Border Print Fabrics - Jinny Beyer Studio

Jinny Beyer
Border Prints
Creative Ideas &
Tips for Quilters

Border Prints the Jinny Beyer Way
T
M
he use of Indian fabrics started me
on my own creative quilting journey
and eventually to designing my own
fabric collections. These collections
always include a border print –
a fabric of repeated decorative stripes.
W hile living in India
in the early 1970s,
I became fascinated with block-printed Indian cotton
fabrics. These were sold by the piece (usually a bed cover
or table cloth) rather than by the yard, and each piece had
a decorative border around the edge. I cut up the fabric for
garments and often used the borders for decoration. With
lots of scraps left over, I decided to make a quilt and chose
the Grandmother’s Flower Garden pattern.
ore than 35 years later, I am still inspired by the wonderful effects that border prints
can give our quilts and quilted projects. I hope that this booklet will show you how easy
and exciting it is to use border prints when you know just a few of my secrets.
©2010 Jinny Beyer www.jinnybeyer.com
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Designed for Quilters
T he Jinny Beyer border print fabrics created for RJR Fabrics are designed specifically for quilters. Every fabric
design has several characteristics that ensure the fabric does triple duty:
• Each border print fabric has a wide design stripe and a narrow design
stripe so there are lots of design options. And the wide stripe is repeated
at least four times across the width of the fabric so that calculating
how much is needed to make borders for a quilt is easy: the
length of the longest side of the quilt plus about 18" for mitering
corners and matching design repeats.
• The fabric design includes at least 1/2" between design stripes so
when you cut down the center of this space, there is always at least
1/4" seam allowance on both sides of the design stripes.
You can use every bit of fabric!
• As the examples that follow show, it’s important for the design
motifs to have mirror-image repeats. This provides lots of
options for creating dramatic effects – easily – with border prints.
Border prints can add detail to patchwork blocks,
frame a quilt, or add interest to quilted
Border Print Place Mat
or projects for the home.
To spark your
creativity,
Made with just six pieces of
border print fabric so it works up very fast.
Border Print Tote
A great tote is indispensable
and this one certainly qualifies.
It’s a generous size and one pattern
gives you two great design options.
©2010 Jinny Beyer
Page 2
here are
three projects
that put
border prints
to work for
you.
Seam Allowance
Space
Braided Palette Table Runner
Seam Allowance
Space
Features a border print medallion in the center,
beautifully shaded fabric strips, and border print edging.
The Place Mat and Table Runner patterns can be downloaded free at www.jinnybeyer.com/borderprojects.
Border Print Tote kits and patterns are available at your local quilt shop and www.jinnybeyer.com.

Border Prints in Patchwork Blocks
Q uilters have been fussy-cutting fabric since the very beginning, and border prints create unique effects when
cut carefully to fit a specific patch. As in the examples below, it can be as simple as replacing a single patch in a block
or subdividing a large shape and using an identical piece of border print in each of those new pieces. For more examples,
see Jinny’s book, The Quilter’s Album of Patchwork Patterns.
Stars and Cross
The plain strips in this
block have been replaced with
a narrow border print stripe.
Basket of Flowers
Different portions of a single
border print fabric are used
to enhance the basket and
the base of the flowers.
Queen’s Crown
Replacing the diamonds in the block
with border print patches that mirror
where they meet creates a “frame”
around the block’s center.
©2010 Jinny Beyer www.jinnybeyer.com
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Tips For Maximum Effect
Keeping a few things in mind when
cutting patches will make a big
difference in how the finished
block or quilt will look.
Here are just three:
1. Align the sewing line on the
bottom of the template with
a straight line printed on the
fabric. This gives a nice, strong
edge to the patch that helps define
the shape, as in Basket of Flowers.
2. When the same shape is repeated
in a block, center the template
on a mirror-image motif and
cut identical pieces to give your
block pleasing symmetry, as in
Stars and Cross.
3. Draw a portion of the design
motif from the fabric onto your
template. That will help you find
the identical motif elsewhere on the
fabric so you can cut identical
patches.
Rising Sun
The octagon in the center of this
block has been divided and replaced
with eight identical border print triangles.
White Nights
Adding a small triangle of
identical border print to the
corner of four blocks that
meet creates a lovely
medallion effect.
©2010 Jinny Beyer Page 4
www.jinnybeyer.com

