Question about matching seams...
 

I am about 1/3 of the way through piecing a Disappearing 9 Patch top. When I sewed the original 9 patches together, I pressed the seams to one side. Now that I am mixing up the individual squares, I find that sometimes I must sew two patches together where both are pressesd to the same side. I am having a hard time matching those seams accurately! Does anyone have a 'trick' for matching these seams? Thanks in advance for any advice...

I don't know the answer, but I too have had the same problem. Will be watching this thread.

Probably the easiest solution is to press your seams open. They don't nest together quite as well but a pin usually does the trick.

I usually try to press all of my seams open when possible and if my seam is off (I know they are) I just try to hold the pieces until they are as lined up as possible (some never will be) and just pass it really slowly through my sewing machine. Just remember quilting is fun and if someone wanted perfection hand made is not the way to go. LOL

I always press seams open now on my quilting. Always did it for clothes sewing and don't know why I didn't continue. It is really easy to match seams when they are pressed open.

Back up 6 feet or so. Can you still see it? If you can't, then don't worry about it so much.

I sometimes have that problem too. I really try to plan out how I press my seams so that I get nesting seams. But when that doesn't work out so well, I usually choose to flip one seam in the opposing direction and finger press, then pin. However, after more reading about everyone's preferences regarding pressing the seams to one side or open - I am seriously considering trying out open on my next quilt.

the way i have heard how to fix and get seams to nest is on the 9 patch you iron the seams to go to the left of the line and then next row goes to the right. and then flips when you put the block together the seams will "lock" or "nest" into place.

Another way that is gaining popularity is pressing them open. I used to do this and had great results. but my dear old mentor at quilting lectured me in the not to press open.

This may not be the "correct" way to overcome this issue... but .. I just re-press about 1/2" of the offending seam... nest .... sew and then clip the seam allowance I sewed to allow it to return to original position..I use the pinwheel method to flatten the joined seams of the 4 connecting blocks...this works for me be it wrong or right... :)

Judy in Phx, AZ

that's exactly how I do it

I have changed to pressing seams open also. It has improved my piecing 100%. I stick a pin straight through where the stitching is, 1/4 from the edge. Then making sure the pin is seated perfectly straight (not tipped up or down) in both pieces, I put a pin in the right seam allowance. I sew right up to the pin when stitching so the left half of the seam is anchored. Remove the pin and go til the next one. Not as tedious as it sounds....but if you hate pinning this method is not for you. I get a group of blocks ready then sit in the recliner in front of the TV and pin as large a group as possible. You must treat the blocks gently though or the seams will come unstitched at the edge. As long as it isn't more than 1/4" you are ok. I use a pretty short stitch length when sewing.

sometimes you can just turn one nine patch to make the seams nestle. if not, flip it by hand, sew and then later press it down again the new way!

This is what I do too. I love the nesting effect of alternate seams. Also, pressed-to-the-side seams seem less likely to have batting fuzz through them as time goes by.

Alison

Yeah, me too. Nothing wrong with "flipping" the seam to make it nest.

I don't do a lot od seam pressing until assembling the blocks and then put them whichever way they work. My goal is to sew a top with all the seams correct. Haven't accomplished it yet!

Lol, that is my general philosophy as well :) Although, I was always told to press to one side I may have to try open.

You could try pinning the seams exactly in the stitching of the two pieces, then sew up to the pin as close as possible before pulling it out. I works in a pinch when repressing the seam the other way will cause problems on the next row.

I press almost all of my seams open for that very reason. I find it's so much easier to match seams and I never get a tuck at the intersection.

Perfect! Thanks...this is what I'm going with! (I really am NOT a perfectionist...not even close. I just didn't want to think I missing something obvious!)

Good explanation. Sometimes I will also take the time to reinforce the stitching where I've clipped the seam allowance.

I always press my seams open & this is the reason why. I wish I had a fix for you, but I just don't. Sorry...

I have that same issue. My problem is that I hand piece and hand quilt. I was told NOT to press the seams open because hand pieced don't hold to tension bein placed on them. Any hand quilters who press the seams open? It would certainly make matching seams much easier.

I make a small clip in one of the seams about 1" down and then press this to the other side. I don't like to press seams open as I do a lot of stitching in the ditch and if the seam is pressed open, you are just quilting the threads not the fabric.

I saw this trick on a show once.
If a seam will not line up right take a piece of 1/2 in scotch tape and with both fabric seams in alignment tape togather then fold in half and sew. You have a perfect 1/4 in seam and your seams are in alignment.

Kathy... you do not know how happy this makes me to hear :)

PS we returned from Texas on Tuesday ...lovely visit with family.....very high humidity....can home to 112 degree Dry Heat... but still hot.
Judy in Phx, AZ

I was always told not to press seams open when making a quilt. I was told the seams are not as strong when pressed open. So, I never even tried it. For those of you who do press seams open, have you had any issues with quilts that ar used and washed a lot?

Right now I'm having a similar problem with a D4P, and whenever I can, I switch one of the seams back the other way so it will nest. It's annoying to have to do this, but usually a little pressing stick is all that's needed. So far I haven't found any on a D4P that couldn't be done this way. On the D9P there may be a difference. If you can work out where the problem is going to occur, maybe you can decide to just press just those seams open.

I have better luck with nesting seams because I avoid pinning whenever I can - just me. Whether to press open or not also depends on what you're planning to do with the quilt. If it's going to get a lot of use and washing, open seams are not as strong because there's nothing between the two pieces except the thread.

However, Bonnie Hunter, who makes lots of strip pieced quilts, says on Quiltville somewhere that she presses hers open. That's enough of a reason to do it that way, as far as I'm concerned. I love her work!

I press all my seams open, and have never had a problem with wear and tear. Of course, I use a very short stitch while piecing, and I'm careful to press the seam closed (to bury the stitch), and then press them open. When doing stitch-in-the-ditch, I will also fortify with a stitch on one or the other side, or both, or some echo stitching. Just my way. A little extra quilting and pinning is worth it to me to have my points line up. To each her/his own!

Thanks for the tip Judy, we all seem to have the same problem. I will try your fix on my next quilt. Mary

When I did my DP9 there were no seams to match. That's the beauty of the DP9 for me. As for the rows, I always press in alternating directions. That way the rows nest into each other.

Open seam presser here too. So much easier and no fold over bulk.

I was told not to press seams open when making a quilt. They said it's stronger to press them to one side. Not sure which way is correct now, lol

That does make to easier but be sure to use good thread. The thread will have to take the full stress of holding the entire quilt together.

I haven't done the D9P, but imagine lots of seams intersecting. I learned never, ever to press open on quilts;that's for clothing. BUT, reading this Board, it seems many do press open adn don't have trouble. Recently my LQS offered a class that had us making a bazillion (not really, but seemed like it) pinwheels. All stitched to one another. Mega seam time, so I did press the seams open between the rows to help it lay flat. Rules were made to be broken, right?

Very good information here.

I agree and do the same. I was told from day one in learning quilting that to open the seams weakens the quilt at those seams and could cause them to come apart over time.
But, as always, we do what we think is best for us...it is our creation after all:)

I just finished a full DP9 and also had no seams to match, and did the same things with the rows.

I, too, iron it the right way so it nests, and then clip it. It shouldn't make a whole lot of difference, but it does. I prefer to iron the seams to the side. I learned that way, because of polyester batting working its way through the seam line. However, I use mostly cotton batting now, so could press them open. I might have to have a new learning curve!

I am going to try pressing my seams open next. I started out that way and was told it was wrong. But I see alot of you do it.