What's the best way to hand sew round squares?
 

If sewing around a grid of patchwork squares on a big (6' square) quilt, do you just sew straight across from one side to the other, or is it best to change direction to reduce the chances of the threads snapping or pulling out? If changing direction, how do you avoid getting isolated bits between squares? Will a simple zig-zag do, or is that changing direction too often?

Some ideas:[ATTACH=CONFIG]612071[/ATTACH]Does anyone have some expert advice?

No experts here. Some may have some experience with what you want to know. They should be along shortly.

Are you referring to quilting this quilt? How large are the squares? You'll first want to decide on a quilting plan, whether outline (that's 1/4" from the seams), in the ditch, or some other design. If you quilt in a hoop, you'll probably quilt all of that area so as to minimize how often you have to re-position the hoop.

Hi Lisa,

Yes, I've sewn the patches together and now I need to quilt them to the wadding and backing. I (hand) sewed all the patches together in a zig-zag because I found it maximised the number I could join with one thread and made it possible to line up every single corner neatly, but that's a different kettle of fish from quilting it. I wonder if a zig-zag quilted quilt would try to sit with the threads straight whenever they got pulled by it's movement, and tug on the zig-zags?

I wasn't intending to use a hoop, but I haven't attempted this exercise before, and am open to suggestion as to whether it is a good idea? I'm OK at hand sewing generally and do a lot of it, but don't get on well with embroidery, so am instinctively hoop-averse. I've quilted a polyester quilt with no hoop before, but that was much stiffer than cotton (it was rubbish polyester, I now realise!)

The quilt is 6 foot by 6 foot (180cm) and the patches are 4 inch squares. I definitely want to stitch in the ditch around all the patches along the seams, I've ironed the flaps to one side in preparation.

If you're planning to stitch in the ditch around the patches, I don't understand the reference to zig zag stitching. Are you possibly talking about using a zig zag stitch to baste the quilt before quilting?

Would it be possible for you to post some photos? Maybe that would help me understand what you're asking.

I did a diagram on the previous page! What I mean is, if you are sewing around squares, you have to sew in a grid. I could either sew in straight lines across the quilt, from one side to the other, and then do the same for the other direction, which would achieve sewing around all the squares in the obvious way. Or I could change direction around the squares, for example if I changed direction at at every square's corner, alternating right and left I would be sewing in a zig-zag! I read that you were supposed to not quilt all in the same direction, but perhaps I am over thinking things :)

I guess it depends on whether or not you quilt with a hoop. If you use a hoop, you can proceed in whatever way seems quickest to you -- either doing one square at a time, which would mean changing directions, or traveling in a straight line from square to square within the hoop. But I think you'd want to finish the area in the hoop before repositioning the hoop, or you'll be spending quite a bit of time repositioning. Finishing the area in the hoop would keep you from going in a straight line for very long.

I've never quilted without a hoop, but if you went that route, you could go in a straight line for as long as your thread lasted. I wouldn't think this would be a problem unless your thread lengths are very long and/or your stitches are very large. But the zig zag idea sounds fine, too.