My Blog

This is one of the sewing projects I have been working on during the last two weeks. I can remember that my grandmother had something similar, but hers wasn't quilted.

I used some fabric from my stash - a nasty polycotton I bought for a project that required bright colours. I began by just laying it out and folding it to accomodate my knitting needles.



Then I discovered this bright madras cotton in my drawer (remnants from a pair of dungarees I made for my son ... 15 years ago!).



Yesterday I lined the small pocket for double-pointed needles and cut enough binding to go right around the "quilt", as well as a piece for the top of the large pocket. There is also a strip left over for two ties to fasten the whole thing when it's rolled up.



This morning before work, I quickly sewed the binding to the top of the large pocket. I decided to use double-fold binding instead of making single-fold - it's quicker to press (fold in half lengthwise and press), doesn't require me to attach a different foot, and I'm used to doing it.



I decided to apply the binding in a slightly different way to the method I usually use when binding quilts. I sewed it to the wrong side of the fabric with a 1/4" seam, raw edges even, then pressed, and turned the binding over to the right side, enclosing the raw edges. I pressed again, then used my machine to sew the binding down using buttonhole stitch (#45 on my Bernina). I used the default settings, which give quite a narrow stitch, and sewed along the edge on the right side. When I turned it over to look at the wrong side, I was pleasantly surprised by the neat finish. Definitely a technique to play with on quick projects like small quilts, placemats or dish towels. I think it looks better than a binding sewn on with a straight stitch.