If you've ever fought with a fabric strip that refused to fold evenly while you pressed it, the Sasher is about to change your quilting life. The Sasher Collection – Ultimate Set of 12 from Pauline's Quilters World is a color-coded collection of pressing tools that fold fabric strips into crisp, accurate bindings, sashings, bias stems, and trims — in twelve sizes from a thread-fine 1/8" all the way to a generous 3".
What Is a Sasher?
A Sasher is a small tool with a channel that folds the raw edges of a fabric strip to the center as you pull it along, so your iron can press a perfectly even folded strip in seconds. No pins, no hand-basting, no burnt fingers. The Ultimate Set includes eleven Sashers — 1/8", 1/4", 1/2", 3/4", 1", 1 1/8", 1 1/4", 1 1/2", 2", 2 1/2", and 3" — plus the Magic Binding Tool for making binding with a flange, sometimes called a "peeper." The set is color coded so you can grab the right size at a glance.
Why Quilters Use Them
Sashers give you the same folded width every inch of the way:
- Quilt As You Go sashings: The fluro yellow Sashers (1 1/2", 2", 2 1/2", and 3") are the most popular for this — they fold the sashing strips that join your quilted blocks on the front of the quilt.
- Quilt bindings: The orange Sashers fold the strips for the edge of your quilt (2 1/2" and 2 1/4" binding cuts). The pairing rule is simple: cut your binding 2 1/2" wide and use the 1 1/4" Sasher; cut it 2 1/4" wide for a thinner binding and use the 1 1/8" Sasher.
- Trims and appliqué: The pink Sashers (3/4" and 1") are made for garment trims, while the blue Sashers (1/2", 1/4", and 1/8") fold tiny bias strips for appliqué stems and delicate trimmings around appliqué shapes.
How to Use a Sasher: Step by Step
- Cut your strip to the width the tool calls for (for example, a 2 1/2" binding strip for the 1 1/4" orange Sasher).
- Feed the strip through the Sasher's channel, wrong side up, so the raw edges fold inward as the strip enters the tool.
- Press as you pull. Set your iron at the fabric's safe temperature, press the folded strip right at the mouth of the tool, and pull the Sasher slowly along the strip. Work a foot or two at a time and let each section cool briefly so the fold sets.
For the Magic Binding Tool, feed your binding strip through to create a binding with a built-in flange or peeper — a thin contrasting line that shows between the binding and the quilt top. It's the quickest, most precise way to get that professional two-tone binding edge.
Practical Tips
- Match the tool to the strip: a strip that's too narrow leaves gaps in the fold; too wide bunches up. Follow the pairing on the packaging (like the 2 1/2" cut → 1 1/4" Sasher rule).
- Slow and steady wins: pulling the Sasher too fast gives wavy folds. A slow, even glide keeps the folded width consistent.
- Label your favorites: if you quilt-as-you-go often, keep the fluro yellow set in its own pouch so it's always ready.
Care and Storage
Sashers need almost no maintenance. Let them cool after pressing, wipe off any starch residue with a damp cloth, and store them flat or in their original case so the channels don't warp. Kept clean and unbent, they'll serve you for years of quilts.
Project Ideas
Put the set to work on a Quilt As You Go throw (yellow Sashers for the sashings), a flanged binding from the Magic Binding Tool, 1/4" bias stems on a floral appliqué wall hanging, or pink-Sasher folded trims on a jacket.
Shop the Sasher Collection - Ultimate Set of 12 at Linda's Electric Quilters.
