Something Bright...and Finished!

Are you ready for some photos? I finished a project! I started this one back in June. I intended for it to be a throw quilt but I got impatient with the piecing and decided I needed a wall hanging/table topper.

(The grass looks fake in this photo for some reason!)

This is the second project I designed myself, not that it looks all that original. I loved the challenge of the stars but I also realized that with my busy life I like the quickness of easier projects. Not every point is perfect, but I am getting better.

I rearranged the star pieces to give this last block a little more interest.

I am really happy with the quilting on this. I pin basted tighter on this (more pins) and it really made a difference. I quilted white on white with Aurifil thread. Large stippling in the larger areas and tiny stippling around the stars. That was new to me and really fun. I did a looping meander in the busy squared spaces with bright pink Aurifil. I still wonder if I should outline the stars but I didn't trust myself to free motion those straight lines.
Binding...oh my! (as my niece would say). I read on a blog post that someone was loving 2 inch binding. Well, I thought a smaller project would be perfect for it. After I cut and pressed it I realized I wasn't going to be able to hand stitch it very easily and cover the edge. I sewed it onto the quilt with about an eighth inch seam and I was fine. Then I clipped a corner of the binding as I trimmed the extra off but we just won't talk about that...
So quilters.....what size binding do you usually cut? I think I am back to 2 1/2 inch unless I realize what I am missing. :)