kellyer21

I'm working on a granny square quilt right now. My blocks are not ending up the same size! I've cut the outer background fabric off leaving a 1/4" seam allowance for joining them together. But if I square them up to all be the same size it will cut off that 1/4"and then the points of the squares on the block wI'll be lost. Ugh, I have so much to learn. Help!

Bree123

I'm not sure there is a good solution to this. I guess it all depends on how many blocks are too small. If it's just a couple & you have or can get more fabric, I'd recommend remaking those blocks so they're the right size. If it's a bunch of them & you can't/won't remaking those blocks, as far as I see it, you have 4 options:
1) Check your seams. You need to measure from the front of the fabric, not the back. Make sure that your pieces are finishing at the proper size. Depending on how many seams you have, the difference between sewing a 1/4" and a scant 1/4 can produce up to a 1/2" difference in a block's size. If that's your culprit, unsew the problem blocks & carefully resew with a scant 1/4" seam. You might try marking the seam allowance & then sewing just to the right of the marked line.
2) Square everything up & lose the points. You'd be amazed how often this happens. It's really not the end of the world. Take it as a learning experience & move on to the next quilt.
3) Fuse or sew more fabric to your blocks to extend them. Depending on the block's fabric, color, # of seams, you could either fuse the whole thing to a larger piece of fabric, or just fuse/sew 1/2" of fabric around the edges. For this technique, you'll want to sew with a generous 1/4" seam (instead of the standard "scant 1/4") so the added fabric is entirely caught up in the seam. It will mean you lose just 1/16" of your points, but will be much less noticeable than losing 1/4" off it.
4) Unsew everything & re-cut based on a smaller size, to scale. Your quilt will finish a bit smaller, but you can always add on an extra border to get to a pre-determined size. It's the most work, but will yield the nicest results if you can't get material to remake the blocks that ended up too small.

Good luck! We've all been there & whatever you decide is the solution for you will be just beautiful. Those imperfections in the quilt will become part of it's story and will add to its richness and beauty. How we handle those challenges is a lesson for the generations as we explain over time to our children & their children about why the blocks have no points. Every quilt carries a story; perhaps this is meant to be part of the story of this quilt.

DOTTYMO

Bree123 has given you a wonderful what to do. I will just repeat. Check seam allowances as this is one of. The main problems with blocks being different sizes.

Tartan

You could sash your blocks and then trim the sashing until they are all the same size. You can also set them wonky and trim to size.

bearisgray

This is such a good tip to remember!

kellyer21

Actually, my plan for the quilt is to use sashing. Normally I would sash by putting the horizontal sashing between the blocks in a row, when that is done I'd put the rows together by adding the vertical sashing. So if I'm going to sash with squaring up as my goal would I sash all four sides of a block, as in a log cabin/square in square sort of way? That sounds like a great solution! I think the sashing will be a bit uneven on the blocks since it'll be trimmed here and there to make them square, but that should be less noticeable than the block design being uneven, right?
Thanks for the ideas! I'll try to be more careful in my seam allowances. I always think that pressing must play a role as well. I watch Jenny Doan and she's never very careful in her pressing...

bearisgray

For accuracy - or getting off course - there are several places to notice:

I start with washing the fabric - so it will be whatever size it is going to be after it is finished - (Some think starch/sizing is necessary - generally, i avoid using it.)

Cutting - are you using the same ruler - and using the same "guideline" for cutting all the time? Some rulers have very thick lines (the old Quilter's Rule rulers with the gridded lines - how was the ruler lined up?)

Seam width - is it consistent? even if it is consistent - is the block ending up being the size intended?

Pressing - little pleats can be pressed in -

Making a test block can make life easier in the long run.

ManiacQuilter2

I was considering making this quilt. You really need to have a consistent seam allowance. Without a photo, can't tell where your problem is. What I would do is take the triangles off and cut them much bigger. Then you can trim them down to the size of the smallest block. Some may float but it is what I did with these block exchanges when the blocks were NOT the same size.

Onebyone

If you have to fudge short of 1/4" to save the points, then I think it is your piecing or cutting that is the problem. I love this pattern for beginners for getting excellent points with no stress. Give this pattern a try, it will restore your confidence. :http://store.atkinsondesigns.com/sto...3&Item_ID=1017

kellyer21

That was one of the ideas I had too. A good one that I will use next time I make a granny! Thanks