WOW!!! What a difference! I would use them both in a quilt...one on the top and one in the back! It will be a sweet memory of how far you have come in so little time. It can be "An Ode to the Quilting Board"!
I have learned soooooooooooo much from the great quilting friends on this board. I couldn't do my best without them.

Good job!!

This board is great. I learn something from everyone else' questions and replies. Thanks.

When one piece is a bit longer, remember: baggy bottom, tighter top. With the longer one on the bottome, the feed dogs ease in the slack, somewhat as your walking foot does. Good luck. I know how frustrating these things can be.

I'm so impressed!

I never really thought that sewing the seams in opposite directions could make such a difference, but seeing it compared here, was very eye opening! It is amazing how much the piecing was affected!

I promise never to take the expertise and wisdom of the board members, with a grain of salt, ever!!!!

I was going to add in that I starch very heavily, especially when I will be working with smaller pieces.

I have used glue too, but right after pressing the glue, you must stitch and you need to press again and open it up right away or the glue will stick beyond the seam and could damage your fabric. You can check out the process by looking up a Sharon Schamber video on binding.

Diane

great job, and thank you all for the tips. Penny

You got it! However, I make sure my seams lay one way and one the other, then they just fit right next to each other. The piece next to the feed dogs does feed a bit faster. My MIL told me to give it all a bit of resistance as it goes toward the needle. Works. Silvia

#2 is a beautiful block! Got here late, but have another trick learned at my LQS: when matching and pinning seams, push one pin straight through the point to match it (don't go back through the fabric a second time - pin it like you're pinning a butterfly), then pin on either side of the seam about 1/8" from the seam you're matching. This keeps the seam from shifting as you stitch. Although, the way block 2 looks, you don't need any more suggestions! :-)

Here is an idea: Starch your fabric and press without stretching. Then use a template such as Marti Michell to cut squares. If you do not have a 1/4 inch machine foot with an edge on it, then use several layers of blue masking tape on top of your machine to help to make a perfect 1/4 inch seam guide. In class, we used a lined note cards to make sure we had the correct position for the masking tape. This should help you make perfect squares.

What a difference and what a good "student" you are!!