Printable View
Do you press your seams open or to the side? My LQS said press to the dark side. But what do you do when you have 2 1/2" squares that are both light and dark and they are alternating? Then there is light and dark on the same side. The MSQC said to the side in the videos but Leah Day says press open. I know this is a personal preference and there is no right or wrong way but what is your preference and why?
I press to the side for now, but check out this video to see why you might choose a different way.
http://forum.missouriquiltco.com/how...eam-video.html
I have done both and much prefer pressing to the side. There are times where pressing open will reduce bulk, but it took forever and didn't want to stay flat. I'd rather press to the side and plan my quilting around the bulky intersections.
I press to the dark side.....
It depends on the quilt pattern. I making a quilt now with HSTs, and I'm pressing the seams open to reduce bulk. JCY
I think the video totally makes sense. I struggle with this as well. I am doing Leah's building block project so I am going to try with the seams pressed open and see how I like it. And it might just be we need the blocks we are creating speak for themselves
I press to the dark side for the most part, but there are times when you have to press to the light. I don't worry about it too much. I tried pressing open but I wasn't very successful at matching seams.
What is HSTs?Quote:
Originally Posted by JCY
I just started watching her videos about 4 days ago, almost non-stop. I got through about 250 of them and then started up the next day. LOLQuote:
Originally Posted by Kgrammiecaz
HST - half square triangle.
I press to the dark side 90 percent of the time. 5 percent to the light and 5 percent open - in other words, whatever works best for the block. Don't stress over it.
I remember one block where I had 8 points in the middle and had the volcano effect. A teacher at the LQS told me to press the center seam open and it worked.
Thank you Lorie! Very informative and entertaining- those two ladies are a hoot!Quote:
Originally Posted by Hulamoon
I mostly press to the dark side. However that isn't always the way it has to be done. Pressing to the side, makes for a stronger seam, so say the experts. I have on occasion pressed seams open to avoid a lot of bulk. The way the quilt is then quilted would also determine the strength of the seams. IMHO
I generally press to the dark side, but I prefer one side or the other because I think it helps your seams nest together much better. The only time I press my seams open is when I miter my borders -- I find pressing the seams open makes the miter crisper. And for those of you who struggle with that "volcano" effect, try googling "swirl seams." A lady in my quilt guild suggested I try that when I was struggling recently with that same effect when I had a a bunch of HST converging, and it really helps those intersections lay much flatter and makes FMQ over them so much better. It also helps all those points come together much better as well.
To the dark side most of the time.