First quilt, advice need please.

[bec]

You are doing just fine! It looks like you've already gotten tons of great advice. Can't wait to see the finished product!

[jfleckal]

One thing I found is that it works best to test the grain of the charm squares. They seem to be in the stack any which way and my first attempt was a little bumpy and uneven. I think the grain of the fabric made a difference.

[okbrawd]

How do I do that?

One thing I found is that it works best to test the grain of the charm squares. They seem to be in the stack any which way and my first attempt was a little bumpy and uneven. I think the grain of the fabric made a difference.

[bec]

How do I do that?

To test the grain, tug gently on opposite sides of a charm square. Notice if it feels taught or has some give to it. You can compare by tugging gently on the other two sides of the square. The side that feels taught is the straight of grain. The side that has a little give (or stretchiness) is the cross grain. Just for your information, the bias is from corner to corner and it has lots of stretch.

Personally, I closely watched how the straight of grain laid on one of the baby quilts that I made and not the other and I did not see any difference. Just make sure you are not stretching the fabric as you sew.

Patrice gave some good advice - make sure that all of the seam allowances are the same width - 1/4 inch. If you don't, you'll find yourself stretching areas to make the seams match.

The one thing that I am a stickler about is pressing every seam before adding more fabric that will be attaching to that seam. For instance, on your quilt, you could sew a row of squares, then press all the seams before adding a second (pressed) row to that row. Most of Jenny's tutorials on this site will show you how to set and press your seams. This should help your project have a nice smooth look.

Hope this helps.

[okbrawd]

So I got inpatient waiting for the charm pack to arrive to finish the other quilt so I decided to try again. I couldnt find where to get a 1/4 inch foot for my sewing machine so I guestimated again and this time I bought yardage and cut the fabric myself. Did I do any better? Do you think it would be ok to give this to my friend who is due with a boy next month?

[Alana]

I think your friend will be more than pleased to have this quilt. Yes, I would give it to her.....Great Job everything is matched so well, better than my first attempt by a long shot!!

[IllineSmith]

Beautiful! Great job on this one girl. Loving it!

[okbrawd]

Thank you both, I cant wait for it to be machine quilted

[Blondie]

great work! I know your friend will enjoy.