Last week I wrote about how I realized that (for me) pinning actually makes piecing easier and that it didn't actually take more time in the long run. I also asked the question to anyone reading about whether they pin and if they have any tips. There were lots of great comments and it seems that many of you regularly use pins. You can find the comments here.
The next "new to me" thing I decided to try was glue basting (with washable school glue) for a machine stitched binding. I was tentative thinking it might be messy and more trouble than its worth but I know so many quilters love this method so I figured I'd try it at least once. And, you know what - it worked really well! Any extra time taken by applying and setting the glue was more than made up for when I went to actually stitch down the binding. At first I forgot to make sure I was covering the stitching line on the back (I used the stitch in the ditch method on the front of the quilt to sew the binding) so I did miss a bit including a corner but then I realized what I was doing wrong and it was pretty much smooth sailing from there! Not perfect but so much closer than I've ever been.
So, I'll put the question out to you - do you glue baste your bindings? Tips, tricks, warnings? One of my concerns was whether it would hurt my sewing machine - I used a minimal amount of glue and I made sure that the glue was dry before sewing and I don't think it adversely affected my machine, at least I really hoped it didn't! At this point, I don't plan on using glue for basting when piecing the quilt but is there anyone reading this that does? Again, any tips?
I must investigate this! As time goes on I find myself pinning minimally, and I've stopped spray basting because I don't like the stickiness on the batting edges. But I'm curious how the glue might work..
ReplyDeleteset it with a hot iron and no damage to your machine. still washes out when your done. Cindy
ReplyDeleteI glue baste my binding on for every project I make! No pins to poke and hurt therefore no blood on the binding!!
ReplyDeleteI glue baste my bindings - works like a charm! I set it with my iron and have had no troubles at all. I love it because I can just sew and sew instead of stopping to take out pins and also I find pins through the thickness of the binding make it wonky - so glue it is!!!
ReplyDeleteI've not heard of glue basting binding down before, I'm off to have a Google as basting & binding are my least favourite parts!
ReplyDeleteFor basting, I use safety pins, for binding, if it's a big quilt, I use the little red clover clips, otherwise, I just feed it on myself as I go.
ReplyDeleteI tried this once and didn't care for it - though I really hate working with glue in general so that may be why!
ReplyDeleteThe pictures in your example are amazing. If glue would allow me to machine stitch bindings that well, I would gladly give up hand stitching them.
ReplyDeleteI don't use glue stick. I use Elmer's School Glue (not Glue All). I have a little metal applicator tip that allows me to put down a fine line of glue. According to Sharon Schamber, it is really a form of starch, so it does not hurt your machine at all once it is hot iron set. I love it. I also follow Sharon's method of binding. Since I started, my bindings look beautiful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2hWQ5-ZccE
ReplyDeleteI use glue when I machine bind, and I haven't had any adverse effects.
ReplyDeleteI haven't tried gluing the binding but it sounds like I definitely need to check it out :)
ReplyDeleteI glue baste my bindings, but stitch them down by hand. It's so much easier than binding clips!
ReplyDeleteI have binding clips and have used them and pins, but mostly I also just feed it on myself and I have found this works well for me. Practice makes perfect.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you did a great job! I still need to try glue basting!
ReplyDeleteThe jury is still out for me on whether or not I like it. I get really messy with glue, LOL!!
ReplyDeleteI've tried glue basting, but I am a messy glue-r as well. :( I do like the idea of it tho! And I hate pins - but I love the Clover clips, they work better for me than pins. Would a glue stick work??
ReplyDeleteI always glue baste my bindings. I glue and then press. At the Dollar Store, they have 3 packs of Elmer's Washable School Glue pens - One pen was enough for a queen-sized quilt. It makes a perfect little line of glue. I really recommend them.
ReplyDeleteI generally hand finish bindings but if I machine finish I do glue baste. I love glue basting for piecing, best way to get perfect points!
ReplyDeleteJust to add - I use Elmer's too and I heat set it with a hot dry iron
DeleteI use glue for piecing occasionally, mostly with "flippy corners" and flying geese. They turn out so much more accurate when I don't have to mess with pins. I am still a little bit messy with it, even with the fine tip applicator! I might have to try Elmer's with binding on my next baby quilt. I've been wanting to learn how to machine stitch binding and it seems like gluing it down would make it much easier to deal with!
ReplyDeleteI've tried it with long pieces (width of quilt) that needed to match and ended up using pins as it didn't work well.
ReplyDeleteI have been machine binding my quilts for quilts for some time now. And always apply the binding to the back and then press the binding toward the front with a hot, dry iron. Then finish from the front. I don't pin, glue or clover clip. This glue basting seems to have worked well. Your binding looks great, Beth!
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised how many people glue when piecing. I didn't realize people did that, but I'm eager to learn more.
ReplyDeleteI've not tried glue basting for binding because I really love handstitching down the binding. It makes the quilt so much more finished to me.
ReplyDeleteI've started using glue for basting and really prefer it. I do wait for it to dry, but it's made the whole process sooooooo much easier.
ReplyDeleteJust to clarify--I baste the whole quilt with school glue, not just the bindings. You don't have to use a lot, and so far, it's worked like a charm.
ReplyDeleteHmm, that's interesting. Your binding looks really good! I have just machine stitched it so many times that I could do it in my sleep now. But I use a zig zag. Maybe that's more forgiving.
ReplyDeleteI use glue to baste every binding (doing as you did above) and I also use glue instead of pins to match seams as they don't shift before sewing. I do use a pin to match the seams front and back first, apply a small dot of glue, set with iron and go on to next seam. Go to sewing machine without any pins and only concentrate on the seams! Love glue for precise sewing.
ReplyDelete