this was the hint I got when I started strip pieceing. and I LOVE strip piecing..........................no trouble with bowing....

Lots of good info!

I'm pretty sure that pressing is your culprit. As quiltstrings mentioned - press your strips with them lying vertically on the ironing board. You may even want to draw a straight line on the board cover to keep you focused. Remember to set your seams first - press them the way that they were sewn - and then press the seam allowance in the direction you want them. Even lengthwise strips have a tendency to "rainbow" if you aren't paying attention. Alternating the direction of your strips will help as well. I've been through this- and having to re-square constantly while cutting segments - but I don't anymore!

I find when cutting the strips I have to even them up after every two or three cuts, That helps along with the alternate sewing directions. Jan gave a very good tip about pressing with the point of the iron. Laying the pieces vertically is a must do also.

When cutting strips, or really almost anything, I start with tearing the fabric to find the straight grain. That way there is no question but that I'm cutting on the lengthwise grain. It helps. You'd be surprised, or perhaps appalled is a better word, at some of the truly crooked grains I've found, even in the expensive fabrics! I always get an extra 1/4 yard because I know I'm going to be tearing some off. And if I have to "even them up" after several cuts, I tear the fabric again, to find the straight grain. Some people would call this wasteful. I consider it less wasteful than ending up with a whole bunch of crooked strips I can't use. And I don't have a bowing problem with strip piecing either, I think partly because my strips are so straight. I also sew each strip from the opposite end, of course, and I'm sure that helps.

I hope you get your problem solved! Strip piecing is such a great way to make quilts!

Hope your project turned out :). I've been working on a strip pattern using a precut jelly roll and I did a little experimenting to find the best method to joining several strips all together. First I alternated ends and had good results - next tried sewing strips in twos and then joining with so-so results, last tried starting the sewing all at one end and had terrible results. As everyone here has already mentioned alternating seems to be the best method.

Now I'm trying to adjust where I start placing the alternate strip ends so that I can get as much as I can from the strip fabric produced. I'm trying not to have so much waste on the ends when I cut crosswise.