Hi ladies. Hoping someone can help me with a paper piecing questions. I have a vacation day Thursday so I'm taking a paperpiecing class. Does it normally use a lot more fabric than a standard pieced top? I just got my fabric requirements and for a twin size its 7.25 yard black then 4 pieces each of four different color familes so around 15-17 yards of fabric for a twin top including binding. Does that make sense or am I misunderstanding?

yes- it takes alot more fabric than a pieced top- the first time i tried paper piecing i was so distressed over how much fabric i was cutting off and throwing away- i swore i would never paper piece again! that didn't last long- as i went along i learned ways to not waste so much- and i also stopped throwing it in the waste basket = i saved those pieces- and figured out ways to use them.
now i paper or foundation piece all the time- still takes alot of fabric= but i don't waste it.

Thank you that makes me feel better. I read the fabric requirements and almost had a stroke for a twin size quilt top.

Yes, it uses a lot of fabric, but I cannot figure it out for sure without seeing the block etc. Paper Piecing is a great way to use up scraps. Everything doesn't have to "coordinate" so matchy-matchy - like with a limited fabric palette. I would suggest taking the class to learn the block and then see if you like it. You might have material in your scraps that would work.

At the absolute most, it might be twice as much fabric. That must include binding, borders and backing. I would make one block and see how it goes.

Can you cut strips the lenght of each piece so you aren't using such a big piece to cut off? I think I saw the paperpiecing tutoral on 1 of the programs from Fon"s and Porter's tv show. You might be able to find it on their web site. Hope it helps.

It may use more but the accuracy it great.

It depends on who wrote the pattern. What pattern is it? Carol Doak gives exact sizes to cut with minimum waste. I did one last year with a different designer and it was almost illegal what she had us buy. Im really picky whose patterns I use.

I think Carol Doak's paper piecing books tell what size to cut each piece. That would help a lot.

yeah some don't waste as much. I was doing a star quilt by starr fabrics that used little waste but stopped buying the blocks because the designer has awful customer service and I would never receive my BOM for months on end

On PP patterns without the sizes to cut the fabric pieces: I take a sheet of plain white paper and lay it on top of the pattern piece and draw roughly around the shape making sure I have at least 1/4" seam allowance. It definately takes some time to do this but it is worth it to not cut a piece incorrectly and waste the fabric. I did this the second time I did the Candlequilter block and I was amazed at how much my fabric waste was decreased.

the yardage must include the backing and binding.

No just the binding. I called shop owner and she said instructor missed calculated black which should be 4.5 not 7.5 but still comes out to around 13 yards. I'm doing a few blocks then seeing what I think. Thank you all for the advice. I am mainly taking class so I can learn paperpiecing to do some of the Judy Neimeyer patterns.

This was true for me too. As a beginner, you'll want to give yourself ample pieces to work with. But then as you gain experience and become more comfortable, you will discover that you can reduce the size of pieces so that there's very little waste. And, of course, you really won't waste those extra pieces. Just make a scrappy crazy quilt or string quilt with them.

You won't be sorry taking that class.I do mug mats,table toppers,runners,coasters.Anything and everything.Connie in CO