Monday, April 30, 2012

How to close the binding of a quilt by machine

Iron the two ends of the binding so there is a "smidgen" of a space. If they are touching that is ok. You will need this iron seam later as a guide. Note: Leave at least 4 inches of extra binding on each end. Also, leave a space on your quilt where you haven't sewn binding at least 6-8 inches. You will need this space to work with on your quilt. 

Iron the two ends and make a seam. Lift the left side up.

Open the left side binding so it lays flat again. You will notice your seam you ironed. 

Open the left side binding so it creates a "tent." Lay it as flat as it will. Note: It will not lay perfectly flat due to the original iron seam you made while ironing your binding in half. 

Lift the right side binding and open it towards you. This will make a slight twist in the right side binding.

Now, the two binding pieces are laying "face" to "face." Notice the slight twist on the right side binding. 

At this point you will need to bunch or fold your quilt so you can pull your binding together. Then, turn the right side binding vertical and lay it over the left side. Line up your iron seams to make a cross. The original iron seam will line up with the shorter iron seam.

Pin the binding in place. I put a pin at the top right side and bottom left side so I don't run the risk of sewing over my pin. 


Sew a diagonal line from the top left corner to the bottom right corner. 

This is the finished line sewn from the top left corner to the bottom right corner. Remover the pins. Note: Do NOT cut any excess fabric yet! Wait until you open the binding back up to make sure you sewed it correctly. 

Here is the finished closed binding with the excess fabric still attached. If your binding looks like this and lays flat with your quilt, then you can cut the excess off. If your binding is too loose or too tight, take the seam out and redo the binding process. 
Now you are ready to iron the binding up and turn it to the other side to finish sewing onto the quilt. 


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