Yesterday, I posted my traffic jam finish. Today, I want to share a bit about a new experiment in machine binding I have been doing. One of the presenters at a guild presentation, this fall, mentioned, that, he used steam a seam when attaching his binding. I was intrigued and went to Joann fabrics that night to find what he used.
This is what I chose using a coupon. It was 2.39. I had decided that if that was too expensive, I might use the BYT and cut it myself. The package came with 2 rolls.
I tried it the first time on my Big easy Christmas quilt, and, I loved it. Someone asked if I would share how I used it. I used almost half of one roll for that quilt.
I started out hand sewing my bindings. I love doing it, and I like that look the best. But, I like making quilts, and I just couldn't keep up, anymore. My friends use the machine, and, they are much better at this than I am. I tried their way, and I felt like it was just as time consuming as hand sewing. This is a good compromise for me. I am still wanting to tweak my technique at the machine. I need to do a better job of stitching it on in the beginning. I need a better guide than the edge of my presser foot...... next time.
Traffic jam and Big easy Christmas quilts haven't even used one roll. So, I don't think it is too expensive.
I am linking to:
rsc20 super saturday
oh scrap
UFO busting
How do you bind? any tips?
rsc20 super saturday
oh scrap
UFO busting
That is an interesting technique! Glad it worked so well for you.
ReplyDeletegreat idea!
ReplyDeleteI prefer to bind by hand because I like the look better and I actually like binding by hand. Some of the places I donate quilts require machine stitched binding so I sew to back and flip to front and usually use a decorative stitch to stitch down in front. I have become better at it over the years but used to hate the look of my machine binding. I use 2 1/4 inch binding if doing by machine and 2.5 if by hand because I leave a little extra quilt and batting to poof out the binding if I do it by hand. Never heard of the Steam A Seam method. I actually don't pin or use binder clips or anything else when sewing down binding by hand or machine.
ReplyDeleteInteresting method, Maggie. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi, Maggie! I sew my bindings by machine now too. I got used to doing it that way for donation quilts. I use a 2 in. wide binding, and I don't double it. After sewing it to the back, I bring it to the front and press the raw edges to meet the seam, and then fold it down onto the front. As I press at the ironing board, I pin it, folding miters into the corners. Then it's one seam around, and done! It's sturdy, and faster than hand work. Good luck with your bindings, however you do them!
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteGreat idea, I'll have to try that one out. Thanks for sharing. Love the quilt, so colorful. Have a great day!
I put my binding on the back of the quilt and bring it around to the front to do machine stitching. On occasion I use some Roxanne's glue but I generally use clips. After putting the glue on I iron it dry. It's a bit more time consuming, or at least I thought it was, so the clips work fine for me.
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine suggested I iron my binding after sewing it on. That was the best tip ever for decent binding to me. Now I think of Mary every time I do binding.
ReplyDelete