Finish Bindings with This Super Easy Method
It Almost Seems Like Cheating!
Do you find that binding a quilt is the most difficult part of creating a quilt? Stacey Lee has made an excellent video that walks you through all of the steps – and has an easy way to finish off the binding ends.
There’s no need to sew the binding ends together with her method. Quilters often find that to be the trickiest part of completing a binding.
Plus, she demonstrates how to use a Stripology ruler. While pricey, these rulers are huge timesavers whenever you need to cut a lot of strips. The XL size allows you to cut an entire fat quarter or half yard of fabric into strips without moving the ruler. Not only is it much faster it’s also extremely accurate and well worth the investment if you cut strips often.
Stacey uses her Juki’s Compensating Foot (Left) to sew down the binding. You may have something similar, like a topstitching or stitch-in-the-ditch foot with an edge that guides the placement of the seam (or a foot like this). Make sure the guide is to the left of the needle and try changing the needle position if necessary to get the desired width (1/8″ or a bit less). While this foot isn’t necessary, it does make it easier to produce a neat straight line when sewing down the final edge of the binding. The seam should be about 1/8″ from the binding’s edge.
Watch as Stacy demonstrates her binding method in the following video. You may want to hand-sew the binding ends together once the machine stitching is done. This will produce a sturdier finish.
Click here to watch the video at YouTube if it doesn’t play on your device.
