I love pressing open because everything lies flatter and it's easier for me to match up seams. When I press to one side I have trouble with getting an extra tiny fold that makes things come out slightly undersized. I also never really got the hang of the nesting thing and couldn't get my seams to match up that way. Lastly, when pressing to the side I would inevitably end up having to match up at least a few that were pressed in the same direction, for whatever reason (poor planning on my part, etc). Anyway, I finally decided to just shorten my stitch length and press open. The final result for me was well worth the extra time.

For me, it depends on the pattern and how I plan to quilt it. The more seams come together, the more likely I am to press open. If I want to ditch-quilt I press to the side.
Leah Day presses all of her seams open.

I press open for something with a lot of seams - like a pinwheel. But for a nine or four patch, I tend to press to one side. I do believe that it can be easier to quilt on the DSM when seams are open but it takes forever to press them all that way.

I learned about a neat gadget call the Strip Stick www.thestripstick.com when I took a class at Houston last year on precision piecing...for times when pressing seams open it is very helpful, making it much easier and faster(and fewer burned fingers!)

When sewing long seams, the open pressing takes forever. I press seams to one side, I try to just quilt around the intersections and not through them.
I think it is always best to do whatever works for you. Every one has their opinions.

Generally, I think it is a matter of personal preference. I like to press to the side. When I have repaired older quilts, it is easier to repair with the little bit of fabric underneath a popped seam. The only time I consistently press open is on the backing when I have to piece it, I use a one inch seam allowance, then cut off the selvedges and press open.

Isn't it wonderful that we can try each way and then use what works best for us. Guess that is why I like quilting -- there isn't a right way or a wrong way.

I was told by a veteran long arm quilter that it can cause the seam thread to break if you are doing custom work and stitching in the ditch. Has anyone else experienced this? I am also a long arm quilter but the only quilts I have done with pressed open seams were edge to edge patterns. May have to do a test patch when I get time.

I would get so confused about pressing seams open so I just pressed to the dark side. Once in a while I would press open by accident. Then you go back and check the instructions. that calls for frustration. Oh well!

totally agree