Binding Basics

I hope you are going to understand this? These "How To's" are a little complicated to explain in pictures. I am a visual learner , but I need it in real life! he he he.
Here goes...
Usually... I will cut my binding strips 2 1/2" wide. For some wall hangings I use 2 1/4" wide, makes a much thinner binding, which looks better on a much smaller project... in my opinion, which I am allowed to have, right?
If I want to, I make a wider binding, like, I confess now, when my backing is too short after quilting, I can have a thin border showing on the front and a good, wide border on the back to cover any errors... and yes , this still makes a lovely mitre on the corner.
Joining strips....
Place two binding strips like so, one horizontal and one vertical, with right sides together... place your ruler a tiny bit shy of the diagonal so that when you draw your pencil line it sits exactly on the 45 degree angle, you see it?
pin either side of your pencil line to stop any shifting of fabric....
sew exactly on the line, like so.... then take out the pins and open out the strip....
if the top and bottom of the strip run straight, like this one (if they don't make a straight line take out the seam and do it again, please)....
you can cut off the extra bits 1/4" from the line,using ruler and rotary or a pair of sharp scissors (save the triangles in your 'little scraps' tub!)
then press the seams to one side, like this, all good and neat... you'll need to join enough strips together for the whole thing to go all the way round your quilt and some 8"+ extra.
press the whole strip in half length ways, mind you don't burn your fingers!
This is the most basic way to do binding. It works and it is very very easy for beginners, I know there are 'better' ways. Fold over 1/4" seam and finger press it, only at the start end though. Pin it onto the side of your quilt then check that you can get round the quilt without having a join fall on a corner.. this makes the mitre very bulky, if the joins do hit a corner adjust the start position, check all 4 corners before you start to sew.
Stitch about 1 inch on only one layer of the binding, just to hold the start point in the right place....
fold the binding back down and start stitching all the layers to the quilt, I always start a few inches further down, you will see why... stitch all the way round, look how to do mitred corners my way here....
when you get back to your starting point, open up the start binding slot in the end and trim off any extra inches, cutting on the diagonal will reduce the bulk, BE CAREFUL to leave enough to reach the beginning though
fold over the top of the binding strip, you might need to fiddle a bit to get it perfect...
hold it in place and continue stitching
you should find yourself back where you started, joining up the two lines of stitching.

then your pretty much done... fold the binding over to the back ready to hand stitch down, again you might need to fiddle a little to get it perfect...
this is the other side, it's neat and very easy.
I've found tutorials for other, possibly better but more fiddly, ways of doing binding, which I tend to use, so I don't have to make another "How To", I will put links to them once I ask for permission.
In my classes I teach this method only to beginners for their first project, their second project we do a mitred binding, and for the third project... binding with no visible join.