Machine Binding Curved Corners Tutorial

Ok y'all, it's time to talk binding! Some people swear by hand binding and some people can't stand to hand stitch- that's just the facts of life. I am one of the people who can't stand to hand stitch, so I machine bind my quilts instead! When I first started quilting, I didn't know any other way, so I hand bound my first 2 quilts and it took forever. I quickly looked for an alternative option. I've done many quilts with this technique and tried it many ways and finally found what works best for me. I'm hoping it works best for you too!

This adaptation will focus specifically on machine binding a quilt with curved corners such as these Cozy Curves Quilts that I made. I have a different machine binding tutorial on binding with mitered corners which you may also find helpful.

My preferences

There are a lot of ways to machine bind. My favorite is attaching the binding to the back, then flipping and topstitching on the front. You could of course do the opposite, attaching it to the front, then flipping it to the back.

I make my binding 2.5" wide, so when folded in half and attached to the quilt, I have about 1/8" overhang to fold my binding onto the front. If you prefer a narrower binding, you could cut your strips as narrow as 2" or as large as 3". Just make sure to play with your machine's preferences to determine what works best for you!

I attach my binding to the back and front using a walking foot. Your machine is going through A LOT of layers with this method, so the walking foot helps keep things consistent.

I also attach my binding with a 2.5" stitch length.

Video

I put together a videos for all you visual learners. This video will take you through sewing together your binding strips on the diagonal to reduce bulk. Then we'll sew the binding to the back of the quilt and finally flip and attach it to the front!

If you're not a video person, here's the breakdown of how I attach my binding to my quilts.

Step 1: Prep your binding

Prep your binding. Cut your strips at your desired width (mine are 2.5"). To measure how many strips you'll need, add the total length of all 4 sides of your quilt, then divide that number by 40. Round that number up and cut that many strips.

This quilt measured 60x60". So I added 60 + 60 + 60 + 60 = 240. Divide 240 by 4 = 6

When I get an even number, I round up to the next number just to make sure I have enough to work with. So for this quilt, I cut to 6 WOF strips from your fabric. Prep your binding strips by sewing them together on the diagonal. Then press your seams open and fold in half, wrong sides together. Roll them onto an old thread spool.

You'll also need your quilted and trimmed quilt ready to go! Quilt label optional.

Step 2: Attach binding to the back of the quilt

Start attaching your binding to the back of your quilt, leaving a tail of binding about 8" long before you start stitching. Make sure the raw edge of your binding is aligned with the raw edge of the quilt. Backstitch at the beginning and use a 1/4" seam.

Step 3: Join your binding ends

When you make your way around the quilt, you'll end up with two loose ends that need to be joined. Backstitch and cut your thread about 8" away from where you started. Leave yourself two long tails of binding that overlap. Cut your binding tails so that one tail overlaps the other by exactly 2.5". Open both tails and place your fabric strips right sides together, perpendicular to one another, matching the corners. This is the same method used to join the binding strips in the beginning! Sew on the diagonal corner to corner. Clip your extra fabric leaving the 1/4" seam allowance. Press that seam open and in half again, then continue stitching the binding until it's attached on all sides of the quilt.

Step 4: Topstitch your binding to the front of the quilt

My biggest advice for this step is TAKE IT SLOW. Find a groove, take your time, and I promise you'll get the hang of it. If you can, adjust your needle position so you can line up your binding in the center of your walking foot and follow that guide as you fold your edge over.

If you prefer, you can press your binding away from your quilt from the backside so it's easier to fold over onto the front. I skip this step now, but when I was first starting out, it was very helpful. Some people also find it helpful to fold the binding over and clip or pin it in place before starting the topstitching. I've also seen some people glue baste their binding before topstitching by running a small line of washable elmers glue along the binding, then folding it over and ironing it dry!

Also, make sure you have a full bobbin! Nothing is worse than having to stop and change your bobbin in the middle of a pretty line of topstitching. Oh and seriously, use that walking foot. You're stitching through at least 8 layers of fabric, plus batting (more layers if you're going over seams in the quilt top).

Pull up your bobbin thread to avoid a nest on the back of your quilt before you get started. Fold over your binding a few inches at a time. You won't need to backstitch to get started, just begin sewing! I fold about 6" at a time, using my hands to keep it in place as I work. When I have stitched that full length, I'll stop, leave my needle down, shift my quilt and fold another section over. If at any point you feel yourself veering off, keep that needle down, lift your food, readjust and keep going!

Step 5: Finish your binding

When you get to the end and have topstitched around the whole quilt, stitch just past where you started, backstitch, and cut the threads. Then you're good to go! It's a beautiful way to finish a quilt, and it's nice and sturdy.