KNOWLEDGE IS POWER, BUT IT DOESN'T MAKE MY BLOW DRYER RUN!

Monday, November 10, 2014

Peppermint Patty and a Binding Tutorial

Peppermint Patty

Ok I promise this is the last time I will show this quilt! It is complete. The above picture is before it went into the washer and dryer. I used a red with white polka dots for the binding from my stash.
Also as a word of caution.......I washed every single piece of red fabric before I used it. Both of my Color Catchers came out very dark pink!


Two women in our guild, Carolyn and Jamie have started their own machine quilting business. So I took it to them and Jamie did a wonderful job machine quilting it. I chose an all over swirl pattern that gave me just the right density of quilting that I like.
If you are local and would like their information, send me an email.



To keep it real, I thought I would show you some of my blocks did not match up. It's totally my inexact sewing and not the pattern.



There are lots of ways to connect the ends of your binding . I bought this tool years ago and I really like it. I know you can figure it out with a ruler .......but for me this works well. Some women in my guild want to know about this so here is a tutorial.



The first thing to do is to leave a long tail on each end of your binding. See above, more is always better. There is nothing worse than to come up short and have to add to the binding.



I am right handed so my instructions will be the way I do it. Take the tail to the left and cut the end clean with a nice parallel cut.


Place the binding tool on top of the tail you just trimmed, with the arrow at the top and the edge of the tool along your newly trimmed edge.



My binding is 2 1/2 inches wide, these instruction will be for that size. There are 3 other sizes on the tool as well.
Take the tail on your right (the untrimmed one) and fold it so that the folded edge lines up with the 2 1/2" line. See above how the 2 1/2" mark just peeks out.


Trim your right hand tail off at the 2 1/2" mark.



They should look something like this.


Open out the right tail and draw a diagonal line like this. Measure down  2 1/2" on the right hand side so you know where to draw the line. You can see my dot.



This part is a bit hard to describe....after you draw your line on the right tail, twist it by 1 turn, it will look like it is not right. You may have to do this a few times to get it right. Next line up the ends of your tails and pin right on the line. DO NOT SEW YET.


Turn it out to make sure it fits and it is not tangled up. This is easier to do than to explain. After you do it a few times it will come easy and you won't even have to think about it.



Sew on the line.....


Trim the seam and press it open.



Start sewing where you left off and you are finished with a nice neat seam that isn't bulky.



The other thing I like to do after I sew on the binding is to press it from the front. I think it helps to turn the binding and gives it a nice crisp edge.


I also press right in to those miters which sets them nicely.

I have no idea if this is the way people usually do a binding but this is how I have done mine for years and it works pretty well.

Peppermint Patty Stats:
Size about 60 x 66
Fabric from my stash
Pattern is by Sew Kind of Wonderful using their Quick Curve Ruler.
Quilting by Jamie  L- email me for her information if you would like it

The best part is that it is done for Christmas!

Kelly

14 comments:

  1. Great quilt. I love the way quilts change when they are washed.
    I do my binding this way but I don’t have the binding tool,

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  2. Have you tried the binding tool? My local quilt shop introduced me to this tool and I have found it to be extremely helpful. thanks for the tutorial. Sewing binding is my Mom's favorite job

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  3. Yay!! Peppermint Patty is a such a wonderful quilt, and congratulations on finishing it in time for the holiday season. The quilting pattern really suits the quilt. I join my binding the same as you but without a tool. I lengthen my stitch when I first sew the ends together so it's easier to unpick if it dosen't sit flat, once I know it's right I sew over with normal stitch length. I like ironing my binding too before sewing it down, it really get a crisper finish.

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  4. What a wonderful quilt for the holidays. You finished it so quickly and the quilted swirls were the perfect choice. Glad you threw in the color catchers. Great job!

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  5. the quilting is awesome and just the right amount - the swirls are perfect.
    I love the name, too cute!
    I press my binding too and my new thing is to glue it the backside, then hand stitch it down. Works so great, no pins, no hand cramps.
    Lovely finish!!

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  6. I love your quilt and NEVER get tired of seeing it...congrats on the finish!

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  7. Don't apologize for showing this pretty red/white quilt again.....love! I've never used the binding tool but join my binding in a similar fashion.

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  8. Oh I love how it turned out! Great reminder about the shout sheets! I love the idea of ironing the binding, I will have to remember to try that. Now you will get to be warm and cozy with your new quilt over the holiday season . Oh yes, I love the name!

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  9. Wow! Wonderful quilt for the upcoming holiday and you turned it out so quickly! Great reminder about the color catchers. Reds just tend to hold their dye longer don't they?

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  10. Apology Not Excepted! I love seeing the process the good, the bad & imperfections. It shows we are all human! And the quilt is great--the quilting is spot on and the binding process interesting. However I owned every tool known to man till about 5 years ago for binding. Then discovered the easiest and fastest way to do binding that requires no tools. Maybe I will do a tutorial--it is such a enjoyable and freeing technique.

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  11. Great finish on this wonderful quilt. I will never tire of seeing the lovely reds and white.

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  12. I love your quilt! I bind my quilts exactly the same way that you do. Except I picked up your fab tip to iron the mitred corners - thanks for that!

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  13. Thanks so much for this tutorial! The quilt is a stunner...

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