there is a great foot out there for most sewing machines. It is a 1/4 inch foot with a guide. This is a piece of metal that your fabric goes up against and voila you have a quarter inch seam but check your needle position first and make sure it is centered so that you have a quarter inch seam. Measure to be sure.

The best purchase I made for my machine was 1/4 inch foot with the guide. I also feel that when you start watching where your fabric is and not what the needle is doing you are on your way to great 1/4" seams. Quilting like everything else takes practice, practice, practice and have fun!

I agree with the others- get a 1/4 inch foot and measure from your needle to make sure it's not too big. Mine is so I have to compensate for a larger scant...

Welcome to the board! The ladies here and soo wonderful and never seem bothered by my questions. I'm new (again) to quilting after a 12 year lapse...

Any post indicating problem solved?

She posted above that problem is solved. Post #23.

As are the gentlemen on the board! :)

I believe a magnetic guide shouldn't be used with a computerised machine. Is that correct, folks?

Excellent suggestions. One response to "Why?" With quilting you are sewing together many relatively small pieces of fabric. Larger seam allowances lead to bulk - often in very difficult places - and a heavier quilt all around. 1/4, I believe, has evolved as a good compromise between a sturdy seam and an acceptable amount of bulk.

Ron, From Blue Mountains. I've wondered - do you, and the rest of the world, call it a 6 mm seam or do you, certainly outnumbered on this post in several ways :), adapt to the American antiquated system of inches?

Hi Maggieloe,

Australia commenced moving to the metric system in the late 60s. Now I'm only new to sewing and quilting, but so far everything I come across in sewing in Australia - even quilting rulers made in Australia - still use the imperial system. Often fabric will show both metric and imperial with the latter being the most prominent.

It's interesting how imperial still rules the sewing world as the US (I'm not criticising your country! :) ) must be close to the last country in the world not to have gone metric. (According to a Google search only the US, Liberia, Burma and the UK still use imperial although the UK is an Imperial-Metric society where metric is slowly becoming the norm.)

Here endeth the lesson. :)

I agree with "gale". I would say your stitches were too long. There are videos on 1/4 seam. if you use a sticky note, the sticky part is 1/4" line that up with your 1/4" mark on your machine. That should help. You can go to MISSOURI STAR QUILT COMPANY. They have a tute on the 1/4" seam.