A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts

HERITAGE THREADS
A Comprehensive Guide To
Hand-Binding Quilts
Hand binding seems daunting, but I promise you it is not, once you get the
hang of it. I love binding. It is my favorite part of making quilts. Follow these
steps, and, with practice, you can feel confident in your binding skills. This is
the method that I have tried and tested through years of practice. I have
refined things, combined skills I learned from others, and hope this method
will help you feel successful as well!

A FEW NOTES BEFORE WE GET STARTED

· Read the entire document in its entirety before starting your
binding project
· All seam allowances are ¼"
· Assumed width of fabric is 40"

Please contact me with any questions

 jen@heritage-threads.com
 heritage.threads
 heritage-threads.com

For personal use only. May not be used for teaching or commercial purposes
without express written consent. If you find this book helpful, encourage
others to buy it and learn how to bind themselves. Please do not share it.

A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts i

MATERIALS
· Rotary cutter
· Self-healing mat
I like a large mat, 24x36 Olfa

· Quilting ruler for cutting

· Fabric as called for on your quilt pattern
· Walking foot
This is optional, but helpful if you have one.

· Machingers gloves
These are optional, but helpful. You can purchase them inexpensively on Amazon.

· Clover clips
· Pins
· Thimble
· Iron
· Polyester Thread

CHOOSING THREAD
I almost always match the thread as closely as I can to the binding. However,
if I am using a solid or minky backing, I always match the backing. A solid will
show every stitch if it’s not the same color and minky will fluff up around the
stitches and hide them well.

ii ©2017 Heritage Threads

ASSOCIATED LINKS
If you, like me, would rather buy some needs from Amazon and rely on them
being there in two days, below are some associated links for the items above.

· Olfa Splash 45mm rotary cutter

· Olfa Endurance 45mm rotary blade

· Olfa 24x36 Self-healing mat

· Machingers gloves

· Clover clips

· Clover leather thimble

PLANNING
Make sure your quilt is quilted as you'd like (long armed, quilted on your
domestic, hand quilted).

After it has been quilted, take the time to square it up. This means it is
straight on all edges in line with the quilt top edge. I often have to trim into
my top a little to get the straightest line possible. Nobody is perfect at this,
but try to make it as square as possible for best results. I like to line my rulers
up at the corner and start from there. This way, you can make sure you are
setting yourself up to have the straightest edges possible in relationship to
one another.

A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts iii

 2¼"

CUTTING
Cut into your yardage required for this particular quilt pattern. (Most are ½-1
yard. This should be listed in your pattern materials so you can plan
accordingly.)

Cut strips at 2¼" x WOF (1). I find this width creates an almost perfect
balance of binding between the front and back of the quilt. Once you are more
proficient at binding, you will likely not need all of the yardage called for in a
pattern. As you are starting, go ahead and cut it all. You can save extras in
your scrap bin or for a future scrappy binding.

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SEWING
Sew binding strips together, right sides together, at a 45 degree angle. You
can either mark a line on your fabric (2 & 3), or as I prefer, put some painters
tape in line with your needle on your machine (4). Keep the corners of the top
strip in-line with the edge on the tape.

2 3 4

Trim excess ¼” from seam (5).

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 6 7

Press seams open to reduce bulk (6).

Iron the entire length of binding in half, wrong sides together (7).

Do a dry run of your binding. Lay your quilt on the ground and lay out the
binding on top of it along the edge. Make sure you do not have any binding
seams end up in corners. It is complicated to make mitred corners work with
seams from the binding in them.

Begin pinning about halfway down on one side of your quilt. This will give
you more slack to work with as you attach your binding ends together later.
You will attach the binding to the front of your quilt. The raw edge of fabric
needs to be toward the outside edge of the quilt. I prefer starting on a long
side. Leave 12-15" unattached as a tail (8). This will be used to attach
binding ends together.

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 9

Pin every few inches to ensure your binding won't bunch up as you sew.
Place your last pin ¼" from the edge. (I like to put in two pins to remind me
to stop once I reach that point.) (9)

Use your walking foot, if possible, to attach binding using a scant ¼" seam.
(I love using my machingers gloves to give me better grip. I only use one
on my left hand.) (10)

Once you sew to your last pin a ¼" from the corner, make sure your needle
is down, lift up your foot, pivot the quilt, and sew at a 45 degree angle into
the corner (11).

