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I love my add a quarter ruler and have used to several times. Do you HAVE to have it? No Does it make it easier? I think so. I just recently bought the 12 inch one to use on a new project.
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I'm new a paper piecing and I like my add a quarter and use it all the time. To me it makes it more exact.
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I made a huge large queen pp quilt for my daughter - didn't have a 1/4" ruler - they probably didn't even have them at that time - I recently made another large quilt with lots of PP'ing, and was wishing I had it with that previous quilt - it's not a necessity, but if you have one, you'll probably also find other uses for it - not expensive compared to some things us gals ( and guys) buy for this hobby - I just used it to mark lines for a project I was working on from the CRAFTSY class.
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I use either one of my rectangular rulers that has a 1/4" marking on it, or one of Perfect Layers rulers from my scrapbook stash. Love, love, love those rulers. Check those out. I've found them useful for cutting all sorts of things in my scrapping room, as well as in my sewing/quilting room.
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Originally Posted by PaperPrincess
(Post 5352883)
Well, I guess I'm 'odd girl out'. I love my add a quarter ruler for paper piecing. The bottom isn't flat, the 1/4" part is a bit thicker so all you have to do is butt the edge of the raised portion against your folded back seam, cut then line up your next piece.
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I recently took a paper-piecing class and half the items on the supply list were totally unnecessary expenditures. One of those items was the 1/4" add-a-quarter ruler. It's still in the package and if I could find the receipt I would definitely return it. I found that my 6" x 24" ruler worked wonderfully for cutting off the excess fabrics (the blocks were 12" x 6").
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Need? No - but it sure makes the job MUCH easier!
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I am with you, I would not PP without one. I have a postcard taped to mine and use it. I admit I took a class with Carol Doak before I could my head wrapped around the process she uses. I have the add a 1/4 6 inch, and 12 inch, and the add 1/8 for smaller blocks.
Originally Posted by PaperPrincess
(Post 5352883)
Well, I guess I'm 'odd girl out'. I love my add a quarter ruler for paper piecing. The bottom isn't flat, the 1/4" part is a bit thicker so all you have to do is butt the edge of the raised portion against your folded back seam, cut then line up your next piece.
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No, too many gadgets actually slow you down when quilting.
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Originally Posted by lfletcher
(Post 5353038)
I love my 1/4 inch ruler. It has a lip on it and you can place it and cut without thinking. I personally think it's a tool worth having.
Ditto!! me too... |
i have parkinsons..i use this ruler all the time..but then i shake. it keeps me from cutting to close.
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Originally Posted by Donnamarie
(Post 5352807)
I paper piece all the time and no, you don't need that ruler. It is totally unnecessary.
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Originally Posted by burchquilts
(Post 5357012)
I've never PP'ed so I suppose I should keep my mouth shut (like that's gonna happen... LOL!). It was my understanding that when you trimmed your pieces, it didn't really matter what size you seam allowance was. Am I wrong in thinking that?
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It's not absolutely necessary but like so many tools it makes things easier for you. I love mine.
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Depends on which paper piecing method you use, but I follow either Carol Doak's method or Judy Mathhieson's method and find my accuracy is much better with the ruler especially on long narrow points, wouldn't do without it now!
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Originally Posted by ArtsyOne
(Post 5357963)
I recently took a paper-piecing class and half the items on the supply list were totally unnecessary expenditures. One of those items was the 1/4" add-a-quarter ruler. It's still in the package and if I could find the receipt I would definitely return it. I found that my 6" x 24" ruler worked wonderfully for cutting off the excess fabrics (the blocks were 12" x 6").
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i have both the 6 and 12 inch rulers, only used them when I took a class with Carol Doak. I do lots of paper piecing and use any of my see thru rules.
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Originally Posted by ghostrider
(Post 5352825)
I totally agree. It's completely unnecessary.
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Originally Posted by PaperPrincess
(Post 5352883)
Well, I guess I'm 'odd girl out'. I love my add a quarter ruler for paper piecing. The bottom isn't flat, the 1/4" part is a bit thicker so all you have to do is butt the edge of the raised portion against your folded back seam, cut then line up your next piece.
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I just finished a double wedding ring bed runner which was paper pieced. It is a vital piece of equipment when you are paper piecing. I could not have done it without that and a business card.
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add-a-quarter-ruler
Originally Posted by PaperPrincess
(Post 5352883)
Well, I guess I'm 'odd girl out'. I love my add a quarter ruler for paper piecing. The bottom isn't flat, the 1/4" part is a bit thicker so all you have to do is butt the edge of the raised portion against your folded back seam, cut then line up your next piece.
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Oh yes!!!!!
