Bargello questions - whether to sew a tube or not?
 

I'm getting ready to do my first Bargello (yay New Year's resolutions! ). I'm working on a super simple one from my LQS made up of 2.5" strips. The instructions want you to sew fabrics in order from 1 to 24 - okay, no problem. Then the instructions just say to cut the indicated widths to get all of my columns ... what I'm wondering is if I should sew fabric 1 to 24 first? The instructions have you doing that later where you unsew specific pieces, and you then attach 1 and 24 for 95% of the strips sets. I feel like I've heard before about sewing them into a tube first, that way there's only unsewing that needs to be done to get the right rows.

The strata will be roughly 49" when they're all attached, so even folded over, that's about 25" which seems like a lot and I'm wondering if the tube might somehow make that more difficult?

Help is appreciated. Thanks!

Whenever I've made one, I sewed it into a tube. If you don't, all your rows will start with the same (#1) fabric. That makes no sense. So, i say yes, sew into a tube, then cut your rows. Just make sure that your tube is straight. Maybe even put pins in it to hold it in the right place while cutting. It's been a long time since I made one.

The one I did i used the tube method. It made it easier for me to keep things in order.

I say yes, tube.

Yes of course the tube method, this way you take them apart where you need to.

nothing like a good tube to make a great bargello! good luck..post pix!

The instructions say to seam rip certain ones and then sew 1 + the pieces up to your seam rip to 24, so it wouldn't all start with 1

Thanks everyone. I have my fabric selected, so now just need to get started on it. I feel so much more confident about doing a tube now. Thanks :)

My first bargello was Ribbons in Motion, and since the strips didn't go to the full top and bottom, but had background fabric attached, the tube method didn't apply.
If I were doing a "first" bargello again, I would stick to the directions, and tape them to the wall so they don't go missing or get upside down.
Once comfortable with the technique, then go ahead and change things up to suit your style of sewing/quilting.
IMHO

I've made a few bargellos but never tried the tube method, or heard of it before now. On an easier pattern it does seem like it would make it easy. On some of the trickier patterns, though, I don't think it would save time. One pattern I did had me taking 2 or 3 rows apart, after sewing into rows, and then ripping them into partial rows and then sewing back together again so it would be like doing fabrics 1-2-1-2-3-4-5-1-2-3-6-7-8-9 and so on. It was just the challenge I needed for a summer project.