Sunday, March 23, 2014

Borders


RE: Free Dictionary Definitions:
bor·der  (bôr′dər)
n.
1. A part that forms the outer edge of something.
2. A decorative strip around the edge of something, such as fabric.
3. A strip of ground, as at the edge of a garden or walk, in which ornamental plants or shrubs are planted.
4. The line or frontier area separating political divisions or geographic regions; a boundary.
v. bor·dered, bor·der·ing, bor·ders
v.tr.
1. To put a border on.
2. To lie along or adjacent to the border of
v.intr.
1. To lie adjacent to another
2. To be almost like another in character


Borders are the hardest part of quilting for me.  I much prefer to not do a border or to do a thin border to match the sashing.  The 'paper doll' quilt just needed a thin border.  Now I could do another border around this, but I like this size for kids.  Backing pieced, binding made, and batt (order came in) is ready - this is one of my Hands2Help quilts.


Or a border that seperates, but also blends with the center is needed.  When I do a super scrappy quilt, I like to use a scrappy border.  This is my 'Goodnight Irene' - again backing, binding, and batt is paired up with it.  This is another Hands2Help charity quilt.


I don't like to do wide borders, but sometimes that is what is needed to contain, accent, and finish off.  It does all lay flat and squared - I just don't bend over this hip well enough yet.  This is my 'Count Down to Christmas' .  The flow of the layout is a little lost with the bundle I had contained a lot of tans.  Again the backing is prepped, binding and batt ready.  This one will be heading off to a long armer in a couple of weeks.


The 'Relaxing Round Robin' has been a border thought process for me, too.  Maybe that is why I have struggled with each round past the center.  I went with three different ideas and then stayed with the ever faithful geese.

Do you struggle with borders?  Are you borderless?  Do you like skinny or wide, single, or multiple borders?

Sewingly Yours,
Sharon

29 comments:

Barbara said...

These are so cute, Sharon.

Christine M said...

Lovely quilts Sharon. My borders all depend on the quilt I am working on!

Cheryll said...

I let the quilt tell me what it wants... so I guess you could say I hear voices...lol :)

Pauline G said...

What a great post - I struggle with this and found your comments really useful Thanks.

Terry said...

I tend to go with borderless most of the time. I love the border on your Irene quilt! :0)

Karen said...

I love borders on quilts but I too struggle with what kind of border to add. Yours are awesome. Thanks for sharing. You gave me some good ideas.

Kate said...

Beautiful quilts!

I struggle with pieced borders, I never know what to do to accent the center, so I usually end up with multiple borders using 2 or more fabrics from the quilt.

Debbie said...

I rarely do sashing around blocks unless absolutely required. I tend to keep my borders simple and less busy, but usually us a narrow and then a wider strip. And you can never go wrong with flying geese in a border! Great job on all of these.

Lyndsey said...

A great post. Borders can take a bit of sorting out so sometimes the top will languish whilst I make a decision. Great quilts, very pretty.

Me and My Stitches said...

What great quilts - you've been very busy! I used to be a border fanatic - added borders to everything. Now if I do add borders, I like them to be something different - pieced, or something interesting. But, it seems like the longer I quilt, the more I like borderless quilts!

Sue Daurio said...

Wow what a wonderful quilt show you gave us today! I'm with you on the borders, I don't like the wide borders, thin borders or better yet pieced borders are more my style. Love your H2H quilts, is there a pattern for the first one? I have lots of 2.5 squares and strips that would work for that one.

Belinda said...

I love borders! They always add so much to the quilt. But you are pretty savvy about when not to use one. Love the border on your "Goodnight Irene" !!!

Dana Gaffney said...

I like borderless if I can get away with it, but sometimes they just need that frame and sometimes I want to use up the scraps left from the piecing.

Quilter Kathy said...

A lovely quilt show today on your blog! Especially like your Countdown to Christmas!
I hate sewing borders, although I am getting better at it over the years. I wish I liked them because they really can add so much to the look of a quilt.

Joanna said...

I like doing borders, especially for heavily pieced quilts, but not too wide. I like graduated borders, piano keys, floral applique; all kinds. But I have some books of antique quilts that were made without borders or sashings, and I want to make one to see how I feel about it. I also enjoy your quilt show.

Denise :) said...

I am terrible with borders and generally just leave them OFF when I can! You've done a great job with your tops, Sharon!! I should send my borderless quilts to you for resolution! Haha!! :)

sewyouquilt2 said...

loving all your borders. I think each quilt tells us what it is looking for. Your relaxing robin is coming out gorgeous! I made scrappy borders on mine. the link is ready to link up your blogpost.
cant wait to see how yours progresses. it is so pretty

Sheila said...

Lovely quilts Sharon and I do struggle with borders , I find that the hardest part .

Createology said...

This is really interesting about quilt borders. Since I don't quilt...yet...I have no clue. I just like quilts and fabrics. Creative Border Bliss...

Lesley said...

What a great post about borders. Your quilts are gorgeous. Nice to see variety...I tend to decide on the borders after the centre is done, auditioning fabrics and designs. I love a pieced border if it works with the centre.

Sarah Craig said...

Beautiful quilts, Sharon! I love the border on the GNI - it totally changes the flavor of the quilt - and really like the little stars in the sashing of the top quilt! I'll have to remember that trick. Unfortunately, for me borders is usually a question of how to get a top up to a certain size. When I'm making a quilt for myself, I usually prefer to go borderless. And I almost never put more than two borders on a quilt!

Deb A said...

Borders are tough! It depends on what the quilt wants and what size I want it to finish at. I am attracted to the pieced borders as they add so much to a quilt but sometimes I just add that small and then larger plain border so I can call it done.... so I can move onto the next project. Great post and beautiful quilts.

Sheila said...

I struggle with borders and sometimes forget that every quilt does not need a border.
Oh my. I love your sweet H2H quilts. They are going to be cherished and loved. I need to get busy. You are way ahead of me.

Kathy ... aka Nana said...

I love borders but have to admit that only recently have gone outside my comfort zone and tried a pieced border. Took a little more time and effort but it was worth it!

Kathy ... aka Nana said...

And I must say that I love the border you added to your Goodnight Irene quilt. It really completes the quilt! Whoever receives that will be blessed!

Pattilou said...

Borders are hard for me too, simply because I'm an impatient kind of person and by the time I get to borders, I just want to be done. Many of my donation quilts have simple borders. I found your thoughtful look at borders useful.

Linda said...

Yes, borders are my hardest thing to do too. I just put together three quilt tops that have been laying around uncompleted because I didn't want to do the borders. Your post is very insightful. Your quilts are all wonderful too.

Val's Quilting Studio said...

I just bought the book: Quilts Without Border as I too just hate when it comes to quilting the borders!!! LOL!!! Your finishes are wonderful. I esp. like the super scrappy one!!

Oddbjørg said...

Great quilts! I love the border on your "Goodnight Irene"