Instructions for Sewing Mitered Quilt Bindings

Mitering corners on a quilt provides a clean, crisp looking corner. Having mitered corners will produce a perfectly square edge to your quilt. This is crucial for decorative or designer quilts that are hung on the wall or meant to be given as a gift. Creating square corners is a cinch, whether you’re using single- or double-fold binding. The finished miter is created using folding techniques that even a novice can understand.

Connect the binding strips to ensure you have enough to go all the way around the quilt without having to stop and pick up a new strip. Sew together enough strips to equal the finished dimensions of the quilt plus 12 inches to allow for the extra fabric needed to make the corners.

Sew the binding along one edge of the quilt, with right sides facing, using a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Begin the seam in the middle of the quilt and not at the corner. Stop sewing 1/4 inch from the edge of the quilt. Back stitch 3 to 5 stitches and sew to the edge again.

Fold the excess binding up towards the seam that you just sewed to attach it. The binding will actually be protruding away from the quilt when you make this fold. This will form a diagonal line at the end of the seam. Pin in place along the raw edge of the quilt, ensuring the pin is not too close to the corner of the quilt edge.

Fold the binding back down, even with the edge of the quilt side it is sewn to and the next side of the quilt that you will be sewing. Once folded properly, the binding will line up with both sides evenly. This will create some bulk in the corner that will be eliminated later.

Stitch the folded binding along the edge of quilt that it is even with. Back stitch at the corner, 3 to 5 stitches, to reinforce the seam.

Finish sewing all the binding around the quilt in this manner. You will be left with three corners, all having the excess fabric where the miter will be made.

Unpin the mitered corners.

Fold the binding back and sew to the other side of the quilt to complete the blanket. When folding over, you will need to fold the corners to make the miter on the other side.Sew the seam over your original seam that you used to adhere the binding to the other side.


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