have a name). It's one of those quilts that doesn't photograph very well. It's creamier than in the photo.
My One Monthly Goal for November is to get this quilt bound, washed, dried, and finished. It shouldn't take a month to sew binding strips, sew the binding around the quilt, then stitch it in place but November is shaping up to be a busy month. And the binding on this quilt isn't the only stitching I hope to do this month.
I finally figured out an easy way to align the edges to make seams on binding strips. I've tried several different ways but I like this one best.
I laid the strips of fabric along the lines of my cutting mat so the ends went at least 1/4" beyond the 45-degree diagonal line.
Then I carefully put the 1/4" mark of my acrylic ruler on the 45-degree line on the mat...
... and cut with my rotary cutter. I carefully removed the ruler...
...and pinned the ends together.
It worked like a charm. I cut and pinned until I had the whole binding ready, then took the length of fabric to the machine to sew. This was a quick and easy way to make sure the pieces were lined up for a 1/4" seam. If you decide to try this method and you're using plain fabric be sure all the seams are on the same side of the fabric. I had to unstitch two because they were on the wrong side. You'll not have a problem with printed fabric.
How do you stitch binding strips together? Maybe you have an even easier way to do it?
I'm linking this post to
> Moving It Forward Monday at Em's Scrapbag
> Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt
> One Monthly Goal at Elm Street Quilts
Thanks for hosting, ladies.
--Nancy.
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Looks like you have a good method there. I may have to give it a try sometime.
ReplyDeleteThe way I cut my binding strips leaves a diagonal edge on the ends of them, so they are pretty easy to line up, but they don't always turn out perfect. :).
Hi, Janet. This is the first time I've tried this method and I like it a lot. Before this, I did the same think you do -- diagonals on both ends, then line up and stitch. My problem with that method was that I usually didn't get the alignment right and either settled or unstitched and recut. I was pleased not to have any problems with this way (except that I had the seams on the wrong side a few times -- easily corrected with more attention or even easier if I used printd fabric).
DeleteI'm glad you got to figure out a method that works for you Nancy. This is often a bit challenging. I usually hand stitch it all so I can have some control and often I have to do over. I love this quilt, subdued tho it might be.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jocelyn. I'm pleased to have found an easy way to make binding strips, too. I admire you for doing it by hand. I think I would feel less in control if I were stitching by hand (which gives you an idea of my hand stitching skills).
DeleteEarlier this year, I saw a tutorial that really opened my eyes - the angle doesn't have to be 45 degrees. It can be ANY angle, as long as it's the *same* angle and you're sewing edge to edge. Try it and see! I went on to use it while making the improv 'fish-heads' for my Gwennie medallion quilt.
ReplyDeleteHi, Gayle. Yes, it's amazing that any angle works. I remember a few quilts ago I had some strips of fabric that had a strange angle at each end. I made sure they were all the same then sewed them together. It worked like a charm. It helps to save fabric not having to cut away more than necessary, esp. if there's already an angle at the ends.
DeleteI love how the quilting lines in the center of the circle make a 9-patch. In fact I really like the design of quilting on the whole thing. I think this is such a pretty soft quilt. I seem to make things that are either dark and light or dark and medium. I need to experiment and try to do something in lighter shades. (I wonder if I have any in my stash - ha!)
ReplyDeleteHi, Robin. Thanks for your kind words about this quilt. Such a light quilt came about because the scrappy squares were leftovers from another quilt with a pieced background on which I appliqued, then cut out behind the appliques. I'm not sure I would purposefully choose a light quilt like this, but now that it's finished I find I really love it. My preference is quilts like you make -- dark and light or dark and medium, though sometimes I get caught up in some beautiful, bright quilt I see online and then use brights. The circles were suggested by another reader but the diagonal lines connecting them and the 9-patch in the center of the appliqued circles were my ideas. I just finished quilting it and hope to measure it tomorrow, wash and dry it, measure it again, and then take photos and post about it. It's a very early finish for my November One Monthly Goal.
DeleteI think your creamy quilt is lovely. The pink will make a lovely binding.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Em. That binding fabric is a hard color to photograph. It's really more of a coral/salmon color, just a tint or two lighter than the sashing strips. The came from a shirt and I didn't have enough fabric for the binding so I had to find other fabric for that but couldn't find an exact match. Now that it's finished I think the colors all work together.
DeleteLovely quilt top. Thanks for linking up with Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal and good luck on your project.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Patty. And thanks for hosting One Monthly Goal.
DeleteI like the sashing fabric choices you made for your quilt.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Karen.
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