Pressing: How do you know which direction to press your seams?

[1quiltinnana]

When quilting which direction do you press all the seams? Please help!

[Susie]

I am no expert by any means but most folks will say to press the lighter colored seam to the darker one (so it won't show through on the right side of the quilt). Hope that makes sense. I find that I press the direction it will make the block lay flatter so that when quilting it there won't be a bunch of lumps to go over. Hope that helps a little. I am sure someone more experienced will answer.
Susie

[Geneva2]

QN, I press like Susie does. I usually sew out the first block and pay particular attention to what direction each seam needs to be pressed in order to avoid the seams being pressed in the same direction and making a lump. After you figure that out on the first block, it is easy from there on. That being said, ther is no big deal if you don't get every seam pressed in the right direction. We don't allow the Quilt Police around here. My seams are not always pressed exactly right, my big Brother quilter will go through any lump. My seams are not always exactly 1/4 inch from top to bottom and those little ears on half squar triangles, I just ignore them. Sometimes I cut them off, sometimes I don't. There are some rules about piecing and quilting but your quilt is not going to fall apart if you don't follow them all, all the time. For me, quilting is for fun. I'm not going to stress out over it.
Happy Quilting
Geneva

[knitnoid]

I learned to press the seams to the darker fabric, but that's not always the best solution depending on what I am pieceing. I go for a flatter seam. If I've sewn a square to a 4-patch, typically, I'll press the seam to the square, If there is a 4-patch and a HST involved, I'll press to the 4-patch, because I personally find seams where angles are involved to be more bulky than a straight seam.

I also 'twirl' my seams where I can.

Pam

[zfatcat]

A good quilting pattern will tell you which way to press. QIAD books almost always tells you which way to press so the pattern will work out with less bulk. General rule is to press to the dark, but that doesn't work for all patterns. If you are a new quilter, try a QIAD book. They are written very well with great visual aids. Lori

[Tiggersmom]

I press which ever way gives me the flatest seam. I use to always press to the dark but sometimes you end up with such a bulky area its hard to get to lay flat or quilt through. In many instances I now press seams 'open'.

[Granma2five]

Several months ago, I took an online class through Quilt University called "Press for Success", taught by Myrna Giesbrecht.

I learned a lot about the art of pressing and it has made a significant difference in my quilting. Here's a link in case you're interested:

http://quiltuniversity.com/catalog.htm

Scroll down the page to the "Patchwork & Piecing" category, then to "Press for Success Series" for a class description.

Geneva touched on Myrna's premise, it all has to do with pressing your seams in such a way so they all play nicely together.

Check out Myrna's Free pattern where she explains step-by-step how to press the seams in "Myrna's Four Patch", the second pattern down from the top of this page:

http://www.sewandquilt.com/design/project/designer.html

Have fun, and don't stress about it. You learn as you go along, too.

Happy quilting,

Karla

[1quiltinnana]

Thanks for your helpful info. on pressing seams. I will take your advice and practice , pay attention more to this and try to not have any "bulky" places in my quilts....Thanks!!