Tell me all about sewing diapers with cotton binding...

[natashaccat]

We had a dryer disaster last night and 14 of my beloved MEOS are ruined (snap meltage). I can't justify the expense of replacing them right now but I'd like to experiment with sewing some look alikes.

One of the things that has held me back from this style is fear of sewing binding, I've experimented a bit but it seems to just be terribly labor intensive. Anyone have some shortcuts?

[mehndi mama]

You cut your strips of ribbing 3 times the widt of the finished binding. Then you sew it to the outside of the diaper, all the way around the edge - seam the binding strip at the beginning/end to join, so you don't have a big lump. Then fold the excess binding over the edge to the wrong side, and use a twin needle to topstitch it in place - it's more secure & catches the fabric edge better on the inside than single-needle stitching does. This is the kind of finish my diapers have on them - I love diapers with binding!

[Jayneysews]

That was lovely and clear,I know I didn't post the original query,but had been pondering binding whilst in the bath this evening.
Do you elasticate then???

[mehndi mama]

Yes, the elastic gets sewn on after the binding is stitched to the outside, but before it is folded to the inside & topstitched. it makes enclosing the elastic VERY easy!

[Abbyloos Mommy]

can someone please explain to me the concept of binding... i have no idea what it is at all

[our3boys]

Binding is an extra piece that wraps around the edge to "finish" it. You know those old blankets that had a satin edge to them? That is binding. If you go to Mehndi Mama's site (she has a link from her previous post on this thread), you will see her diapers. The colored edging is binding.

[natashaccat]

Has anyone tried any of those binding feet for their sewing machine?

[mehndi mama]

My seamstress uses one on her industrial machine, so she uses one to bind the diapers. But the ones made for home macines generally don't allow for a wide enough binding or have a big enough clearance for the thickness of the diaper fabrics. I've only ever heard of people swearing at their machines after trying to bind a diaper with one