something to ponder.....
 

Good Morning ladies! (and Gents)!

i primarily rag quilt. that is because trying to keep that infamous 1/4 inch seem is very stressful to me and im sure for alot of others. so here's something to ponder...why not 1/2 inch seems which to me, seems so much easier. now i know what the problem is there....bulk. so why not trim that after you sew? just a little waste but it is so much easier. alot of times you can use the edge of your presser foot to get that 1/2 inch. what are thoughts on this?


-Loretta

On my Janome, I have a 1/4" foot with a lip on the right side. It is very easy to maintain the 1/4" with this foot. I know they make this same style foot for a variety of machines so you may want to check on that. However, with rag quilts, I think you're suppose to do 1/2" or larger aren't you?

I'm with you. I use the same blocks but take a 1/2" seam. It is easier to press the seams open (which reduces bluk). I adjust the sashing and borders to make the same size quilt. I really have trouble with the 1/4" seam and keeping all my blocks the same size! i just ordered a 1/4" presser foot. Maybe that will help. We'll see!

yes, i have that foot. but still dont get that "perfect" 1/4 inch seam allowance. maybe it's just me...i don't know.

and yes, with rag quilting, you take 1/2 seam allowance.

so, you have to look at the instructions for a block and add that extra 1/4 inch to make it 1/2 right? how do you do this?

I'm with Lorettan-how would you do this? If you didn't add something when you cut, the blocks would come out smaller than the pattern calls for. I like the idea of a 1/2" seam. I think it would be better for a lot of us (me included) and a lot easier. I know a lot of times I have to rip out a seam because my 1/4" wasn't 1/4"....

i actually started paper pieceing because of this. it was just too stressful. there's got to be a possible way to add this addtional 1/4 inch to the already 1/4 inch that is on these patterns.

of course, one way would be to make templates for each piece of a block and add your 1/2 inch seams...would be extra work though. just a thought

My thought is it is going to take a lot more fabric to do 1/2 inch seams. Just for a simple 12 inch 9 patch you need 13.5 inches of fabric if you use quarter inch seams and 15 inches of fabric if you use 1/2 inch seams. And that's just the width down the selvedge difference. You'll also get fewer squares across a strip too. Multiply that by the number of blocks you need and it'll really start to add up. I definitely don't want to spend $10 bucks a yard for extra fabric for the inside of a quilt!

The solution is to get a quarter inch foot or use some method of marking the quarter inch on your machine and work on getting a consistent seam allowance.

I have the 1/4 foot as well... I just need to go slower and pay more attention if I need and exact seam...

Larger seams add bulk to the the top and can make it not lie as flat. But, you are allowed to make your own rules!

I wouldn't think it would be that hard to adjust. Instead of adding 1/2" you would add 1". For example, instead of a 2 1/2" square it would be 3 1/2" square. You do have to factor in the extra yardage for these blocks. Perhaps the extra fabric would offset the 1/4" seam dilemma.

the answer is that of course, it is your quilt and your hobby and if you want to do it that way you can... but just remember.... the 1/4" is supposed to LEAVE the pc the correct size and shape...leaving the 1/4" inside the seam is just a byproduct of that... so if you're gonna make 1/2" seams, just remember they have to be nice 1/2" seams as straight and accurate as you can make them...the quilt pc still has to be the right shape when you get done...... it sounds like a fine solution as long as you keep the 1/2" straight...

Does your machine let you move the needle position to the left or right? To get my 1/4" seam, I just line the fabric up with the side of my walking foot, then move the needle to the right until it is the perfect scant 1/4". It works for me.

When I first started I did not pay attention to the 1/4 inch rule just used the edge of my foot but if you use 1/2 or 1/4 you have to be consistent or it just doesn't fit in the end. I finally learned that I could move my needle over so 1/4 inch works now using the edge of my regular foot as a guide.

