I started making Bargello quilt several years ago. I cut it all, and was sewing it at my mothers for something to do during a long vacation. I had already made a small wallhanging size before. So once I started sewing I also experienced the bowing effect. It discouraged me and it's still haunting me - it's still in a bag in my sewing boxes. Someday I'll get back to it.

Anyway, what was happening was that my mothers machine is pretty old, and the pressure wasn't even. It was pushing the top layer out farther than the bottom one. Then I was also sewing everything from the same direction which made it even worse. Try making a couple of strips that you know are exactly the same length and see if your maching is pushing one out farther.

It's very easy (easier than NOT) to stretch that out of shape while you are sewing the long skinny pieced strips together. You might have good luck with an even-feed (walking) foot. At this point, since you are so far along, I would just press the heck out of it, using steam and then pinning to block it, like a hand knit sweater.

The dreaded rainbow effect, I would suspect one of the strips is longer and when sewing them together you eased the shorter one a bit too much causing it to bow.

Remedy: (sorry, I know this is gonna hurt) Get the stitch ripper out and find the strip that is the culprit.

:)

yes i started sewing all of my strips at the same end. i have only gotten 5 to 6 strips sewn on each of my first ten strips. the lady at the quilt shop said that she didn't think that i had to take what i had apart since i wasn't that far. she said to alternate and go from there. and that also when i had pressed them i had pressed some of them from the back which made folds on the front. so i needed to repress them. my bow wasn't that big so it should be ok.

Think about using your walking foot to sew these strips. Also, when pressing, you should probably have a straight line and make the strips conform to this line. I would do this two strips as a time.

A friend of mine from Maryland makes beautiful bargello quilts. She presses all of her seams open. Might want to try this and see if it corrects your problem.

Good luck. Suzanne

Another possible reason for the bowing is that you are ironing it on the board the long way. I read a site that said it is better to lay the strips crosswise to your ironing board and then press. If it is any consolation to you, the only bargello quilt I made, I had to sew twice because I didn't notice the bowing and my quarter inch seams weren't!! Once you get the culprit fixed the rest will go much easier. I speak from sad experience!! In the end it was a great quilt but I definitely learned about patience making it!

hi patrice, i have a question or two. i am the one trying to make a bergello and am taking a class. my next class is this weekend. as you have read in my threads about the twisted bergello and sewing strips i am having problems. i haven't alternated my strips and found out that yes my cut is alittle off. so there for i have what my friend says is a small bow in my strips. if i were to keep on sewing them and not match the edges up as i should. such as just matching the top and bottom of the fabrics could or would it striaghten out or will this hurt me alot when i go to cutting them on my next step? i am still stuck on my first 6 sets of the one color. because i am afraid of how it is going to look. but i really need to get a move on the weekend will be here before i know it. if the bow isn't real big will i have alot of problems with it? hopefully you can help sincerely jeanette

i expect my suggestion will horrify a few folks, but if it was me (and .... er ... ummmmm .... it has been me more than once in the past :lol: ) i would cut new strips and start again. toss the wonky strip set into the scrap bag.

you will spend more time trying to make the ones you have work than you would spend just starting over. if you don't have enough fabric left to do that, i'd either:

1. buy more fabric. if they don't have enough of the ones i was using, and i couldn't substitute, i'd buy whatever i needed to start over with different fabrics and make something else from the first set. only if the cost of the new fabrics is an issue (for example when i have to meet a deadline and won't have the money i need in time) i'd choose one of the next two options.

2. take the strips apart, starch press each one flat, and use my ruler to see if either edge is straight. if there's at least one straight edge on each strip they can be used the way you described - although i wouldn't worry at all whether everthing matched exactly at the ends. just make sure you don't try to sew two wonky edges together. for each seam, make sure to pin the strips together so that you have at least one straight edge to use as a reference for your quarter inch seam.

or

3. take the strip sets apart and straighten the cuts. that means working with narrower strips, so you'll have to remember to make all future strips the new width and your quilt will be a little smaller.

again, i wouldn't worry much about whether or not the sewn strips match exactly at both ends of the seam. you're going to cut it up anyway, and the pattern shouldn't include using the selvage edges so the mismatched danglies shouldn't matter.

life is too short and quilting is supposed to be fun. no matter how small or simple the project, i make at least one goofball mistake during each and every one. i have learned to look at them as unplanned lessons. way cheaper than a class in a shop - even when i factor in the cost of the fabric. :lol: i've also learned to always buy at least a half yard more than the instructions call for. i nearly always need at least some of it. :oops:

ok, i finally got some pictures downloaded. so here is my wip if i can ever get it finished. now you can see what i problems i have been talking about. the blues is what i have the most started and problems so far. i just have done that much of the pink to see if i was going to have the same problems. well wish me luck. got to get going on it again. thank you everyone for all of your help.

didn't realize that i had posted the same pink strips. don't know which picture you can tell better of the blues so i posted two of the same picture.