Binding the Crowing About It Quilt

 

This is the fabric I chose to bind the first student bird quilt, "Crowing About It." 

Regular readers know I sew my binding to the back of my quilts, so I can do the finish on the front.

It's nice to have a quilt to work on when I "watch" television (Top Chef Season 20 started last week, and the Tournament of Champions IV is well underway) so I'm happy to finally get this quit to a point where I can be sewing while I watch TV.

Working my way around, mitering the corners...

Here I've joined the strips and sewn it all down.

I like to fold the binding over to the front and pin it all down before I start hand sewing it. But that will happen later.

Pinning Pink Panther & Millie

 I've been pinning the binding over the front of the Pink Panther quilt. It takes time, but I like having it done before I sew the binding down.

Quite frankly I've been worried about my cat, Millie. She no longer jumps on the table when I have breakfast in the morning. and she spends most of her time curled up in a tight ball napping in the living room. She's been VERY DEMANDING when she wants me to lie on the couch so she can climb on top of me and nap. So that's what has been occupying my time lately. Me, lying down with Millie on top of me, purring, while I either watch TV or read. Oh gee, so tough.

She's fifteen years old. I can't tell, but I think she's a bit thinner. We have an appointment set up with the vet in a few weeks, so I will know more then. She still has lustrous fur, her eyes are bright, and she seems to move around the house freely, but she's definitely slowing down. She's had a great run, and I am aware that every day I have with her is a gift, so I try to give her the attention she wants. That means I don't post as much, but Millie is more important.

Fall House Top and a Pin Rant

The big Fall House Top quilt is back from being quilted. I trimmed it and made the binding last night.

 I'm going to use it as a table covering in the fall (and particularly for Thanksgiving dinners) so the backing fabric is all food related. The quilt is 54" wide and 109" long.

And I have officially decided I do NOT like those binding clips. I much prefer pins. Julie and Sharon both say I use a lot of pins.

I say "Tant pis!" (It's French. You can go translate it if you want.)

Why pins? They hold the layers together, without anything shifting and you can sew over them!

Later tonight I'll fold the binding over to the front (yes, you heard that right) and sew it down. Since I'll be using this as a table cover, I'll sew the binding down by machine.

And yes, I'll use six million four hundred twenty three thousand eight hundred ninety five pins.

LOL


PS. I've added a couple of things to my Tutorials page for your reference. 1. How I blindstitch and 2. How I add the hanging sleeve to the back of my quilts. 

Good Pins, Bad Pins

I am a fusspot about my pins. I like them fine, sharp and magnetic. I hate the extra long pins with the frilly flower shaped heads. (They're also expensive.)

Because I like my pins very fine, they get bent, and I have to replace them.  I like having a full pin tin, so when I go shopping for pins, I buy a lot.

I needed pins, so I went shopping for them. There are lots of options, and I couldn't remember exactly what kind of pins I bought the last time, so I stood in front of the big display and tried to sort them out. I thought I found what I needed, and bought six packages.

These pins suck. They are magnetic, they are the right length, but they are too thick and they are DULL!!! I couldn't get them through two layers of cotton.  Now I have a lot of pins I can't use and I had to go BACK to the store because I needed pins. Yuk!

This time I was smart. I brought some batiks with me and opened various pin packages and TESTED them.  I tried bridal pins (nope), pleating pins (too long), various dressmaking pins (too dull), and even the Extra-Fine pins were too thick.

But these made the cut. They are Ultra-Fine glass head pins.  I am not a fan of big headed pins, and these are actually a bit too long, but they are nice and fine, and very sharp.

You don't believe me? Check this out... The Dressmaker's pin is on the right. The Ultra-Fine Glass Head pin is on the left.

Amazing, isn't it?  I've made a note of these "good pins" so the next time I have to buy pins, it should be a lot easier.

Here's a closeup. Yes, the difference is THAT big!