Cutting and sewing

[QIAD-Linda]

Hi gaga,
Your ruler might be slipping as you are cutting. Try some "Invisigrip" on the back. It really holds your ruler in place. I have it on all of my rulers.

Thanks for joining us barbara668, gaga,Bailey. We are happy to welcome you and hope you will join in on lots of the discussions!

Linda

[qltsbme]

Measuring is a very personal thing, actually. I, too, always have the line completely on the fabric. This sometimes makes my pieces just a scant too big. Better too big and need to be trimmed than too small.
Always walk your hand down the ruler as you are cutting. Holding the ruler in just one spot for the entire cut will often result in your ruler moving and, thus, making your cuts not straight.
Cutting perpendicular to the edge of the table and cutting away from you is better than cutting parallel to the table edge and cutting sideways. Cutting is a skill and gets better and better with practice.

Nancy

[cottonquilter]

if you pin your fabric squares together well and when you sew on the machine they still move and are slightly off at the end ,what causing this?

[cottonquilter]

just slightly off

[Quiltcreator]

Try not pinning - that way you are able to ease or stretch as needed to make them come out even. Saves time, too. If there's only a tiny bit of difference, just leave them that way, you can compensate when you sew the seam that crosses it. Make sense?

[gardenquilter]

I rarely pin when I sew - have have the 1/4 marked on machine, early on I was told as long as I press after each stage and square each stage it would come out and I can tell you pressing makes all the difference it the world

[quilter78]

I find that if I spray a little starch on the fabric I have much better luck cutting it and also sewing more accurate. Especially on very soft fabric..

[Quiltcreator]

garden, you are my kind of quilter - throw away those pins! Well, I do use them occasionally, but pinning is overrated - something we learned in high school Home Ec and can't let go of - or worse yet, basting. That was before my time, but some "older" ladies have told me that they were taught to baste every seam before sewing. How would you ever finish anything?

[quilter78]

I agree with you garden quilter, I just finished making a runner with the Christain cross and the first block didn't measure up just right.. There fore I measured each piece as I went and ironed the seam then ironed again the way it was to lay.. By measuring each row as I went it came out perfect. took a little longer but a much better job and no ripping... there for a while I was thinking of using the username as quilt ripper. but by taking my time and measuring each piece and ironing each one I no longer have to rip out the seams.

[quilter78]

I too had trouble using a rotory cutter at first.. When I started making quilts we used templates of cardboard and a scissor. It took a while to get used to the rotary cutter.. I had a lot of suggestions and found out later I was holding it wrong. Instead of the blade being flush with ruler I had it tilted.. Maybe this is your problem, I don't know.. But the more I cut the better I am getting.. maybe it is practice makes perfect. Also I have seen on television how fast they cut. (more experienced than I) and I tried doing that also so learned to go slower and have better luck.