When I was at Arrowmont, Elizabeth Barton gave us a fantastic demonstration of a different method of facing a quilt.  I used this as I was finishing “Wheatley”.  Here are the steps……

  –  Cut four, 6 inch squares of the facing fabric.  Mark 2 inches in from opposing corners and free-hand cut an arc between the two marks…..

    –  Cut a 3 inch strip  from the facing fabric.  Fold in half lengthwise and press.

  –  Measure the sides of the quilt and subtract 11 inches from the measurement.  cut the strips in lengths equal to this.

  –  Lay out the facing as shown…..

  –  Sew each of the pieces together using a 1/4 inch seam allowance.  Note that the arcs are slightly longer than the strips.

  –  Place the pieced facing (face down)   on the top of the quilt and pin in place…..

  –  Sew around all four edges and then clip the corners…..

  –  Gently turn the facing to the back of the quilt….

  –  Press the edges straight, turn under the bias curves, matching them to the pieced strips.  Pin in place and then stitch by hand…..

The finished piece lies flat and the corners are square …..

…..and it is SO SO SO SO easy to do!!!!!