DogHouseMom

Precision ... and I owe it all to Sally Collins.

Look into her book "Mastering Precision Piecing", there is also a DVD. Some of her tips helped me tremendously.

Misty's Mom

My thoughts exactly. If I'm happy with it, that's enough.

cathyvv

Best advice - there are lots of options for this particular topic, but here are the ones that finally put me at ease about my piecing and quilting.

* Don't watch the needle go up and down when you sew. The needle doesn't go left or right, only up or down.

* When I stopped watching the needle 'up/down' and started paying more attention to guiding the fabric under the needle accurately, my piecing got much, much better.

Over time, I've also recognized my strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes, general ability and, best of all, my creativity - in other words, I found my 'style'. That has allowed me to have fun with quilting, and that is what it's really all about!

Kehoeta

I only work on projects I love. Then, I am willing to take the time to be precise and to sew accurately. But challenging myself, trying things out side of my comfort zone have made me a better sewer.

Skittl1321

Practice. (And learn from the mistakes you make. Repeatedly doing the same thing over and over doesn't really help.)


Oh- and sometimes having the right tool for the job really does make the difference. I thought I could like up a seam on my presser foot, but buying the quarter inch seam foot made a huge difference. I also though I'd be fine to quilt with the darning foot that came with my machine, but I find some quilting needs the open foot, others the closed foot.

HouseDragon

Precision cutting is the start of success ... practicing the quarter-inch seam until it's "automatic" ... stopping when I get tired.

Learned that last one after waaaaay too many times frogging that "one last seam".

peaceandjoy

Don't rush, enjoy the process, and be proud of your success - even if it's not perfect!

IrishNY

I try to do each part as precisely as I can. Cutting, piecing, pressing, etc. If I do each step well, the final product looks as good as I hoped for. I won't be entering my quilts in any shows but I want them to be done to a standard that means I could if I wanted to. The recipient deserves my very best. That means success to me.

lynnie

Keep the cat out of the sewing room, no matter how much he/she cries to be w/you. Makes life easier

justflyingin

Don't sew when you are feeling impatient/unhappy. Any problems you have will be magnified beyond what they are if you were in a better mood.