Bearisgray probably all of us know exactly what PITA means.

Prism makes sense. I dislike "scant" sewing but typically do it if block has a lot of points. When I first starting quilting 1 1/2 years ago, one of my first quilts was a BOM and all blocks were "scant" directions so I learned pretty quickly but it definitely was PITA.

This is what I do. The end results are what matters, not how you get there.

I still don't understand why patterns call for scant 1/4 inch instead of simply 1/4 inch.

Most of us have gotten a gentle reminder that we are not allowed to use the "problem in that area" acronym. We also very careful about using capital letters.

I am rarely sewing quilts that I don't have to be concerned about my seam as long as I'm consistant. When I sew two pieces together, I need the resulting piece to be a specific length or the next parts won't line up. I also can't stand to sew if I can't actually see the edges of the fabric. The foot on my machine works great for me because I need to have about 1/32" sticking out and that is where I need to be. I've tried using a 1/4" foot and then I needed to have the fabric completely covered by the foot - drove me nuts so I took it off.

If I have a hard time getting a 1/4 seam....how do you expect me to master the scant 1/4 seam?

Prism99 & Dunster explained it well. The thickness of the ironed fold of the seam and the type of thread weight/width used for sewing all play a factor.

Sometimes adjustments just have to be made to get the correct final size so a little pretesting at the begnning of a project will prevent compounded problems with size later and make the project flow together easily.

Didn't know that my acronym wasn't allowed. Sorry, but that's what it is and I'm sticking with it!! :D
I'm all for rules but some quilting rules just make no sense to me and I ignore them.

I sure didn’t know this!!

Prism is right. I used to strive for the perfect 1/4 inch seam, would measure the seam allowance , got specialty feet, etc. Nothing ever fit quite right and I was very frustrated. I watched a Quilty video about a year ago where Marianne Fons demonstrated something and it was a light bulb moment! Take 2 2.5 inch squares and sew them together, then press them as you normally would. Measure the *unit*, not the seam! If it measures 4.5, you are good, if not, adjust your needle a click or 2 until it measures 4.5 inches. The seam measurement is far less important than the resulting block measurement because everything needs to fit together. I now use my regular foot and know where to set my needle for proper sized units. My accuracy went up dramatically and frustration level is near zero.