Applying Borders

If you are like most, you have never been told the proper way to add borders.  I was told, just slap on the fabric & cut it off to fit...sound familiar?  Well, as a longarm quilter, that creates a nightmare unfortunately...what you end up with are wavy borders that lead to puckers in your quilting & your ultimate finished product is not square...it's ok if you wanted a curved border but that's usually not what we are going for when we end up with wavy borders.  Read on to find out how to properly apply borders...
Once the body of the quilt is finished, measure your top in 3 spots: top, middle & bottom.  Chances are, they aren't going to be the same unless you have perfected the perfect scant 1/4" seam so what you do then is take the average of the 3 & cut your side borders to that measurement.  Divide the border into quarters by marking with pins.  Divide the quilt edge into quarters as well by marking with pins.  Then...pin, pin, pin!  Start with a pin at the top lining up your edge, then pin the bottom lining up the edges; then line up the pins on the border with the quilt top & pin together...then work your way back easing or stretching in the fullness as needed.  Repeat for the other side.  
Now, start the whole process over to figure out what the measurements are for the top borders.
No more wavy borders!