Binding by Machine

[gable428]

I like to bind my quilts by machine because it's quick. However, sometimes I will end up with wavy borders. For those of you who bind by machine, what is the best stitch to use so I don't end up with wavy borders? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[BethDurand]

Are you using a walking foot for both sides? That's the only thing I could come up with.

Beth

[pigletaz]

If you don't like to machine bind on both sides or it seems you're getting the wavy borders, I've heard this technique works well. Machine stitch on the front all the way around, then use 1/4" fusible tape, iron onto the underside of the binding, fold, iron to the back. You can either leave unstitched or hand stitch it down.

[ffq-lar]

Are you using an attachment that sews the binding onto both sides at the same time? You may be stretching things as the binding is fed into the attachment. If you are sewing one side at a time with a DSM, a walking foot should remedy the waviness. Maybe someone else has an idea??

[gable428]

I do use a walking foot on my DSM when doing this. I've never heard of an attachment that sews both sides at the same time. What is it called?

[ffq-lar]

I guess it is called a binding-applier-to-both-sides-at-once attachment!! Sorry--I know some DSMs have an attachment that folds a straight or bias strip exactly to feed under the needle so the one line of stitching sews through all layers. There are also free-standing machines which do the same, but most of these are industrial machines. Guess they are called edge binding attachments or machines. Anybody out there have a binding machine??

[mountainmanda]

i no longer bind for others and am too busy with others quilts to bind for myself to actually answer this intelligantly, but HEY i'll try

i have found that i get wavy borders when the quilt is not square. That is my first battle. I use a decorative stich to try and cover up the wavy stuff. Most are so excited about the decorative stitch that the waves aren't even considered.

Hope this helps!

[annlittle1]

The walking foot should help. A lot of times I use a serpentine stitch for stitching down the binding. Its an "s" shaped stitch. It gives good coverage back and front and it looks good on both sides. Some decorative stitches don't look as good on the back side.

I have a Martelli Kwik Bind Accessory if anyone is interested in one. I think that is the name of it. I'm too lazy to get up and go in my workroom and confirm that. I saw it demonstrated at my local sewing machine dealer. I had to have it because I hated binding. I got it home and opened it up a few weeks later. I took one look at it and decided it was too complicated for me. I tried again about a year ago and decided I could have the binding done by the time I figured out how it worked. Its one of those things that when I de-clutter my house will have to go since I don't use it.

I've since taken a class on bindings at my LQS and really learned so much. I think the secret of a great binding is in the pressing of it. I press it to set the seam, open up the seam and press it again, and then fold it over and press it the third time. If you press in a counterclockwise direction your corners will be perfect. My bindings look so much better since I took that class. I do a lot of bindings for customers and make almost as much on them as I do on the quilting.

Oops, I'm running off at the mouth again. Try the walking foot and the serpentine stitch.

[fabric007]

I found sometimes the wavy comes from when I am sewing the second time, and I am not careful and stretch it as I am sewing...I find if I relax and not hold on so tight, it isnt so wavy...

[epprog]

Phyllis, how much do you charge for binding? You know, I was thinking about it and I think that by pressing you should even be able to get rid of some of the waves because if you just press from the top down with the iron and not slide the iron along you would not be just ironing the waves, you would be pressing them out a bit. Hope I'm making sense but I can see the picture in my mind and I am going to impliment this idea. Thanks Phyllis for the info! And fabric007 has a good point too. Don't stretch at all as you go, just like you can't stretch when adding borders!

Cher

[quilts2much]

I heard you can use your longarm to put a binding on. Does anyone know how to do this?

[Ruthieq]

I just uploaded some photos to my webshots album of applying my binding on my LA. It's the second time I've done it and went much smoother this time.

[juliagraves]

I put the binding on using the longarm and was amazed at how easy it was. After I quilted the whole quilt, I went back to the top of the quilt, started in the middle of the quilt with the middle of the binding, and worked down one side, then went back to the top and worked down the other side.

However, when I told a friend about it who also has a longarm, she asked how did I square up the quilt? Hmmm.... I hadn't really considered that... I don't ever square up my quilts, so maybe that's why I've had wavy borders... Any ideas?

Julia

[Circle Square]

I think wavy borders are also caused by the drawing up of the quilt from the quilting. I have found that a quilt with thicker batting will be much more wavy than a quilt with cotton batting. Think about it. The whole quilt is drawn up a little from the quilting, but the edge is still straight and the binding is straight and flat. I mean you have to stretch the edge out flat to sew the binding on. Does that make a bit of sense? Anyway, I have found the binding is more wavy on thicker quilts or quilts with more dense quilting.

I charge 10 cents per inch for binding a quilt, and I do it all by machine with the walking foot. I cut the binding strips and sew them into one long strip. I sew it on the back side of the quilt, then flip it over and stitch it down with a straight stitch right on the edge. It amounts to about $20 per hour!!

Ann

[annlittle1]

Well, I'm probably pricey on binding, because I was trying to discourage people from asking me to do it. I charge ten cents per running inch if I just sew the top on it. I charge eighteen cents per running inch if I attach the front and back by machine. I charge twenty-five cents a running inch if I stitch the front by machine and finish the back by hand. If I have to make the binding I charge $10.00 to $25.00 depending on the size of the quilt. I did a baby quilt a couple of weeks ago. I spent about four hours total on quilting and binding it. The quilting fee was one dollar more than the binding fee and the binding took only an hour.

I do straighten the quilt before I do the binding and I don't charge extra for that. That's why I don't attach the binding on my LA.

Binding still isn't my favorite thing to do, but I've done so much of it recently, that I've gotten pretty good at it. I think that the pressing takes more time than the machine sewing, but it really makes a big difference.

Oh, yes, if your machine has a speed control, use it to go very slow. You will have much better control of the binding. If I go faster, then I spend more time picking areas out and re-doing them.

[annlittle1]

Okay, I'm going to ask this. I'm trying to envision how the binding would make for wavy borders. I can see the binding being puckery or wavy if it was stretched, but I can't see how the binding would cause the borders to be wavy.

I always sew a stay stitch around the edge of the quilt before I start attaching the binding. That helps stop raveling, keeps the edge of the quilt/border from stretching, and best of all it controls the batting so I don't have to fight with it when I stitch the back side of the binding. Actually, the stitch that I use is an extra long, extra wide multiple stitch zigzag, not a regular stay-stitch.

[RitaR]

If I may stick my nose in here.. you might try this on a practice piece, and it doesn't matter if you use a straight grain binding or bias. I also sew the binding onto the back of the quilt, fold to front and machine stitch the front also.

But, back to the waving.. I find if I put a bit of tension, do NOT stretch, just a bit more tension on the binding strip than on the quilt sandwich, the first time around, it lays much better the second time, wether hand or machine stitching.

I also never sew a binding on without using the Walking foot on my Viking. I've tried the bias quilt binding attachment and just have too much trouble with even feed, when I do it. I know I'm not anyone else.. wishes for a solution that helps.

Ritarose