WiP: Hand Binding (and why I try to avoid it)

I seem to have a problem with perfectionism when it comes to hand sewing.  I'm currently working on a wall hanging.  It is an original design that I want to hang in my studio, and I want it to be perfect.  It measures about 39" on each side, so I thought, "Well, that isn't too big, I can hand bind that."  Why is this a problem?  Because I'm PAINFULLY slow at hand binding.  I am a self-admitted snob about hand-sewn stitches not showing, which means I have to do it slowly.  None of this, "Just get into a rhythm and whip it together" stuff.  Nope.  I didn't time it exactly, but it took me almost 6 hours over three days just for the hand stitching.  My fingertips still hurt.  I've seen several tutorials and demonstrations about how people do their hand stitching, and I'm just never satisfied with how it looks, so I keep on going slow and steady.

So I have definitely been reminded why I almost always do machine bindings now.  I've done enough by machine that I feel confident in how clean the edges look.  I'm still a bit of a snob, but not as much, and it goes SO much faster.  I'll choose quick, easy, and clean over 3 days and sore fingers almost any time, even if the three days has fantastic results.  I think I'll reserve hand bindings for only a few select quilts.

I'm going to wait a few days before finishing the hanging sleeve so that my fingers can recover a little bit.

I'm really happy with how this has turned out.  I'll be doing a full reveal next month, but for now here's another view of the back.  This is the most detailed quilting I've ever done, and also my first time doing pebbles.  It was pretty tedious but so worth it!  I feel pretty confident in my ability to quilt pebbles now.

This happens to be my 99th post--I'm pretty excited to reach 100!  

Linking up today with Work in Progress Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.