Which way to press...
 

I was just wondering if anyone could tell me the dis-advantage of pressing my seams open, rather than to one side. I am working on Checkboxes from Love of Quilting and I am having trouble lining up my seams. In the past, I have pressed my seams open and have had better luck but everything I read says I should press to the side. Any in-put would be greatly appreciated.

Still Learning

From what I've learned from this board, it is more about quilter preference. Pressing seams open allows for less bulk than to one side. Apparently, although I'm not sure if this is really the case, if you press to one side, there is less stress on the seam. I prefer to press seams open because it is easier to match up seams, but when making a log cabin, it was easier to press them to one side. I would suggest you do what works best for you and makes the quilt easier to piece together.

Heres what i read in a magazine.
Pressing to one side made the seams stronger when hand stitching. It didnt seperate the fabrics.
other than that, not much except that the dark doesnt show thru the right.

It is your preference, no matter what a pattern says! I can match seams much better pressed open, since I started sewing on garments. When I first started to quilt, I tried pressing to one side but would wind up with seams every which way on the back!

Thank You all for the in-put. I think I am going to go back to pressing my seams open. It just drives me crazy when my seams are off...... I Love This Board!

One other thing to consider is how you will be quilting. If you plan on doing stitch-in-the-ditch, it's better not to press open. If you SID on a seam that's pressed open, you will only be stitching through the thread of the seam. Whereas if you have pressed to one side, you're stitching through a layer of fabric.

I have been quilting for many decades and have almost without exception pressed open. Choose the methods that suit you. I doubt anyone told any of the famous painters they used the wrong brush stroke.

I also press most of my seams open...once it's quilted who knows but you??? It's your creation do what you want...that's my motto anyway!!!

There clearly is no right answer. I believe Leah day said to press open if you are doing SID although I may be wrong about that. I used to only press open but I discovered that if I pressed in the right direction, it was so much easier for me to lock the seams together and match the pieces perfectly. I would try both ways on some scraps.

AndiR , I didn't think about that. Thank You, Very good point.
I'm not SID on this quilt, but the next one I have planned I am doing SID.