Border Patrol

When I finally get to the borders of a quilt,

I always think that I'm done.

Stop right there.

Borders, especially if there are multiple borders,

take a lot of time to sew on correctly.

Enter the Border Patrol

 

 Don't precut borders until the center section is done.

Just because the pattern says they need to be...

doesn't mean that your borders are that length.

Never take a fabric strip, sew it on the edge and cut it off. 

 You could be creating a quilt with a different measurement on each side.

Which is OK if that's the ultimate goal.

Otherwise, always measure YOUR quilt before cutting and sewing.

Take that measurement in the

center of the quilt.

Actually, take a couple of measurements and 

use the average.

Then cut your borders to fit YOUR quilt.

The outer edges of the quilt might have stretched during

the sewing or there may be bias edges that can

influence and distort the dimensions.

Using the center measurements will prevent the

quilt from having an hourglass shape.

Good for Marilyn, 

not so good for quilts.

Until Next Time-