My new approach is to cut my fabric a scooch bigger to overcome the use of a scant seam.

I think it has less to do with perfection and more to do with the complexity of the blocks. Especially for those of us who like minis...on larger blocks you have much more wiggle room. With tiny blocks, precision is really important. Something as small as the way the seam is pressed is enough to make it look wonky, believe it or not. Scant seams also help your blocks lay flat where there are a lot of intersecting pieces.

Sometimes it makes a difference what thread you are using whether you get a good 1/4" seam or not. The heavier the thread, the more space it takes up on the fabric from both pieces and your block will end up shy of the desired size. The needle size van also affect it. If you are using a 40 or 50 wt thread on top, you definitely want to move your needle to the right just one notch and check your seam, adjusting more if necessary. If your foot or throat plate do not have a wide slot in them, be very careful when bringing your needle to a new position.

I am with you on this one! LOL :-)

I agree! Be real!

Are we quilting for others or ourselves? I am fairly new at quilting but have been sewing for over 50 yrs. I do it to relax and hopefully leave some of myself behind. Do not get uptight about perfection. There that is my lecture for the day. Excuse me while I laugh at myself for being serious.

I agree! If I look at a pattern and it says to use a "scant 1/4", I put it back and don't buy it. I do try to get an accurate 1/4" seam, but my scant may not be your scant. I think they should try to resize the block so you can stitch it and then cut it down, instead of relying on the scant stuff.

I try to stay consistant with the 1/4. that way everything comes out right and matches up.

what is wrong with just 1/4??? If there is one thing I dislike it is the "scant" even if I can adjust my needle.

There's nothing wrong with it if your block comes out the size you want, without any triangle points cut off.