Brilliant Borders

This stunning quilt is actually a commercially available quilt by Toast

To many, the addition of a border is what adds that perfect finishing touch to a quilt top. Unfortunately it’s this final step that can make a flat quilt top wavy creating terrible problems when it comes to basting and quilting your project.

There are many ways that people add borders to quilt tops. One of the most common ways is to cut the border strips longer than the quilt top. Lay the border strip out along the edge of the quilt and sew it on. When you use this technique you are at the peril of the edges of your blocks and the ‘give’ in the length of your border fabric. If there are bias edges or cross width cuts then stretching is inevitable. This method can also result in one side being a different length to the other.

Alternatively, you may dutifully follow along with the measurements provided by the quilt pattern you are making. This is a natural choice to make! You have followed the directions in the pattern the entire way thorough the making of the quilt top why would you stop now? The problem here is that we are only human! Every cut and every seam that you’ve sewn may have altered the size of the quilt. The designer will have written their pattern using exacting numbers. If you cut to the size provided in the pattern and the centre portion of your quilt is out by half an inch or more you will have a wavy border.

Beautiful styling of the quilt by Toast

So how should you calculate to length of the border for your specific quilt top?

The first step should be to press your quilt top. Don’t stretch it during this process just make sure it’s laying lovely and flat. Now measure the width of your quilt top in three places; the top edge, middle & bottom edge. Add these three numbers together and divide by 3 to obtain the average. This is the length that you will cut your border. If any of these measurements have more than a 1/2 inch difference take a look at your piecing. Look for errors in your piecing that you hadn’t picked up earlier. Fix these errors now, it will make your life easier in the long run. Once any errors have been corrected, remeasure and calculate the average length.

The Broom Brigade & Broom Drill, Album Quilt 1868 - 1880 (found on Pinterest) Sadly no luck finding any more information on this one.

Wherever possible cut your borders so that they are parallel to the selvedge. Cutting the borders from the length of the fabric provides the least amount of stretch possible in the fabric strip. If you need to join a border strip don’t join it with a mitred seam. There is always the possibility of stretch in a mitred seam, rather, join with a straight of grain seam.

Once cut to the accurate length fold your borders in half and mark. Fold again to locate the quarter lengths. Do the same with the quilt top. Now match up these points and pin in place. Finally ease in the length of the border within these quadrants evenly distributing any fullness. If you have a machine that allows you to reduce the foot pressure then reduce it before sewing the seam to avoid shifting of the top layer of your fabric as you sew this long seam.

Once complete press and measure the length of the quilt top at three points; both sides and the middle. Average these three numbers and cut the side borders to this length. Add the sides in the same way that you added the top and bottom borders.

These very simple steps will make the world of difference to the overall flatness of your quilt and bring you so much more joy when you’re basting & quilting your beautiful quilt!

Another beautiful commercially available quilt, this time by Project TYYNY