Experimenting with Machine Binding - All The Way

So for all the projects I've done so far I've done the machine sew on the binding to the from of the quilt and hand bind to the back.  But with the recent Floormats I decided to try out machine binding ALL THE WAY - front and back.  I've heard mixed things about machine binding but I wanted to try it for myself and see if it's something worth doing.

It actually started out pretty well.  I machine sewed the binding to the front of the quilt.  Then I pinned down the back of the quilt because I read from other quilters so it'll be easier if you pin it until you get used to it.  So pinning it is:


Okay okay so far so good.  Not much different from hand binding ... except I don't usually pin down the back like this.

Like I said it was a pretty good start.  After about half one into the first edge of the floormat I was in cloud nine and thinking "Geez this is EASY!"


Nice start huh?  Nice and even in the back.  Only wish I used another thread, but oh well, it's a floormat so you'll never see the back while it's in use anyways.  And besides I did the quilting with that thread already so something matches it in the back.


Even the front of the mat was looking very good.


The binding stitch is that smaller spaced out stitch in the ditch of the binding.  In person you could hardly see any of the binding thread.  Nice right?

BUT then this happened...



Missed the binding altogether in the front!  Arg where's my seam ripper!


THEN this...


I blame the pins!  Just kidding it's me...well me having problems with the pins.  Maybe I wasn't using the pins correctly, but every time I had to remove a pin I would tend to loose the grip on the mat and the sewing gets shifted.  The results - very messy, very crooked lines. 

AND even a little bit of this...

Hey you're not suppose to sew on the binding on the TOP of the quilt!  ARG!!!!

COFFEE BREAK!  With a little more coffee and a little more patience and NIXING the whole pinning business I was back to this at last :)....


My final method of (almost) NO pins but just taking it slowly and making sure the stitching is straight - I used a few pins when I really needed the extra support in those 'problem' areas.  So the method: Sew an inch or two, check alignment, peak at the back of the quilt to make sure the binding is being sewn of the stitch, sew a couple of more inches, then back again to the checking.  I sew from the front of the quilt top so I could make sure that I am consistently sewing in the ditch - of course making sure that I caught the back of the binding also with the same stitch



Use pins sparingly.  It become a hindrance most of the time, but sometimes you just need it there to hold some difficult spots together - ie: seams of the binding.

I am sure this technique of ALL machine binding will be faster with practice.  I don't think I'll use it for most of my projects because the result do show the thread in the back and even a little in the front since the thread in the front did not match with ALL the fabrics used for the front.  I will keep trying this technique.  Maybe more floormats??  Or if I'm in a pinch while trying to finish up a quilt?  Or maybe just for something to change things up a little?  Or better yet, when my hands are tired from hand binding? :)  Practice makes perfect right?

Kitchen Floormat...and Bathroom Floormat

It was mostly out of necessity that I HAD to make some kitchen floormats and I found my inspiration from Red Pepper Quilts.  I wanted something a little whimsical too since I have young kids and I always like to put a playful touch to projects that they would use.  So I decided to use this owl fabric :):


Amy Schimler's On a Whim Perched Owls Earth.  Thank you organized stash :)! 

Took some time to cut out pairs and singles of these cuties:

I cut 20 of these out.  I tried to make sure I got each of the owls and trying not to be too wasteful with the fabric.

And since the inspiration and design for this quilt was the "Quilt as You Go" I just kind of went for it - with no particular order, color or measurements in mind for the fabric pieces.  My parameters for the kitchen floormat was 15"x22" so that was basically my only 'goal' - end up with a floormat around that size :).

Here it goes...


I just started to layout each piece at a time around one of the owl cutouts.  Then one that was quilted on, I picked another fabric color and did the same - keep laying it out one strip at it time until I reach the edge of the floormat.

And the results?  Here's a look:

Unfortunately I didn't have a chance to take a picture of this before it got used by the kids - the edges are a little curved and the whole thing got a little wrinkled, but you get a good feel of the results anyways.  

I was very happy about the way it turned out - super easy to make and the results are fun and pretty.  HOWEVER, it was a bit too small for the kitchen....ARG!

No worries I used it for the kid's bathroom instead :).  Win Win.  And I get to immediately make a second one :) - this time a little bit bigger to actually use for the kitchen.  This time I went with 15"x30" instead of 15"x22".

And voila!  A kitchen floormat.

Sitting pretty and ready to use.


In the kitchen and already in use.

A view from the back:


I used a single fabric - a flannel floral design.  It's not organized yet so I have no idea what designer.

Not bad for lack of measuring and designing and very quickly put together.  I'll definitely use this technique again, but probably with more precision and planning next time :P.  Maybe even try to keep the quilting straight next time :).

Here's a closeup of the mat:

All but the Owl fabric were fabrics from my scrapbox - all fabrics used in previous projects.  Could you tell which ones?? :P.  I used a cream colored thread and made alternating straight stitches for each strip of additional fabric.

This was also my first time experimenting with machine binding for front and back - I'll do a later post on that experience later.  Here's the "GOOD" parts of the trials:

 I was very surprised it turned out this well.   Though I did have some OOPS moments.

And probably the LAST time you'll see these two floormats together in the same room :).
 

There you have it, my first floormat, machine binding, Quilt as You Go, cutting for a particular design (the owls) EXPERIENCE.  I had a very fun time making these floor mats.  I have enough owls cut out for another 2 mats so maybe I'll find some time soon to finish those up.  But right now I am loving these 2 I have already.

BTW - I put 2 big owls and 2 little owls on each mat - aka Mom, Dad, and the 2 little rug-rats :).


Quilt Info:
Family of Owls Floormats (Kitchen and Bathroom)
Front: Quilt as You go technique using Owls and Scrap fabrics.
Batting: Warm & Natural 100% cotton
Backing: Single flannel fabric - floral
Completed Dimension: 15"x30" (Kitchen), 15"x22" (Bath)
Quilting Method: Quilt as You Go
Binding: Machine Sew to Front and Back