Originally Posted by k3n
I was talking to a lady at quilt group about it and she said she'd had to trim off the pinked edges to get her seam allowance. I wondered what you do about that?
You do not have to trim the pinked edges and as noted .. from point to point the jelly roll is 2 1/2" across ... do as adviced, line the tips with quarter inch mark and sew as usual.
The reason you do not have to trim off the pinked edges is because the pinked edges accomplish what allowing a quarter inch seam allowance does ... which is to have enough fabric beyond the stitching line so that the fabric won't rip out easily ... at one time, all clothing had pinked seams. The cotton will only "unravel" so far, and then stop .. it is a pretty cool principle and hard to get used to, but rest assured - - count the pinked edges as your fabric and your seam allowance is stable enough to make a quality product.