I'm getting discouraged! I have been working on the border of the quilt below. Yes, it's the same baby clothes quilt I started ages ago. I had to get more clothing from the little girl's mother for border fabric (the "main" border will be scrappy/piano key.) This meant a lot of stabilizing of the knit fabric!! So, slow going.

So, here is my problem. I made a foundation strip of muslin for the border. I have my "piano keys" cut. My main issue is that when sewing my pieces onto the muslin strip, I can't see the guides that keep my stitching straight! So, there has been quite a bit of ripping. I guess maybe I should get a ruler and mark EVERY strip back at 1/4"? I suppose that's what I should do until I can sew straight, but ugh...

I guess I just needed to vent frustrations!

Also frustrated that my trusty seam ripper is missing!! Now I know it to be my most used tool. Fortunately I have some tiny, very sharp scissors, but I hope the ripper turns up! I may have to make it into a necklace! Lol.

Instead of using the machine bed for your guiding line, how about marking your presser foot for 1/4" seam? Line up that mark with the edges of your strips when you sew. That would keep your sewing lines straight.

p.s. That is a beautiful quilt top!

You can take a stack of Post-it notes and stick them to your machine bed so that when the fabric is under your presser foot, it will lay at precisely 1/4". Your fabric feeds right next to the Post-it notes and they keep you feeding in a straight line.

I used to do this a lot. I think a little pile of about 20 post-its works fine.

Would it be easier to do the border without a foundation? I recently did a top with a piano key type border and I just sewed the pieces together.

I cannot figure out why you can't sew 1/4" seam on the foundation. I need a picture. That's just how my brain works. LOL. I know someone here has the solution for you.

The only reason I can think of is if her marker for 1/4" seams is on her machine bed. Because then it would be covered up by the foundation.

Have you throught about getting 1/4 foot for your machine. They work great. they have them for most machine

I recently did a piano key border with out a foundation. After you finish sew around the whole quilt about an eighth to a fourth of an inch in. This will keep all the seams from coming apart as you handle the quilt top.

That is so Beautiful and very cute!!! :mrgreen: :XD: :thumbup:

I haven't pieced without a 1/4" since I started quilting. I guess I forgot about looking at the faceplate markings.