10 11

A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts 4

12 13 14

Back stitch, trim your thread, and

15
remove the quilt (12).

Mitre the corner by folding it up on

a 45 degree angle, then back down
on itself. The raw edge of the
binding should now align with the
raw edge of the quilt on the second
side (13 & 14).

Pin down the next side and repeat

these steps until you complete the
last corner. Sew a few inches down
the last side, then STOP. You will
need to attach your binding ends
together first (15).

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16

Lay your quilt on the ground with the binding ends overlapping (16).

A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts 6

Trim just the top binding strip so 2 ¼" are overlapping with the bottom
strip (17).

Sew these together the same way you did with your binding strips at the
beginning, using a 45 degree angle (18).

17 18

2¼"

Trim excess, press seam open, then pin and sew this remaining strip to
quilt (19 & 20).

19 20

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21

Iron the binding toward the back of the quilt. This will make hand stitching to
the back easier. It also allows you to double check that you caught all of the
fabric as you were sewing on your binding (21).

A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts 8

HAND STITCHING
It is easy to attach your binding with incorrect proportions. This method will
show you how to ensure you have an even ¼" of binding on the front and a ¼"
of binding on the back of your quilt when you finish. You should fold the
binding in half once before folding it up to the quilt back (22 & 23). This will
make your binding on the front and back equal in size. If you were to enter
your quilt into a competition, this is something that is scrutinized.

22

23

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24

I like to start close to a corner on the long side. Fold your binding over then
clip (or pin) it to the edge. I only use about 10 clips. I find if I use more than
this, I still have to readjust my clips (24).

A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts 10

25

Tie a knot in one end of your thread. I use about 18" of thread. I do not double
my thread. Insert your needle into the quilt back, then into the binding (25).
Pull on your needle and make sure you catch the knot of the thread in the
binding. Insert the needle back into the backing parallel to the stitch you just
made in the binding (26 & 27). Stitch about ⅛" apart. If you're not sure how
wide that is, it's half the width of your binding. You will end up with tiny
stitches as you do this. This is known as a whip stitch.

26

27

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28

I find it helpful to apply some pressure with my thumb to the thread as I am

pulling it through. This will help it to not tangle (28).

A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts 12

29 30 31

When you reach the end of your thread length, sew into the quilt back, then
back through the hole you just stitched in the binding (29), then tie it off in a
knot (30). I then insert the needle into the binding, pull the thread all the way
through, and clip it off (31).

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Get a new length of thread, knot it off on one end, then begin stitching again
where you left off (32).

32

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33 34

Continue stitching until you reach a corner (33). I like to stitch a knot right
along my thread line from where I attached the binding to the top. This
reduces any shifting as I work on the corner (34).

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Start about 2-3" away from the corner and begin folding the binding back
onto the quilt back (35).

Then go back to your corner and fold it over. Be careful to make it as close to
45 degrees as possible (36).

35 36

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37

Hold the binding between your clip 2-3" away and the corner over, clip it in
place, then remove the corner clip (37).

15
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Begin stitching again, being careful to catch the very corner of the binding
(38). Continue this process until you reach the end of your quilt.

38

Give yourself a high five! You’re done!

A Comprehensive Guide To Hand-Binding Quilts 18

HERITAGE THREADS · A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO HAND-BINDING QUILTS

For personal use only. May not be used for teaching or commercial purposes
without express written consent. If you find this book helpful, encourage
others to buy it and learn how to bind themselves. Please do not share it.

I am Jen, and am a wife and mother to two

boys. I started quilting as a way to have a
hobby I could do while my boys were napping
and it grew from there. My patterns have
been featured on Moda Bake Shop, Missouri
Star Quilt Co., RJR Fabrics, and Quiltmaker’s
100 Blocks. I love bold, saturated colors and
modern quilts, but binding will always have
my heart.

19 ©2017 Heritage Threads

 heritage.threads ·  heritage-threads.com