Creating Border Print Shapes
Squares
S
quares are the most common shape in patchwork blocks. If a block includes a large center square,
consider replacing it with a border print square made from four identical triangles. Or, rather than
alternating pieced blocks with plain ones, use border print squares for the alternate blocks for
lots of impact with very little sewing!
Step 1
Determine the finished size of the square needed. Divide the square diagonally from
corner to corner to create four triangles. Make a template from one of the triangles
from see-through template material. Be sure to add a ¼-inch seam allowance
around all sides of the piece. Draw a line down the middle of the template to use as
a “mirror line”.
Step 2
Using the mirror line as a guide, center the template on one of the
motifs in the border print fabric, making sure that a line from the
border print falls just inside the sewing line on the long side of the
triangle template. (This ensures that you will have a nice line or
frame around the outside of the finished square.) Mark some
portion of the design directly onto the template to use as a guide
for cutting the remaining pieces. Carefully draw around the
template and cut the piece out.
Placing your triangle on different
portions of the border print will
produce different effects!
If you want to see what the square will look like before actually
cutting the pieces, position the template onto the fabric, then place
two mirrors on the two short sides of the triangle so they meet at a
right angle. Carefully remove the template to see what the finished
square will look like.
Step 3
Cut three more triangles identical to
the first, then sew them together to
complete the square.
©2010 Jinny Beyer www.jinnybeyer.com
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Other Shapes
Other geometric shapes can be made with a border print in the same way as a square. The secret is to divide the shape
into identical triangles. Create a template for that triangle (be sure to add the seam allowance), then cut as many
triangles as you need from identical portions of the border print.
Octagons
Equilateral
Triangles
Hexagons
©2010 Jinny Beyer www.jinnybeyer.com
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Mirror-Image Border Print Patches
In the Queen’s Crown block, the illusion of a border print frame is
achieved by putting one patch right beside another that is its exact
mirror image. If two patches will meet, using one regular and one
mirror-image patch will allow the design to seem to reflect naturally
around the corner. Mark the design motif on your template and use it
to cut the number of regular patches you need. Then, just flip the
template over and use it to cut your mirror-image patches, lining up
your design motif markings with the matching motifs on your fabric.
Diamonds You can create spectacular effects using this technique in diamond-shaped patches.
To create a border print diamond, you need four triangles: two are the same and two
are exact mirror images.
Step 1
Divide the diamond in half lengthwise and crosswise. Make a
template from one of the four resulting triangles. Add the seam
allowance to the outside and an arrow to show the lengthwise
grain of fabric.
Step 2
Position the template onto the fabric and draw a design motif
from the fabric onto the template. Cut two identical triangles.
Now, flip the template upside down and align the markings on
the template with the fabric grain and the matching design motif
on the fabric. Cut two of these triangles.
Step 3
You will have two sets of mirror-image triangles that form
an intricate-looking diamond when sewn together.
©2010 Jinny Beyer www.jinnybeyer.com
Page 7

