press seams open or to the side?
 

I've found the forum info very valuable. I've been sewing for years but recently have gotten back into quilting. I have a LOT to learn. I did a block of the month where some of the seams were pressed to the side and some were pressed open. Now I was on a quilt shop site about longarm quilting and they said "don't press seams open because the needle on the machine is large and might cut your threads".
So......press seams open or to the side and
The quilt top that I just finished with the seams pressed open , can it be quilted using a long arm.
Thanks

Same here. To the side unless there's a lot of bulk and then I press open. I did a whole quilt with the seams pressed open once and felt hinky about it the whole time. I just feel better pressing to the side.

I've noticed many of the instructions will suggest which side to press to or open depending on the block but like Tartan states ask your longarmer also.

I generally press to the side, but not when doing English paper piecing by hand.

Honestly I think you need to consider how it is going to be quilted -- by hand? Because if you press open, you can't stitch-in-the-ditch because you could break the sewing threads. And you have to be careful with the quilting patterns you pick.

As long as you plan it out, you should be okay either way!

I would do whatever the pattern calls for. I would think the lomgarmer would just adjust the quilting style depending on what you do. If they are new to longarming maybe they are just not comfortable tackling that project and don't waant to ruin the quilt

Hi SewFun and welcome to the board.

This will largely depend on your longarmer and what kind of LA quilting you want done. If you do an all over end to end design then your pressed open seams shouldn't present a problem. But if you want custom quilting with stitch in the ditch to emphasize your piecing then it will be a bit problematic for you longarmer. What most of us (longarmers) do in a case like yours is not quilt in the ditch but a thread or two over to the side of the ditch. Technically when you press seams open there is no ditch (ie a low side of the joining seam). For the most part this will still give the quilt the desired look but if you intend to put it in a show then it could cost you points.
Then there is the option of doing a custom quilting with no ditch work, in which case your pressed open seams will not present a problem.

Most longarm quilters are flexible and strive to give you the look you want without compromising the integrity of the piecing.

I do both. Whatever the seams wants to do is how I press it. Sometimes I don't off set, sometimes I have opposite seams on both ends. I let the seam twist in the middle. I've never had a problem with machine quilting no matter how the seams are pressed. I haven't noticed any needle holes or skipped stitches. I do stitch in the ditch with open seams. No one has ever said I noticed you did SITD with open seams, even in judged shows. I guess it's what you do with what you have the way you want to do it.

OBO are you using a longarm or domestic? the difference in needle size between the two is what the OP was concerned about and what my comment was referring to. The size of a LA needle is much bigger than a DSM and can break the stitching threads used in piecing if longarmed directly on them. With a domestic you can probably get right in the seam line if seams are pressed open and not do any damage. With a longarm there is the potential for breaking the stitching lines so most show quilters I know will stitch a thread or two next to the ditch as there is no ditch when seams are pressed open (ie a low side of the seam) . Breaking the piecing stitching may or may not happen but we will err on the side of caution and not stitch directly over them. In a big national show ditching that is right next to the seam even by a thread could mean the difference between ribboning or not and it won't be noted on the judge’s comments. The judge doesn't care how the seams are pressed either, unless there is obvious shadowing, what they are looking for is if the ditch quilting is "in" the ditch, directly on the seam line and not a thread or two over. In most cases a judge can't tell if the seam was pressed open. The longarmer made that decision based on what he or she saw before loading it on the rack.

If the pattern includes pressing directions, I'll follow those. Many modern patterns will specify pressing open, while more traditional patterns will have pressing to the side. Pressing to the side allows seams to nest; I have fewer unmatched seams when pressing to the side. Sometimes I'll combine both in one kind of unit, for example, pressing the final seam of an hourglass unit open so it lies flatter. I like the sturdier look and feel pressing to the side gives to the back of the quilt top.

It depends on the block that I am making. If there are a lot of intersecting seams in the middle of the block, I will press them in a spiral direction and press open the last two joining seams to decrease the bulk and allow the block to lay right.

I mostly use the press in opposing directions on the strips of blocks for a larger quilt. I like having the ease of construction.

Feline Fanatic has given you some excellent advice from a long arm perspective. I have found that when you have a complex block that has lots of seams coming together in the same spot, first try to "twirl" the seams to lay them flat--if that doesn't work, then I do sometimes press them open.
One problem I run into with SID on long arm is when a seam switches sides it's pressed to--it causes the SID to suddenly jump over unless the quilter is extremely careful.

I generally follow the pattern instructions but if I'm doing something on my own, I press to the side.

Unless following a particular pattern, personal preference.

I always request and even provide very thin thread when I use a LA. Nothing larger then size 60 wt. When I request SITD I've not noticed any thread damage if the seams are pressed open. Not all are pressed open on the same quilt though. I am rarely consistent in which way I press the seams in a block much less the whole quilt. As long as the seams match and the blocks are flat I'm happy.

General rule is press to darker color side. Usually makes for better appearance from right side.

I'm a longarmmer and I prefer the seams pressed to the side. This is mainly for stitch in the ditch work because it's much easier when they are pressed to the side. If they are open, you are only stitching through thread not fabric. If I'm just doing a pantograph or overall, pressing them open is ok.

I found this little video discussing pressing seams...pretty good videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDyE4yH2_-U&t=280s

I have started pressing my seams open. I use a shorter stitch my stitch in the ditch looks good

I do both just depending on the pattern I am using.

I press seams for flying geese and HSTs open, and many other seams as well. I don't like the thickness of layers on one side at a corner.

I usually try to press open unless instructed otherwise. I was told a woman in Idaho who does long arm on Quilts of Valor quilts wants the seams pressed open and Nancy Zieman seems to like that way and I just do it without thinking.

I usually press to the side unless it creates a lot of bulk. If it does create a lot of bulk then I press open. Works good for me to do it that way.