The Sewing Place
The Emporia => Patchwork & Quilting ... Welcome to the Darkside => Topic started by: Diane on June 07, 2017, 14:55:05 PM
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Any tips on how to mitre a corner? When sewing on a border around your block.
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You can mitre them, but if the block is going to be part of a larger top I tend to piece the border and I piece the quilt border as well otherwise you get a lumpy bit of fabric in the mitred seam and you waste quite a lot of fabric. (so cut border into 4 straight strips and attach)
I only mitre my bindings where the extra fabric helps it hold its shape.
However, without pictures as I don't have any to hand, I can give a quick tut on them and how to have the fabric in them minimised. Please note this is not how to do a mitred corner in your binding.
Cut your fabric lengths without forgetting to add 4-6" extra in length to account for the mitre.
Lay your fabric strip out along the seam.
Continue your fabric past the edge by about 2" at both ends.
Sew the strip to your block starting and stopping about 1/4" away from each end. Backstitch each end.
Repeat this on all edges.
Your tails will be overlapping at this point.
Fold the block over diagonally (RS tog) and line up your two fabric tails on a corner (so left side and top for eg) with the fold running a 45 degree angle between them.
Ruler on 45 degree angle, extend this out past your tails and trace onto the border strips and pin.
Sew along the traced line, make sure you find your original stitch line and continue from it to ensure no holes! Don't forget to backstitch at both ends.
Trim the excess.
Press the seam.
Repeat with other 3 corners.
Press.
All done :)
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If sewing the binding on with ¼" seam I stop stitching ¼" before the end of the side, turn and stitch off the corner of the fabric (so you get a short diagonal line). Cut the thread. Fold the binding strip upwards (against the little diagonal bit of stitching) keeping it at a right angle to the quilt edge and then fold back down on itself. The fold you have made will be level with the quilt edge you have just bound and the raw edge of the binding will be in position to stitch it to the next side. You may need a pin to hold the fold in position. Start your ¼" seam on the next side from the edge of the quilt so that it goes through the fold you have made.
When you go to turn the binding to the back of the quilt you will find a nice mitre front and back.
That may sound complicated but it is dead easy. I think the Missouri Star Quilt Company video on You Tube shows that method. (Sorry, I'm on a kindle and have never works out how to do links)
Edited to add: Sorry, I realise from other reply that you 're wanting to do a mitre on a block not a quilt binding. But, this may be useful when you get to that bit
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You can mitre them, but if the block is going to be part of a larger top I tend to piece the border and I piece the quilt border as well otherwise you get a lumpy bit of fabric in the mitred seam and you waste quite a lot of fabric. (so cut border into 4 straight strips and attach)
I only mitre my bindings where the extra fabric helps it hold its shape.
However, without pictures as I don't have any to hand, I can give a quick tut on them and how to have the fabric in them minimised. Please note this is not how to do a mitred corner in your binding.
Cut your fabric lengths without forgetting to add 4-6" extra in length to account for the mitre.
Lay your fabric strip out along the seam.
Continue your fabric past the edge by about 2" at both ends.
Sew the strip to your block starting and stopping about 1/4" away from each end. Backstitch each end.
Repeat this on all edges.
Your tails will be overlapping at this point.
Fold the block over diagonally (RS tog) and line up your two fabric tails on a corner (so left side and top for eg) with the fold running a 45 degree angle between them.
Ruler on 45 degree angle, extend this out past your tails and trace onto the border strips and pin.
Sew along the traced line, make sure you find your original stitch line and continue from it to ensure no holes! Don't forget to backstitch at both ends.
Trim the excess.
Press the seam.
Repeat with other 3 corners.
Press.
All done :)
Thanks very much for that, I'll practice that later on. Like you said on the block I've just done I just cut the four strips and stitched to each side etc.
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If sewing the binding on with ¼" seam I stop stitching ¼" before the end of the side, turn and stitch off the corner of the fabric (so you get a short diagonal line). Cut the thread. Fold the binding strip upwards (against the little diagonal bit of stitching) keeping it at a right angle to the quilt edge and then fold back down on itself. The fold you have made will be level with the quilt edge you have just bound and the raw edge of the binding will be in position to stitch it to the next side. You may need a pin to hold the fold in position. Start your ¼" seam on the next side from the edge of the quilt so that it goes through the fold you have made.
When you go to turn the binding to the back of the quilt you will find a nice mitre front and back.
That may sound complicated but it is dead easy. I think the Missouri Star Quilt Company video on You Tube shows that method. (Sorry, I'm on a kindle and have never works out how to do links)
Edited to add: Sorry, I realise from other reply that you 're wanting to do a mitre on a block not a quilt binding. But, this may be useful when you get to that bit
Thanks for all the tips, this will be helpful once I get to adding the final binding.
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The pressing bit on these is really important as you have a little bit of annoying fabric where the block and the border meet. Squash it. and make sure you trim the extra tails off nicely but without chopping a hole in your block.
I forgot to add that you'll probably want to pin your border at each end an inch away from the edge so that you don't get a pulled out of shape border when you stitch the corner. It's easy to pull a tail out of tru when you are getting them laying nicely over each other for the trace and sew. The pins will help stop this happening and shouldn't get in the way of sewing. Now I hate pins, but if I ever have do to this I always pin there.
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Great tips, thanks all
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I like to mitre the binding, but not usually the borders. I often use contrasting cornerstones in the borders like the first of my SAS quilts.
http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.uk/quilts/SAS.htm (http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.uk/quilts/SAS.htm)
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I like to mitre the binding, but not usually the borders. I often use contrasting cornerstones in the borders like the first of my SAS quilts.
http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.uk/quilts/SAS.htm (http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.uk/quilts/SAS.htm)
I must say what beautiful quilts, your very talented.
I've never made anything to do with P&Q before so it's all very new to me. I've made a few blocks up to now but I think I'll piece these together and make a small lap quilt to start with, i can then move on to a larger quilt for the bed now that I have a bit more of an idea of what style of quilt that I want to do.
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Sew along the traced line, make sure you find your original stitch line and continue from it to ensure no holes! Don't forget to backstitch at both ends.
Trim the excess.
I'd like to insert a line here - check it's okay and lies flat before you trim.
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Make sure your binding covers everything at the back :|
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Make sure your binding covers everything at the back :|
Oh yes, you don't want your backside exposed! :devil:
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Cheeky!! :D :devil: