Now that I have the Nine Patch and Flower Market quilted I need to get busy and get the binding on the quilts so that they can be washed and then used (my favorite part).
So first things first is figuring out how much binding you need. Time for some math. Nine Patch is 108" square. 108 x 4 = 432". I then add about 10" so I need 442".
Binding strips are cut 2.5" wide by the width of the fabric. My fabric is 41" wide after I cut off the selvage. So doing math that would mean I need to cut 11 strips.
Now I need to sew those strips together. I like to sew them at an angle . To do this I place the strips right side together like below. I overlap them leaving a 1/4" overhang on both pieces. then I stitch on the diagonal. I drew a line on the piece below to show you where I sew. Normally I just eyeball this part.
Sewn.
Now I trim the seam allowance.
Then I press the seams open.
Here is a view of the front. I have the pencil to show where the seam is. Its almost invisible.
Now I just need to sew all the strips together into a 442" or 37'...that's a lot of binding!
Next thing to do is to double up the binding. I fold over the end to help it blend in once the binding is on the quilt.
Next I fold the binding in half wrong sides together. Making the binding a double thickness is to give the quilt a little extra protection around the edges.
Now I just iron and iron all those feet of binding.
I then need to make sure that the quilt is trimmed up and ready for binding.
I get my walking foot on my sewing machine. This is a foot that helps move the quilt sandwich through the machine.
Now normally I sew my binding onto the front of my quilt and then hand stitch it to the back but let me say again that this quilt is 37 feet around.
So because this is such a large quilt I am sewing the binding to the back and then I will blind stitch it by machine to the front.
Here is a shot of the quilt resting on my sewing table as I sew on the binding.
Finishing it up and tonight I plan to sleep under this baby.
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