I press open many times as the top lays flatter, but sometimes I press to the darker fabric too. It really depends on the pattern, intersections etc. The only "wrong" way is to press the seams to the light side where dark fabric shows through. Then, it looks bad.

I do both, usually in the same quilt, depending on the seam. Coming to quilting from garment sewing, it felt a little weird and cheaty to press seams to the side at first, but it is definitely a time saver. I will say that I think open seams usually look nicer and lie flatter, but sometimes I am in a hurry. ;)

I just did a poll about this very topic on a long arm chat site. We discovered many blue ribbon winners now press open. In the past, they pressed to the dark side whenever possible. Now they do what is best for the quilt and reduces bulk.

Our machines, thread and fabrics are so much better and stronger than the handquilting of decades ago, and it's no longer a matter of strength. Quilts all hold up fine either way. Pressing open allows for a flatter quilt, with flatter seam lines, easier piecing/matching and nicer quilting in many respects. There are no quilt police - even though most of us (me included!) were taught we would go to jail if we did anything other than 'press to the dark'. It just doesn't hold true anymore :)

And so, I do whatever is best for the quilt. There are no rules...just myths :) It's all good :)

I do whatever strikes my fancy, to be honest....
I never did understand the 'strength' point of to one side, considering for the most part, my clothes have a lot more stress put on them than a quilted object and they are pressed open...

In garment sewing you use 5/8" seam allowance, in quilting you use 1/4" seam allowance.

Pressing seams open like in garment making is coming back to the quilting world. It helps not having all that bulk at intersections.

I finger press or use my wooden iron to press open before going to the iron to prevent burning my fingers. Then I steam press, not iron the back of the block, then flip it over to make sure I have not pressed any pleats into the front seams making sure all seams are flat, then I iron the front.

Seams pressed open are much easier to quilt by hand also. Ask me how I know this. :roll:

If you want to "stitch in the ditch" when you quilt press them closed. I learned the hard way - if you press them open, there is no ditch!

You've been getting lots of good advice; here's my two cents worth: Press closed, to the darker side. Better yet, buy patterns that tell you which side to press toward. Really good patterns have been tested, somethimes more than once, before they are sold and should include pressing directions and how to "spin" 4-way seams. These extra tips make construction the piece so much easier.

I don't know what you mean...stitching in the ditch is sewing in the seam line. There is a seam line when you press fabrics both open or to the side. ??

This is what I was told to do at a quilting class. And it works great.