I think anything that gets you quilting is great. Just creating is fun. My 23 yr DD has made only a few block quilts and the last one even with putting sashing between the rows because they wouldn't meet I still had to take some of them apart to make it work. I said not a word to her and got it ready for it to be quilted. We SITD some of it and then tied the rest. When she said isn't this enough ties I told her yes if she wanted to quilt more since it was for a baby it needed a lot. That kept her going. It turned out really great and her friend loved it and only her and I saw the flaws. I told her that's the way it works. The other day she came over to the house and brought with her a lap size quilt top and just about all of the corners met and the ones that were off weren't off by much. I didn't point them out to her. I told her the truth. That I was so proud of what she had done and it was really pretty. Now she wants to make it bigger and make more for gifts for Christmas presents. Especially if you are doing block quilts the seem size doesn't really matter that much. I'm doing alot of civil war and that would be hard to go back and trim later but the more you do the better you get at it. When I started out I made block quilts and I only knew the seem that was along the edge of the presser foot. You can go to Walmarts or Joanns and get a magnetic seem guide that will work on any machine (even computerized ones) to help you keep your seems straight. It is the first thing that I tell someone one when I teach them to sew anything. Good luck and quilt; design and enjoy the whole process. Don't worry about quilt police. The only police that I worry about are the ones that can give me a ticket or arrest me.

As i read this post and all the replies, the question that comes to mind is--if you can't get a good 1/4 inch seam, how are you going to get 1/2 inch? It seems like a lot of trouble when you have to cut all the pieces bigger to accommodate the 1/2 inch seam. Of course it is your quilt and your rules, JMHO. I think you should cut 3 pieces of fabric 2 1/2 inches wide and sew them together. They should measure 6 inches after pressing. If they don't, you need to adjust your needle position.
Sue

I don't have a problem with 1/4 inch seams, but I see no reason to not use 1/2 inch seams if that is easier and you are consistant throught the quilt.

I think this is my problem--I lose concentration and off I go. I've just gotten so used to ripping out stuff. You'd think after sewing for over 50 years I'd get it right one of these days!

I really struggled with 1/4 " seams for the longest time. I just couldn't keep them consistent.
I went to the pharmacy and bought some thick mole skin sheets (at least 1/4" thick this stuff must be...). I used graph paper to find the 1/4" mark from my furthest right needle placement, and I stuck a cut piece of mole skin on that line (I used the outside edge with a nice straight cut towards the needle side). When I butt my fabric to be pieced up against it, it has a nice little quide to keep me from wiggling my stitching line.
This is really the only reason I kept trying to piece quilts. Otherwise, I think I would have given up.

Don't forget, you have to add a whole inch and not just a half inch to come out the same size block. Remember, you add half and inch all around to allow for the 1/4 inch seams. (12 1/2 inch blocks make 12 inch blocks finished as stated above)

I don't understand how it is easier to get a perfect half than a perfect quarter. my quarter is off sometimes too, but I don't think I could get a perfect half. It's not the seam allowance that needs to be perfect but rather the block itself, so trimming the seam allowance won't fix that

I have a basic sears machine, nothing fancy. I line up my fabric against my pressure foot. Makes a quarter inch seam.

Quarter inch or half inch seam you still have to sew it accurate or your block won't be the right size.

I see nothing wrong with 1/2 seams. If you can figure out the math to make it work then go for it. There is nothing written in stone about 1/4 in seams. No quilt police here. If it makes the piecing process better for you then do it.

Loretta, i did just that when i first started quilting and it works out great if your fabric isn't expensive and you really don't care whether you are wasting but if doing a big project it will add up. Now that being said...my middle name is ShortCut, if there is a short i will find it but sometimes you really need to analyze. In my case I had to force myself to learn that pesty scant 1/4, it really does help to get a 1/4 foot for your sewing machine and practice.

My seventy year old Singer only does straight stitch. I put layers of plastic tape as a 1/4 inch seam guide. 100% improvement. The thing is that any machine that does zigzag has all those extra gears and wiggles. For the first time in nearly 40 years of sewing my 1/4 inch seams are accurate and consistent.

On my Bernina I can move my needle position to sew a 1/4 inch seam, this way I can keep the fabric lined up with the edge of my presser foot. 1/4 inch seams are not a problem for me.
I'm unable to grasp why 1/4 inch seams are such a problem.(?)

Hi, Lorettan,

Ya know, I think that we tend to put a LOT of undue pressure on ourselves. I have trouble with the 1/4 inch seam too, and so some of my blocks would be ok and some would just be nightmares to match up and seam that last row. Was it my cutting, I wondered...So I tried to be more consistent in my cutting. And I dug out my 1/4 inch foot.

