Subject: is it always fustrating to have the seam line not matching with the other pieces Date: 10/27/09 6:16 AM

I'm a beginner quilter but i get very fustrated about the seam lines not matching up. does this happen to you sometimes? and what do you do to not get so annoyed
-- Edited on 10/27/09 6:17 AM --

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Reply to sew cool sew creative
Date: 10/27/09 8:05 AM

Yes, I have had this happen, many times when I was starting out. What you need to do is press your seams opposite each other, so that they "nest". What I mean is that as a rule you should press your seams toward the dark fabric. For some reason, most quilting patterns are done so that when you press your seams toward the dark, the light ones will go the opposite way and when you lay two pieced pieces on top of each other, to stitch them together, they will "nest" (I've also heard the term "kiss") and will lay flat and won't shift. More than likely, this is what's happening to you. Try this with a nine patch block and you will see what I mean.

It could also be in the way you are cutting your fabric. If your ruler moves or shifts, it will make a strip narrower or wider, and that will make a difference too. Make sure when cutting that you have your "chicken feet" stance, meaning that you have three of your fingers and your thumb on the ruler, with your pinkie touching the left edge of the ruler but is on the mat, holding it like a kickstand to keep the ruler in place. If you are left handed, the ruler will be on your right side with your right pinkie on the right hand edge of the ruler. This helps to keep the ruler from shifting.

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"Having to squeeze the last drop of utility out of the land has the same desperate finality as having to chop up the furniture to keep warm" -- Aldo Leopold
http://tree-sister.blogspot.com
"Don't cry; don't be sad; make happy"--Peggy Jones. Rest your weary body, dear friend.

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Reply to sew cool sew creative
Date: 10/28/09 5:54 PM

Precise quilting takes time. Don't beat yourself up about. I used unwashed fabric because I love the vintage puckers - does a great job concealing less than wonderful seams. Now that I am better I still love that crinkly look.
Judi

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Date: 10/29/09 3:07 AM

A tip my quilting teacher taught was to use Glue-Baste-It (made by Roxanne), which is a temporary basting glue to hold the seams in place. Especially good when lining intersecting seams up. Need to allow glue to dry, but the teacher always hurried it up with the iron. With using this glue, you can then check to make sure everything lines up as you want before sewing. If there is a problem, pull apart and reglue. The teacher suggests hand washing and drip drying quilt top before quilting to wash glue out as trying to sew though a glue spot could cause a problem. The way my teacher does it is to make a very thin dotted line of glue as not very much is needed to hold in fabric in place. She would first glue seam intersections and ends and then ease if needed the rest of the area in.
I must say it makes it very easy to keep the fabric where you want it. As a beginner makes the process less frustrating too.

Roxanne Glue-baste-it

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Martha

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Reply to sew cool sew creative
Date: 10/29/09 8:15 AM

A couple of additional tips:

first - be certain your 1/4 inch seam is exact. To test, cut 3 strips 1 1/2 inches wide. Stitch together. Press. Measure the inside strip. It should be exactly 1 inch. Adjust your needle position until the inside strip measures exactly 1 inch.

second - pin your blocks together at the block corners prior to stitching them together. They should match up when you stitch them. I've started using a walking foot (i.e., the accufeed foot on my Janome MC6600P) when putting the blocks together to help prevent fabric shifting.

It can be frustrating but over time you will figure out what works best for you.

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Carol - * I always have more time to sew *
Babylock Ellageo, Viking Mega Quilter, Janome MC6600P, Babylock Evolve Serger, Janome FM 725

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Reply to sew cool sew creative
Date: 10/29/09 9:05 AM

A couple things have helped me out with this chronic issue. My piecing is not perfect and never will be, but these things have helped make the seams line up much better, and given me more accuracy:

1. Use the same ruler for all cutting. Don't trust the rotary cutting mat's grid to be correct---only trust it if it is identical to your ruler.

2. Use a nice thin thread for piecing, like Aurifil 50/2. Mettler's 50/3 "Silk Finish" cotton is really thick, and "turn of the cloth" eats up a lot of fabric.

3. Spray starch the heck out of your fabric, or use sizing (per your preference) so the bias and cross-grain of the fabric don't stretch and distort. Once I started spray starching my fabrics, my accuracy improved a lot.

4. Make sure your 1/4" seam, per your templates or ruler, is identical to the 1/4" seam on your machine.

I hope this helps.

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Date: 10/29/09 10:43 AM

Unlike most quilters, I tend to press my seam allowances open. Then I match the seams the same as I would for garments: Stick a pin through the seam in the top and bottom pieces to match them up. Hold them there, carefully remove the pin, then pin them together through the seam allowance. I do a lot of pinning - more than other quilters, probably, but I like my seams to be very precise. And I'm stubborn about doing things MY way.

Sometimes you'll find that your seams won't match unless you really stretch one of the pieces. In this case, I usually just let them not match. Fabric will ease quite a bit, but if it's going to distort the block don't force it. Having a quilt top that lies flat and square is just as important as having the seams match.

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Date: 11/4/09 12:43 PM

Mostly what everyone said. It's also been said don't start a quilt on one machine and finish on another. Someone mention stretching seams to fit. Well a trick from making clothing. put the side that slightly to big to the feed dogs on your machine and it will ease it naturally. And sometimes when all else falls trim. Sometime just have to fudge it. A completed quilt is better then one half done due to worries about perfection.

-- Edited on 11/4/09 12:48 PM --

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Date: 11/4/09 2:24 PM

I have had a lot of problems with this. Look at this thread on SG where it was discussed in detail and some real help offered. I'm getting better, but still not there:
SG for Accuracy in cutting

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Reply to BeeBeeSew
Date: 11/4/09 4:08 PM

BeeBee, Thanks for the wonderful link.

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Carol - * I always have more time to sew *
Babylock Ellageo, Viking Mega Quilter, Janome MC6600P, Babylock Evolve Serger, Janome FM 725

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