faux flange binding

Why Faux Flange Binding?

While I love to bind quilts by hand, sometimes a machine finish is a more practical use of my time. I’ve never been satisfied with the look of a regular machine binding–after I get done with it, it always seems to look a little messy or uneven. A faux flange binding looks neater and can add a nice pop of color and a little dimension, especially on a quilt without a border, like Wunderbar or almost any of my other patterns.

What you need:

To calculate how long your binding should be, measure the width and length of your quilt. Add them together and multiply by 2, then add another 15″-20″ to the total. Divide by 40 to figure out how many Width of Fabric (WOF) strips to cut).

For example, if your quilt measures 36″ x 48″:

width 36″ + length 48″ = 84″

84″ x 2 = 168″ perimeter

168″ + 20″ = 188″ total length needed

188″ / 40″ = 4.7 strips (round up to 5)

  • 1 ½” strip of accent fabric for binding (this is the “flange”–the bit that sticks out toward the center of the quilt)
  • 1 ¼” strip of binding fabric
  • Thread (For the stitching that shows on the front, I often use 50wt Aurifil, but a heavier thread adds some interesting texture. For the bobbin, I like to use either monofilament or a color that coordinates with the backing.)

Start stitching your faux flange binding!

Join each set of strips together to create two long strips.

putting together faux flange binding
1. Draw a 45° line on the wrong side of a strip from the upper left corner.
2. Lay the strip at a 90° angle to a matching strip, RST (right sides together). Stitch on the line.
3. Trim the seam allowance to ¼” and press the seam open.

4. Stitch together your 1 ¼” binding strip and your 1 ½” accent strip lengthwise with a ¼” seam allowance.

5. Press the seam toward the smaller binding strip to minimize bulk where you’ll be stitching later.
fold and press faux flange binding
6. Press the strip in half. The accent strip should peek through by about 1/8”. Press well for a nice crisp fold.

7. Lay the binding right side down on one of the long edges of the BACK of the quilt, matching the raw edges.

8. Leaving about a 6” tail of binding, start sewing (¼” seam allowance) along one edge and backstitch to secure your stitching. Continue stitching until you’re a few inches from a corner.

9. Make a mark ¼” from the corner. Backstitch at the ¼” mark and clip your threads.
corners of faux flange binding
10. Fold the binding up so it makes a 45° angle and the right side makes a straight line with the quilt.
11. Hold that 45° angle in place and fold the binding back down over it, aligning the binding edge with the edge of the quilt.

12. Backstitch at the corner, then attach the binding to the side. Repeat until you’ve turned the fourth corner.

13. On the side where you started, sew only until you’re about 12″ from where you started, then backstitch and clip the threads.

joining the ends of faux flange binding
14. Place a pin in between the two ends of the binding, perpendicular to the edge.
joining the ends of faux flange binding
15. Lay one binding end across the pin and make a mark 1 1/8” past the pin.

16. Do the same for the other binding end.

17. Cut off the binding ends on the lines.

joining the ends of faux flange binding
18. Turn the binding end on the right so the seam is up and draw a 45° line from the upper left corner.
joining the ends of faux flange binding
19. Lay the corners together like you’re joining binding strips for a larger quilt, BUT you have to twist the binding end you drew the line on to get it to fold correctly. Test it before you sew it to check. Pin parallel to the line.

20. Stitch on the line, then check again to be sure the binding folds correctly.

21. Trim the seam allowance to 1/4″ and finger-press it open.

22. Lay the remaining binding flat and stitch it down, backstitching at both ends.

23. Press the faux flange binding away from the back.

24. Flip the quilt over and press the binding around to the front, mitering the corners so they fold in the opposite direction from the back.

25. Change to your chosen thread for the stitches that will show on the front. Change the bobbin thread to monofilament or thread that coordinates with the backing fabric.

finishing the stitching on faux flange binding
26. Stitch in the ditch along the seam between the binding and the accent fabric. Use an edgestitch foot if you have one available. A triple straight stitch helps to emphasize a contrasting thread if that’s the effect you’re looking for.
"Pretty Please" quilt with faux flange binding