I bet that if you looked really closely at those heirloom quilts we all rave over, the ones that our grandmothers and great-grandmothers made, our accuracy would beat the pants off of theirs. They quilted out of necessity. Now we quilt for fun and beat ourselves up if it isn't perfect. Bottom line, as my husband keeps reminding me, is that if you are having fun, that's what counts. 100 years from now, nobody is going to stand up and should, "But Lorettan couldn't sew a straight 1/4 inch seam!"

Just keep sewing. Some days everything will come out beautifully, and some days you'll wonder why in the WORLD you took up sewing. Then grin and pick up another one of those hateful triangles!

I solved one of my problems...my Bernina -second click on zig zag does a nice stitch-keeps the 1/4 inch sewing more true & if I have to rip-it, it is so much easier to pick the thread & cut

If we go to 1/2 inch it still has to be accurate. They do have rulers that add a 1/4 inch seam that could be used on a piece that has the seam allowance figured in. I have a friend that sews "flat out"...really fast but I find I do best when I go rather slow and feed my piece in evenly so that I don't veer at the end. That's where I have had the most problems. As for keeping the block square, I'm finding how I press makes all the world of difference. Still working on that one!

If you can follow the 1/2" seam mark on your stitch plate easier than trying for a 1/4" seam allowance, then go for it.

Some additional thoughts ...

Most patterns and templates are designed for 1/4" seam allowances. Some designs would be hard to adjust from 1/4" to 1/2" seam allowances. If you stick to very simple quilt designs, then this should not be an issue, but even with simpler designs it would be best to mark all the changes on a printout of the pattern.

Those larger 1/2" seam allowances might overlap in a medium to complex 6" block. If so, then you would have the additional work of trimming those seam allowances.

You would be placing more fabric into your quilt. This would result in higher costs to yourself plus a warmer quilt. The latter might be a bonus in colder areas, but detrimental in warmer climes.

The front of my Bernina stitch plate and presser feet have 1/4" marks (and sometimes 1/8"), which help me align my fabric. I did not discover this until I had the machine for a while. Depending on your machine, it might be easier to get that "scant 1/4" seam allowance than one might think.

I used to move my needle. Then I got the Pfaff Creative Sensation for Christmas - which comes with a 1/4 inch foot. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. Should have bought one years ago. I'm amazed at the difference it makes. I can't describe in words how much better it is than moving the needle. It just IS!

A quilt with 1/2 inch seams will be a lot heavier. There will be bigger 'humps' to sew through when you are quilting. This will be a bigger problem if you're a hand quilter than if you're a machine quilter, but it is something to think about.

Why would anything but the size of a quilt change because you didn't make 1/4" seam? Why would it be "easier" as so many of you have said? What would make the 1/2" seam more accurate than a 1/4" seam? Wouldn't you till have to rip out a 1/2" seam because it wasn't 1/2"?

Before I knew about the 1/4" seam requirement, I just used the edge of my regular sewing foot. Everything must have been smaller, but if you do it all that way, what is the harm? I don't ever care about the size of a quilt to be exact. I'll just add more sashing if I do.

as long as your seams are consistent I don't see where it maters if it's 1/2 or 1/4 inch. I have marked both in different colors on the machine and table. however I don't make hierloom quilts. I make good everyday quilts for the fun and the warmth of them!

I would have just as much trouble getting a perfect half inch seam as quarter inch so the problem is being consistent. As long as you have to keep it the same all the time, how does it matter if you are sewing a quarter, half or inch seam? Once you learn to make a seam consistently the same, I don't get why it matters what size the seam is. Of course I do understand about when you have the set foot, as in the quarter inch foot. But anyone who can sew a straight and consistent seam of any size without one, is way ahead of me. LOL

I am like you I cannot use 1/4 inch seams so I always use 3/8 not quite a 1/2 but big enough to for me.

When i took sewing in school i was taught to make a 1/2 inch seam, my sewing teacher would be turning in her grave (LOL),

A person after my own heart. If you keep all seams equal when you make your pattern, you can trim it down to 1/4 inch before you set the seam. I do a lot of pattern making, so can my my seam allowance however large I want.