Framing a Quilt with Border Prints
J
inny Beyer’s border prints are designed specifically with the quilter in mind. Each fabric has a wide and a narrow
stripe which coordinate in both design and color. Both stripes have mirror-image motifs which are essential for perfectly
mitered corners. In addition, the two different stripes in the border print are separated by at least a half-inch so that a
1/4" seam allowance is provided for on both sides of the stripes. From selvage to selvage, there are always at least four
repeats of each stripe across the fabric so calculating the yardage needed to border a quilt is easy: you need the length of
the longest side of the quilt plus an additional half-yard to match design elements and allow for the miters at the corners.
Framing a Square Quilt
Step 1
Place a strip of the border print across the middle of the quilt, centering a motif from the border at the exact center of
the quilt. (Because of minor differences in seam allowances taken and stretching that can occur on bias edges, opposite
edges of a quilt often measure slightly differently. Using a measurement taken from the middle of the quilt will help
keep the quilt from “ruffling” at the edges.)
Step 2
To mark the first miter, position a right-angle triangle
so that one of the sides of the right angle runs along
the bottom edge of the border print. Then carefully
move the triangle until the angled side touches the
point where the top edge of the border print meets
the edge of the quilt. (See arrow in Diagram 1.)
Mark, then cut the miter line. (Because you have
cut the miter right at the edge of the quilt
the seam allowance is already included.)
Step 3
If you used the triangle to cut the miter on the second side,
your design motifs might not be an exact match. So, carefully
pick up the mitered side of the border strip and lay it –
right side down – on top of the strip on the opposite side
of the quilt, placing the top edge of the strip at the edge of
the quilt. If necessary, adjust the top strip so that the top and
bottom design motifs match exactly. (If you have centered
a motif from the border print in the middle of the quilt, the
designs should match at the edges.) Mark and cut the second miter.
Step 4
Using this first mitered strip as a guide, cut three
more identical pieces, making sure that the design on
the border print is exactly the same on all four pieces.
Diagram 1
Diagram 2
©2010 Jinny Beyer www.jinnybeyer.com
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Step 5 Diagram 3
Mark a seam allowance intersection dot
on the short side of each of your borders as in
Diagram 3. To find the spot, simply draw a short line
1/4-inch inside the mitered edge and the short edge of
the border. Draw the dot where the two lines intersect.
Do the same for each corner of your quilt.
Step 6
To sew the borders to the quilt, pin the mid-point of one of the border
pieces to the middle of one of the edges of the quilt. Next, match and
pin the dots on each side of your border with the dots on the quilt
corners. Continue pinning the border to the quilt, easing in any
fullness. (The edge of the quilt is usually a little wider than the center
because of bias edges or seams.) Sew the border to the quilt, starting
and stopping at the dots. Sew the mitered seams last, starting from the
inside dot. When pinning the edges together, be sure to match the
design elements on both pieces.
Framing a Rectangular Quilt
With rectangles, you cannot always be assured that the fabric designs
will automatically match at the corners. So, you must take an extra step.
Step 1
First, follow Steps 1-3 above and cut two identical strips for the short ends of the quilt. The pieces for the other
two sides of the quilt must be cut differently: for the corners on all pieces to match, there must be a seam in these
long borders at the exact center of the quilt.
Step 2
Place one of the cut strips on top of a length of the border print
stripe, matching the fabric designs. Cut one miter to match the
miter on the top strip. Set the top strip aside. Lay the newly cut
strip on top of the quilt through the center, aligning one mitered
edge with the edge of the quilt. Mark the center of the quilt on
the strip. (See Diagram 5.) Move the strip from the quilt and
cut it off ¼" beyond the center mark. Using this cut
strip as a guide, cut one more piece identical to it.
You also need two strips that are the exact mirror
images of these pieces. Using one of the strips
you just cut, flip it over and lay it on a strip
of border print, matching the fabric design
exactly. (The two strips will be right sides
together.) Cut the miter and straight edges
to match the top piece. Using the newly
cut strip as a guide, cut one more piece.
Center of quilt
Diagram 5
Diagram 4
Cut on
solid line
Center of quilt
Sew on
dotted line
©2010 Jinny Beyer www.jinnybeyer.com
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Diagram 6
Applying Multiple Borders
Jinny often designs quilts to make full use of the
border prints. She will first frame the quilt with
the narrow border stripe, then add a coordinating
fabric as a second border. The quilt is finished off
with the wide stripe from the border print.
Jinny personally measures and adds each border
separately. However, when the middle border
is a fabric that doesn't have to be matched at
the corners, she recommends the following
method as being a little faster: Sew the second
border to the first and then measure and cut them
as a single border in the steps above. Measure, cut
and sew the third border separately after the first
two borders have been completed and sewn to
the quilt.
Step 3
Sew the seams at the middle of two mirror-imaged strips and
attach these borders to the quilt as in Steps 5 and 6 above. Sewing
the borders to a rectangular quilt in this manner assures that the
corners will match. There will be a seam at the center of the long
strips (Diagram 7), but the design at that center will mirrorimage
as well, allowing the design to flow around the quilt.
Diagram 7
The black line marks
the center seam.
Note how the design
motif reflects the
seam line.
©2010 Jinny Beyer www.jinnybeyer.com
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