Month: November 2015

How to do a Simple Quilt Binding

What if you do not wish to do a mitered binding? I was working with scraps and did not have enough fabric to cut out a length of binding without too many joints. I decided to do a simple quilt binding instead – where you bind two opposite edges first, and then the other two. I have always finished with very untidy bumpy corners where the binding overlaps and I searched for a tutorial which would tell me how to go about it properly. I did not really find anything, so I recorded my method as I went along. It is nothing new, but I hope it will help new quilters obtain a fairly neat result!

My small quilted piece finished at 10.5″ x 14.5″, inclusive of the seam allowance along each edge. I prefer a single rather than a double binding for small pieces, so I cut two pieces of binding 1.5″ wide and about 11″ long for the shorter edges. I sewed the binding on the top and pressed it open. I folded it to the back twice and hand sewed it to the back. Both of the shorter edges were finished before I trimmed it to size, to get a sharp, square corner. I have no photos of this stage, I guess this is simple enough.

I again measured the longer edge, it was just under 15″. I now cut the binding length at 16.5″, that is 1.5″ longer than needed. I lined the binding to the edge of the front of the quilt ( right side down) , folded it to the back about  3/4″ over the bound edge and began sewing. I secured the seam with some back stitching, sewed to an inch short of the other end, similarly folded the binding over and sewed to the end; took a couple of back stitches to finish. I think this picture will explain better than I have been able to! I suggest you make a tight, crisp fold to get a neat finish.

Do the other longer edge similarly.

 

For the longer edge, fold the binding over about 3/4″ and sew.; finish the other corner similarly.

 

This is how it looks from the back.

Now open out the binding…Here it is from the front.

 

From the front…

…and from the back.

 

Needs to be pressed before being sewed down

Now press the binding, especially at the corner where a crisp fold will mean a neat finish. If you like, you can press it to the back, fold in and press again … and pin in place if you are a pinner! Some people like to use binding clips, I get along fine without any of these.

 

Press to fold the binding to the back. You can see a bit of a bumpy  extended edge of the binding at the bottom right corner; this will have to be taken care of in the sewing!

Start sewing at the corner , crimping and pulling in the fold to get a straight edge!

 

Start at the corner, pressing and pulling in the binding to get a straight edge…

 

As good as a mitered edge, isnt it?

 

I use a variation of the ladder stitch to bind my quilts. In such a small quilt, hand binding is the way to go, I do believe! The end corner is finished similarly.

Here we are, all done! Almost perfect edges!


You don’t have to do a mitered edge for a perfect binding, after all!

Discovering Lost Treasure

I go on a Diwali cleaning spree and take several trips down Memory Lane…

I had an amazing day today and I didn’t even touch my quilting.

Diwali, the Festival of Lights, is just around the corner and we decided, as a part of the annual cleaning spree, to finally have a look at the five large cartons and trunks of what we thought were old official papers to be sent for pulping. And look at what I found hidden there for the last fifteen years since they were packed!

First, a folder cover I embroidered at the age of twelve ( it was really filthy and has gone into the wash), but it was not the ugly folder that was important. In a pocket in that folder was a picture of my daughter, when she was just ten days old! How precious is that!?! We also discovered a bunch of these photographs taken on a holiday to South India, travelling from Delhi. I don’t remember seeing these, ever. We probably got a transfer out of Delhi immediately thereafter; these were packed and the wooden box never opened till today.


That photograph right on top has a story, which I love to tell. We were boating on this beautiful lake in Ooty when, right in the centre of the lake (probably right here), my husband, Rajeev, dropped something into the water. We later discovered that it was the key to the main door of our flat back home. As we landed home late in the evening when no locksmith was available, he had to break the door open with a kick (or several). You can imagine how effective this tale is in shutting him up when he is being particularly nasty about my carelessness, which is actually just the natural preoccupation of a creative mind. Or so I would like him to believe!

