A question for Paper Piecers
 

How do you get the paper off the back? It is a miserable job. But somebody has to do it. Right?

It is JN Snowflake. So lots of skinny angular pieces. At this point I'm tempted to just leave it on.

It will take forever to get all the little bits from it.

I'm totally turned off of PPing because of the paper removal process.

Did you shorten your stitch length? Fold the paper on the sewing line to crease it to see if that will help.

Have you tried folding the paper on the seam line and stitching right next to it?

Run the tip of a pin along the stitching line with a bit of pressure, then fold on that stitch line and gently pull...should come free easier.

Yes, it's a pain, but paper piecing allows you to piece some pretty intricate patterns. You can remove the paper when watching TV which makes it seem less of a chore. Set aside some time, turn on the TV, and keep some needle-nose tweezers handy for the tough spots.

i use the fold back method so that i don't have to remove the paper later

I will definitely explore that method if I ever get tempted to do another PP project. This is gorgeous. But oh so frustrating.

Some people bend the paper back on the sew line before they sew. (To me that is too much work.)
Some people use a spray bottle with water and dampen the paper. I find that a bit messy (tried it).

As already stated - having a short stitch length helps. I run the back of the seam ripper along the sew line and do my paper removal while watching TV.

Great tips already. JN patterns come with the papers already and it is a light weight newsprint type paper. You don't have to remove every single tiny minuscule scrap of paper. A few tiny pieces left in the seam allowances won't hurt a thing and after a wash or two it will be completely disintegrated. I don't worry about getting every last tiny bit out, especially the bits that get encased in the seam allowances in the intersections.

This is a wallhanging. So it will never get washed.

I'll try running the back of the seam ripper along the stitching lines and get some pliers out.

I do have a quilt bee to go to in a week or so. Maybe I'll work on it there. Perhaps I'll get some help. Although it does make quite a mess. I could sit and chat while doing it.