I think you can ask as many questions as you want, Beth.

I cut my bindings at 2.25" wide. I used to stitch them onto the front of the quilt, turn to the back and hand stitch them to the back. However... I hate to hand sew bindings, so now I stitch them to the back, turn them to the front and machine stitch them from the front. I stay right on the edge of the binding, and I think they look just fine. I choose a top thread to match the binding and a bobbin thread to match the backing. It's not as nice as hand stitching, but it's better than not getting it done or hating every minute of it. I tried Kate's theory - that it was a final goodbye to my quilt, but that didn't work for me. I still hated it. I think you need to find the technique that works for you and stick with it.

There are many tutorials on uTube. I like the one Sharon Schamber does but take a look and see.

I cut mine at 1-7/8" and make a narrow binding. I still stitch on the back by hand. But, Jen showed us a new way to stitch on the back by machine and roll it to the front to stitch by machine making a piping at the same time. I'm going to try that method next.

There are NO rules. Do whatever you like and practice on small sandwiches till you get something you like.

No rules!!! No quilt police!!! You do what you're comfortable with. You can try all the ways you want.

I've tried quite a few and find it depends on the quilt and how I want it to look.....and how much time I have. I've made them with piping and I like it. I don't know if this is the one Jen taught at camp, but it's the one I use and it's fun!

(ask all the questions you want)

SharonG/FL

Here is a link that might be useful: Susie's Magic Binding

Life's too short for the quilt police! Practice on different methods on small items until you find something that works for you. And if you find that you hate all of them, make a friend with someone who likes doing bindings and trade off, offer to buy them some fabric yardage or a pre-cut bundle or something. Luckily for me, I finally learned to do bindings the traditional way and I actually enjoy doing them. I cut my strips 2.25 inches, sew it down on the front using the walking foot. (Before I started using it I struggled so much and hated it.) Then I hand stitch to the back. I also learned NOT to cut the excess batting and backing off until I stitch it to the front, when you cut it off before it's difficult to keep the edges perfectly straight under the presser foot. I actually like the hand stitching part. I'm not trying to brag but my bindings are awesome. Anyways, if you are a newbie I doubt that you will be entering your quilts into competition anyways soon, so don't sweat it.

OMG, Rita! Where were you when I was struggling with a binding at the retreat??? Your suggestion to not cut the excess backing and batting off until after you've sewn on the binding is spot on! and no one ever told me about that!

I cut my bindings 2.25" for almost every quilt, sew on the front (yes! using the walking foot) with a 1/4" seam, mitering the corners, turn to the back, and hand stitch the binding onto the back with small, tight stitches. Once I had a judge praise my binding sewing onto the back, so I enjoy that process and take pride in doing it right. But....I can't wait to try the binding Jennifer showed us at the retreat and learn to stich-in-the-ditch carefully on the front, especially for quilts that will get a lot of use and washing.

Suggestion: get a few kids panels, sandwich with backing and batting, then practice your machine quilting, either free motion or straightline using a walking foot, then bind the quilt to get some practice. Give the quilts to children in your life or to a daycare or church nursery.

I recently found the web site below with 31 Days of Walking Foot Quilting - an inspiration!

Here is a link that might be useful: Petit Design Co: 31 Days of Walking Foot Quilting

Sharon (et. al), that IS the binding method I taught at Retreat. So if you need a visual, there it is.

I love a small, tight binding and this one works well since I hate to hand stitch a binding. However, if you like a wider binding to make an additional border look, you could use this same method. You'd just want to increase the widths of your binding strips.

There are no rules in quilting; don't let anyone tell you otherwise! You can do what works for you! And you may come up with a new method that works for someone else!

I've been told there are no quilt police... So I've tried a variety of techniques:
I do cut all of mine to 2.5", I've not had a desire yet to do a larger one, but it will happen at some point!
I've machine sewn to the front and hand stitched to the back.
I've machine sewn to the back and then turn it to the front and used a machine decorative stitch for the front... Idea from a MIssouri Star Quilt Co. Tutorial.
I've machine sewn front and back, following directions from a blogger, Cluck, Cluck sew
And now I've got a new one to try from the retreat!
I'm partial to machine sewing back & front...it's secure and is great for kids quilts. Plus it's quick!
I'm learning it depends on the quilt how I will do the binding... I'm still trying different methods ...So try a few to see which you prefer!
V.

Sharon, thanks for the link! I like hand sewing binding, but I will try that technique - it makes a very cool binding.

I cut my binding at 2". I used to do 1-3/4" for a really narrow binding, but 2" is just easier to cut. :)

For miniature quilts I machine sew the whole binding using 4 separate strips.

Donna

oh my! Did I mention that y'all are AWESOME?????

Beth, experiment and find what works for you, if you come up with something new (or forgotten for a while lol) you can write book.

One thing about this forum, and it has been mentioned before, the members are very friendly and welcoming to the newbies. Everyone is so generous with sharing!

I like the thinner binding and I use washable glue to help with the corners. I hand sew to the back.

BUT, I started machine sewing my bindings on quilts I know will be used a lot.

Thanks for the link the binding sounds like something I would like.
Rosa

I used to hand stitch all my bindings. Now I either sew the binding to the back, turn to front and machine sew or fold over the backing to to the front and sew it down. By the time I get to the binding I'm ready to be done with the quilt.
Teresa thank you so much for the link to 31 Days of Walking Foot Quilting. Good blog to read to get inspired and try something besides Free Motion.
Darlene

2 more things to play with, while learning bindings:

There is a "stich n ditch" foot for machine-sewing bindings on in one step. (I know one is available at newarkdress.com, but I don't know which machines it fits). I used one constantly when making DD's clothes; it takes a bit of practice to learn, but it does a beautiful job.

The other is an easy binding-with-flange. This is perfect for those backings meant to be repeated in the border:

Measure/cut the filling to the width/length you want, extending to include the finished border. Measure/cut the backing plus double the width you want for the finished border plus 1/4" seam allowance. When laid out to baste, the layers from the top down will be quilt-top, then the filling with the border-width's extra showing on all sides, then the backing extending another border-width + seam allowance.
Sew the flange (single or double fold bias is fine) to the backing's edge, with mitered corners. Press seam toward quilt.
Fold the backing over the filling; the flange's seam should align with finished top's edge. Miter corners. Stitch-in-the-ditch along the flange-meets-backing seamline.

For light-weight materials and for utility quilts meant to be machine-washed, I use sheer- or feather-weight fusible stabilizer on the back of the binding. This not only adds stability to make sewing easier, it also seems to protect the weave and extend the durability. The binding on the utility-quilt bedspread made for DD over 30 yrs ago still looks unworn. :)

I always make a "sample" block. How else to be sure the thickness of the filling and the quilting stitches will finish to look the way I want? Sample blocks are also great for practicing various quilt-stitching patterns. A collection of several (or more) sample blocks can be stitched together for a toddler's nap-quilt; or framed and hung on the wall as a reminder -- I have one that reminds me NOT to use a very small-scale stitch on a medium-loft filling. :)