What’s Better Than An Exact Quarter Inch Seam?

8 Tips To Improve Piecing Accuracy

Here are a few things you can do to improve accuracy and prevent the sting of a bad piece. No one wants to cut up their favorite fabrics and labor over an A+ quilt block only to discover that it’s come out too small, or the pieces don’t fit together quite right.

 

The secret weapon is that quarter inch seam! Most quilt patterns call for a ¼” seam allowance, and they mean it! So get in the habit of stitching a scant seam, and here’s how. The only way to be sure you have an accurate seam is to stitch a ¼” seam following the presser foot and measure it with a clear ruler. Make sure your seam is right on the ¼” mark and not a touch over.

What’s better than a seam that’s exactly ¼”? A seam that’s a just under ¼”, AKA a scant ¼” seam! There are specifics that will provide you with results. Dull blades and needles make accuracy borderline near impossible, so plan to get new tools for each quilt project. Without attention to the tools for the project, the 1/4″ is totally unpredictable.

Amy Gibson provides super essential tips to get those results, without any extra effort, except applying these tips to improve piecing accuracy. Amy also mentions that you should square up blocks only if necessary. Truth be told, if you cut and sew your blocks accurately, you may not need to square up your final block, although some patterns may provide instructions for this.

To find out more read her tutorial covering 8 steps to piecing accuracy.