You know, it's never made sense to me that seams pressed to one side makes anything (the stitching or the quilt) stronger. I'm not saying it absolutely doesn't, it just doesn't make sense to me. (And I'm talking about machine piecing, not hand piecing.) But . . . being a very obedient little quilter, I pressed to one side for years, just because that's what was always recommended. About three years ago I decided to be a rebel and press my seams open. I loved the results! Everything fit better and looked better. To be sure, there are times I press to one side, but more often than not, I press mine open. (Oh, and one of those quilts with pressed open seams was for my sister's dog. For two years now that quilt has been machine washed and dried at least once a week, sometimes two or three times and she tells me it's holding up beautifully.)