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Originally Posted by PaperPrincess
(Post 5352883)
Well, I guess I'm 'odd girl out'. I love my add a quarter ruler for paper piecing. The bottom isn't flat, the 1/4" part is a bit thicker so all you have to do is butt the edge of the raised portion against your folded back seam, cut then line up your next piece.
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Depends, how accurate are you at eye balling a 1/4 inch seam. I use my 1/4 inch ruler all the time. I love paper piecing. I'm not a gadget type person but have found this worth the price.
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Originally Posted by Lori S
(Post 5352917)
Nope ....you don't need it . I use any of my rulers , my favorite is a 6 inch X 1 inch ruler for trimming . Really any ruler will work just fine.
This is one of my issues with some classes. Seems the list of required tools gets loaded up with some items that aren't really neccessary. |
If you go to caroldoak.com, click on blog and then go to her April 4 entry and you will find her tutorial and shows the use of the ruler in question. Yes, it is necessary! Of course you could do pp without it but its as necessary as many of the tools we use. Rotary cutter, mats, rulers, etc. None necessary but dont want to do without them.
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I love my add a quarter ruler won't paper piece without it. But no it's not necessary, basically just what you get use to I think.
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I'm a paper-piecer, and have taught it, too. IMO that notion falls into the category of "luxury item", not necessary tool.
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They aren't necessary but once you use one, they certainly make trimming a lot easier. The 1/4 or 1/8th portion of the ruler is slightly thicker, so it makes it very easy to butt it up against your block and it stays there very easily. I made quite a few PP quilts before I got both the 1/4 and the 1/8th. I will always use them now, when PP.
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What a diversity of opinion!
Hoping mine will arrive before the class on Tuesday. The teacher is cook and won't be upset if you come without one but after reading all of the posts, I think I'll be glad to have it. Thanks for all of the opinions - pro and con!! :) |
I agree the ruler is un-necessary...anyway when I pp I have never cut fabric to a specitfic size just bigger than the pattern and I audition it to make sure it is the right size. I have plucked out many stitches when I didn't do this.
I love pp. I use sandwich paper you get from a resturant(sp off my thinker is not thinking..lol) supplier and then cu tit down to fit in my printer to print off patterns, it comes off really well and not expensive either. |
I'm a bit late on my opinion of the ruler. I have 3 of them - the add a quarter 6", 12" and the add an eighth for the tiny pieced areas. I love love love my rulers. I use them for more than paper piecing too. I have been known to flip them over and use as a regular ruler for some things - I can put my finger right along the side of the lip and then cut.
I bought the 12" first and found it too long for most piecing so I got the 6" one. I use them both though because sometimes the 6" just isn't long enough. I find it slower to scissor cut after each piece I sew - so for me, it's one of my favorite rulers :) |
I like it too. Don't need it, but makes paperpiecing a snap for me.
Originally Posted by PaperPrincess
(Post 5352883)
Well, I guess I'm 'odd girl out'. I love my add a quarter ruler for paper piecing. The bottom isn't flat, the 1/4" part is a bit thicker so all you have to do is butt the edge of the raised portion against your folded back seam, cut then line up your next piece.
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I have the 6" and 12", 1/4" rulers. Also have 1/8" ruler. They solved the paper piecing problem I had. I learned to use them by watching a tute on the Connecting Threads website under their tutorials. It was the best tute I found after searching the web and YouTube for them. I love the rulers...
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Well...my bargain ruler was delivered to the wrong post office and delayed two days so I purchased a 6 inch ruler at class last night - 10% off on class materials so it wasn't too much.
In retrospect, I liked handling the shorter ruler. I'll probably keep the 12 inch as well since there were times I had to shift the shorter ruler to trim the full length. Now that I've used it, I have to say I really liked using it and am glad I decided to get it. And I think I will really like this paper-piecing technique!! |
Originally Posted by b.zang
(Post 5356619)
This makes me wonder how you're using yours. I always use mine to trim the seam allowance before I sew. I fold the paper back (around a straight piece of template plastic to give me that sharp line) along the seam line I intend to sew next. Then I butt my add-a-quarter ruler along that folded paper and trim my seam allowance which provides me a guide for the next piece of fabric. I can't think of using it after I've sewed and am interested to hear about your method, especially if it's nice and fast. The other thing I like about the trimmed seams is that when there are a lot of them, the trimming helps keep the bulk down on the back.
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If you don't know if you are going to like paperpiecing, just use a short ruler that you already have. Buy the 1/4 inch ruler only if you find that you LOVE paperpiecing. It really saves a lot of effort when you are going along. I'm not too good at paperpiecing and won mine as a door prize and I gotta say, I like it much better than a regular ruler for this purpose.
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