Jelly rolls inconsistent?

This has probably been discussed before, but when I tried to search for info, I got hundreds of threads that didn't actually relate. So, if this is redundant, my apologies.

I'm in the beginning stages of a 3 Dudes quilt. The one where you do the strip sets, cut them into squares and lay pairs of the squares at right angles, sew all around the square and then cut in an X.

I have been religious about seams. This is my first precuts quilt, and I have to admit the pinked edges are not a lot of fun. But, I've been very, very careful. Then, I was careful about pressing. Measured several of the strip sets and came up with an 8.5 inch measurement, which seemed right to me, mathematically. BUT...now that they're all cut, I find that I'm getting many squares that are significantly wider than that. I'm going to have to trim them to size, which is aggravating, but certainly doable. That's going to make it impossible to match up the seams later on, but so be it. I've read where several people have said that seam matching on this quilt is a bear, if not downright impossible.

So, my question is...are precuts (specifically jellyrolls) not reliable? Should I have measured every strip to make sure it truly was 2.5 inches? Should I have trimmed them to ensure uniform width, eliminating the pinked edges, but reducing the overall size just a bit???? I'm so frustrated about being super careful and still having a bit of a mess on my hands.

Is this normal for jellyrolls?

I'm one of those that had trouble with this pattern. I put it away. I'm pretty positive my roll was cut correctly. If I ever finish it I'm not going to bother to much about matching. To stressful. lol

Never worked with Jelly Rolls before but I would be curious to know (if the blocks that aren't correct) come from the middle portion of the jelly roll strip. Kimberly Jolly from the Fat Quarter shop, discusses that in some of her tutorials and cuts her strips so the waste is in the middle portion of the strip.

I would be interested to see what anyone else has to contribute to this thread.

With long strip sets you can get bowing in the middle which makes them wider also in pressing you may smush out or stretch the fabric and not realize it. I now cut all my strips in half and make sure I flip the strips and start at the opposite end from where I started to minimize offsets caused by sewing all the strips from the same direction.

This seems to be a problem with pre-cuts in general. There will be those that never have had a problem but I can say from personal experience that not all pre-cuts are cut at the right size. Just being off a little will cause big problems. I no longer buy pre-cuts but still have several that I bought that I will check before using.

Last pack of jelly roll I got had several pieces that weren't anywhere near 2 1/2". While it helps with initial cutting time. It was a chore with all of the 2 1/2" squares that I had, that weren't exactly right on the pinked sides.

Katrina

My sister had a roll from one of the companies that sells batiks in rolls and they were way off. I have a moda jelly roll that has a big crook in the middle of most of the strips. I quit buying precuts.

Currently doing a tube quilt.

SAME PROBLEM when I did my first 2 sample blocks!

Decided to continue to sew and cut and just make sure my triangles and blocks were the correct sizes before I pieced everything together.

I have 2 more jelly rolls to finish on another quilt -- had planned to do a fence rail with them. Then, I think I'm done with jelly rolls!

When I made the 3 Dudes quilt, I did not use JRs, but cut my own fabric. I did not sew in the long, 42" strips, but cut them in half for better control. Also, it definitely requires a scant 1/4" consistent seam. I sewed 3 strips together, rather than 4, so my blocks were 6.5" square. Remember Jenny says to sew in opposite directions when sewing the strips together. I pressed seams open to reduce bulk where the points merge.Attachment 106550 This is my one & only 3 Dudes quilt, which is crib size.

Thanks, ladies. Woo, boy! I've got drawers full of jellyrolls. I had been away from quilting since before precuts, and when I jumped back in the pool, I started buying jellyrolls and charmpacks like there was no tomorrow. But, I waited at least a year or more before I started using them. Oh well...I'll just have to find designs where there's a little wiggle room. I've decided to sash my 3 dudes quilt. I had bought enough extra yardage to do two borders. I'll just turn one piece of yardage into sashing and add a single border at the end. It'll be fine. The sashing will bring the eye away from all the mismatched seams I would otherwise have. Live and learn.

I made a 3 Dudes quilt with Halloween fabric, and did not bother trying to match the seams. It comes out so busy, I don't think most people would even notice. But if it does bother you, I've seen where someone sashed each block which looks pretty nice and eliminates the seam matching in general. I was going to do this on one of my future quilts, but I think I will go with the Fence Rail with Diamonds instead. I bought a large bundle of 5" squares on eBay once, and they had all been cut with a machine. The edges were pinked, but it was with those large points. Like you would do with dress making shears. I lost a lot squaring those up after I made my half square triangles. I've made several quilts with the jelly roll strips, and haven't had too many problems with them. I do see a good point in cutting them in half though, just to get rid of that nasty crease in the middle.

Hello Everyone, I just started making quilts a year ago and started with jelly rolls ,I always found them to be inconsistent in length and width but not too bad .the only thing that bothers me is having to trim from center to get it even.