How to Make Quilt Binding from Fabric Strips

Like this? Click or tap to share it

blankPutting on the binding is the last step in assembling a quilt. Quilt binding is a protective fabric covering that goes over the raw edge of the quilt sandwich. You can buy ready-made quilt binding, but I prefer to make my own binding from quilting fabric. It costs less, and you will find a much wider selection of fabric patterns and colors if you make your own.

Double fold binding, sometimes called French binding, covers the quilt’s edge with two layers of fabric. This makes it the binding of choice for any quilt that will be used regularly.

Three Ways to Cut Quilt Binding Strips

You can cut quilt binding in three different ways:

  • Cross grain strips are cut across the width of the fabric from selvage to selvage.
  • Lengthwise strips are cut along the length of the fabric, parallel to the selvages.
  • Bias strips are cut diagonally across the fabric. For quilts with curved edges, you must use bias strips so the binding will bend around the curves. Cross grain and lengthwise grain strips are not flexible enough for curved edges.

This post shows you how to make binding from cross-cut fabric strips.

Supply List

  • Cotton quilting fabric
  • Rotary cutter, cutting ruler and cutting mat
  • Scissors
  • Sewing machine
  • Iron and ironing surface

Step-by-Step Cutting and Sewing Instructions

To be perfectly honest, I skip the calculations you’ll find in the first four steps below and just use the Quilter’s Little Helper app by Robert Kaufman Fabrics. It calculates how many strips you need to cut, based on the size of your quilt and how wide you want your binding strips to be. I highly recommend it. It’s free to download to your iPhone or Android device.

I’ve included the calculations, though, so you can use precisely the amount of fabric you need, without wastage or ending up with too little.

1. Decide How Wide to Make the Binding

The cutting width of your binding strips depends on how wide the finished binding will be. For quilts made without borders, the binding should be ¼” finished width, so the binding’s seam allowance doesn’t cover up the quilt blocks. Here’s the width to cut the strips for finished binding widths from ¼” to ¾”:blank

These widths are based on this formula:

(Finished binding width x 2 + ¼” seam allowance) x 2

2. Calculate How Long to Make the Binding Strip

Here’s an approximate formula to decide how long a strip of binding you will need to get all the way around the quilt:

(Quilt length in inches  x 2) + (Quilt width in inches x 2) + 12”

The extra twelve inches of binding is an allowance for  going around corners and attaching the ends of the binding.

3. Calculate How Many Fabric Strips to Cut

Divide the number of inches you got in Step 2 by 42 to get the number of fabric strips you will need for this quilt.  42 is the number of usable inches of fabric in a cross-cut fabric strip after the selvages are removed.

4. See How Much Binding Fabric You Will Need

Once you are armed with the number of strips you need, use this table to see how much yardage you need to cut that many strips of your chosen width.blank

 5. Cut the Binding Strips

Use a rotary cutter and a cutting ruler to cut the fabric strips.

  • Fold the fabric in half with wrong sides together and selvages aligned together.
  • Fold again so the folded edge aligns with the selvages.
  • Trim the edge of the fabric so the cutting edge is squared with the fold, then begin cutting strips. Cut from the folded edge to the selvage edges.
  • Every few strips, check to make sure the cutting line is still square with the fold. Trim the edge again if it has gotten out of square.

blank

This cutting method won’t work if your quilt has curved edges. To make binding that will bend around curves, you will need to cut the binding strips along the bias of the fabric.

6. Sew a Continuous Binding Strip

You need to sew the strips you’ve just cut into one long strip of binding that you will then sew all around the edge of the quilt. To do this, lay two strips in an L shape with right sides together, and then sew a diagonal line from the top left corner to the bottom right corner of the overlapping section:

blank

Continue sewing until you’ve joined all the strips, then trim the seam allowances to ½”. I use scissors to do the trimming:

blank

Pres the seams open so they look like this:blank

Fold the binding strip in half with wrong sides together and the cut edges aligned, and then press:

blank

You will end up with a long strip of binding ready to sew onto the quilt. For easier handling on larger quilts, wind the binding strip into a roll like this.blank

I like to make a big roll of a binding fabric I like, then wait for a quilt to come along that matches the binding.

Featured photo by gina pina, Flickr.

Similar Posts

8 Comments

  1. I never thought I could make a real quilt. I always winged it. I did a t-shirt quilt for my daughters and it was a big project to take on. It was no where near perfect but the girls loved them. I made a crib quilt for my grandson years ago. I have two quilts from my grandmother that I cherish. She took scraps of what most people would consider nothing and made something I treasure. As I watched how you did the strip quilt I realize I can do this. Thank you for giving each step and not making something look so overwhelming.
    Kathy

  2. Can you tell me if I can cut my binding strips from the length and the width of my fabric. Due to the pattern, i think it would look belted if my strips matched the design on my border.

    1. Hi Carol,

      For many fabrics it works well to cut the binding from the border fabric. Some fabrics are directional, so cutting lengthwise pieces will produce a different-looking strip than cutting crosswise pieces. For instance, striped fabric looks very different depending on which direction you cut it. If you keep that in mind and only cut in the direction that produces the look you want, you should be fine using border fabric for binding too.

  3. Wow, thanks for the tutorial, I’m going to give it a shot on my first mini-quilt! Your instructions are very clear and concise.

  4. I’d say your formula is, at best, theoretical. I use 2 1/2″ cut width, and my bindings come out 3/8″ wide. Reasons include: (1) The walking foot employs a seam allowance that is measurably wider than 1/4″, nearly 1/16″ wider, and then you have the thread thickness on top of that; (2) The binding must wrap around the thickness of the quilt sandwich; (3) if machine-stitching rather than hand-stitching the binding to the back, one must pull the binding over a bit farther so the machine can catch the edge of the binding.

    1. Your point is well taken, Jo. Trying it out is the only REAL way to find out what your actual measurements are. My own sewing machine’s “quarter-inch” measurement is considerably wider than a scant quarter inch. I have to move my needle several notches to the right to get a real quarter-inch seam allowance. I encourage everyone to experiment and find out what works for you.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.