Fabric needed for a border around your quilt top.
Yardage assumes 40\u2033 usable width of fabric and \u00bc\u2033 seams; strips pieced as needed.
A border frames the quilt top and adds size. To work out the fabric, find the length of the strips for each side. The side borders are cut to the length of the quilt top, and the top and bottom borders to the width of the top plus the width of the two side borders, if the borders are attached with straight corners.
Measure through the middle of the quilt and not along the edges, since edges often stretch. Cutting borders to the center measurement keeps the quilt flat and square, and it prevents wavy edges. Pin the border to the quilt at the center and the ends before you sew.
Add a half inch to the finished border width for the seams, and divide the total length of the strips by the usable width of the fabric to find how many strips to cut. Mitered corners need extra length, at least the width of the border at each end, and are best for borders with a pattern.
Join strips with diagonal seams if the border is longer than the fabric is wide, and press the seams open. Borders cut along the lengthwise grain are more stable and less likely to stretch than those cut across the width.