Anne Louise, This Is Not Chain Piecing
 

I like to think that I go swiftly along, but I actually stop at each joining, and with the needle down, lift up the lever and gently place the next two that will be sewn under it. Then I hand advance by a few stitches before letting the machine take over.

Oh well, I am still going faster than if I stopped and cut thread after every one...right?

:) Yes! You're going way faster forward than backward. And you're using much less thread too.

Boston, I do the same thing when I chain piece with exception of using the hand crank to advance. I just go very slowly and keep a hand on the new unit so it goes under the pressure foot carefully. Why is this not considered chain piecing?

I always figured that when people were chain piecing, it was one after the other, kind of like breathing. It doesn't stop. I thought mine would not truly count. But if you say it is, then well, I am happy. I am getting it done. :)

It depends on the shape of the pieces. It you are stitching diamonds, you need a bit more room between pairs to accommodate the location of the seam. If you are sewing blocks, you can pretty much butt them up against each other.

What matters most is that you are happy with the results you are getting.

To me, chain piecing is not breaking the chain (i.e. not cutting the thread between units). Doesn't have anything to do with speed!

That's my definition too.

I agree with this. Its about keeping the chain intact, no about sewing speed

Yup, i’ve never considered speed a factor in chain piecing, only the non-stop action of sewing one long chain of whatever. That's certainly faster than cutting and restarting. I try to butt one up set up close to the next so that my needle has something to bite into. After a long chain is sewn, I use the cutter on the side to separate the threads in rapid succession.

I also never considered speed - it's about having a chain of pieces I can drag over to the ironing board. I normally cut them apart after I've pressed them open. I use my snips and don't need to pick them off the ironing board until after I've cut them apart.

Makes me love my knee lift presser foot. Just use my knee to lift the foot enough to get the next piece under the foot, and away I go. That way I can always keep my hands to easily line things up.