I also found my collection of Georgette Heyers, about 20 of them! I have since replaced a few, as I thought they were lost forever! My dozen or so volumes from the Pelican series on Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology and Psychiatry, which I had scrimped and saved to buy when doing my Masters and also believed were lost… Freud, R.D.Laing, Durkheim…do you suppose a library would want them?

I also found the book I had written for children when I was still in college and which was published in 1979 by the Children’s Book Trust, New Delhi. I had won the National Award for the Best Children’s Literature in English for this and I didn’t even have a copy!

(India) National Award for Best Children's Literature in English 1979
The great Shankar wanted to illustrate this himself, but fell ill.

I discovered a whole lot of letters and cards, including one drawn by a cousin when he was 7 years old. We lost him to a road accident some years ago, 3 weeks before he was to be married. Several letters – some from when we were in school together – from someone who was my best friend for forty plus years, but does not wish to talk to me now.

Let me end this happy-nostalgic post with a few pages of the first ever school project, on ‘My Family’, done by my 6-year old!  We are all there, the Dad – standing in front of his brown Maruti car – who plays with him, the mother who cooks for him,  the uncle who comes back home late from the factory every day, tha aunt who is a lecturer, the sister who loves him, brother ( cousin) who loves to eat chhole-bhature, the grand mom who tells him stories ( I wonder why there is a cat on her saree?), the grandfather who writes letters…

His family – in the eyes of a six- year old!

By the way, we also found a letter of advice written by the same grandfather to my son when he had just entered medical school.

So these were some of the lost treasures I discovered today.  Tell me, how does one throw away these things?

Nearly Insane – The First Two Blocks

Finished Nearly Insane Blocks 67 & 71 – Original quilt by Salinda Rupp c.1865

It was not a very auspicious beginning for my Nearly Insane Quilt! Nevertheless, the first two blocks are done.

Block 67

I started with what was a really easy block and can you believe this is what I did?!?

I also forgot there were points to match in the centre of the pieces!

The fabric looked so pretty when I cut it out – it took me ages to do that, as I fussy cut those bouquets! I picturized it as flowers from behind a trellis. I don’t think I like it very much put together. The original block has two strong contrast fabrics. Perhaps quilting will make a difference?

Here is how it looks now.

The blocks will be all placed on point, so I will photograph them like that.

Block 67 from the quilt originally made by Salinda Rupp – popularly known as Nearly Insane.

Vital Stats

Number of pieces – 29

Level of difficulty – Easy.

Partly ( corners) foundation paper pieced

Block 71

This block was, surprisingly, a toughie! The centre flower strip finishes at 3 and 5/8″. I could not draft it on Quilt Assistant, so I traced the template from the book.

Traced the block template from the draft in book by Liz Lois

I pieced all the strips first before joining them on the block template. I quite love this!

Nearly Insane Block 71 – love this block!

Vital Stats

Number of pieces – 29 (Again!)

Level of difficulty – Easy ( If you don’t have to draft the block template).

Strips pieced first and then assembled on foundation paper.

I did mention that I am working on these blocks only two days a week? Which means you have to wait for that long to see the next block!  I bid you goodnight with a quick peep into what is cooking next Wednesday!

Coming up next!

Another look at the first two together…


Happy Quilting!

  

Breaking News!! The Foundation Paper Piecing Block Patterns for this quilt are available for sale on my store from May 29, 2023!

Red and White and A Mini!

Could you get more traditional than this? A red and white pineapple mini quilt in the making. Have to add the border. I wish you could actually feel it and see it in person. It is exquisite, even if I say that myself!

 The ‘top’ so far is 6″x6″; with a double border, it will finish at 7.5″ square. How on earth will one quilt it? Those white strips are just a quarter inch wide. Any suggestions?
I also started on the Nearly Insane today. Hope to share 3 blocks tomorrow! Do check in to see.

P.S. You can see how the mini looks with a border added on here.