I had a bit of spare time today so I pulled out a Layer Cake I've had for quite some time now. It was Just Wing It by MoMo for Moda Fabrics. I don't know why I haven't cut into it before now but I truly heart this line.
So as I was putting blocks together and pressing, I wondered what all of you do. When it comes to pressing, I mean.
Do you press all seams open?
Do you press all your seams to the side?
Or do you mix and match?
Me? I used to always press to the side. Always. Mostly because it was faster..lol!
However, I've discovered that I really much more prefer pressing open. I feel that my seams lay flatter and my blocks square up better. It does take a bit longer to go about it this way, but my end results are so much cleaner.
So now I'm a totally "Press Everything Open" kind of girl. ;)
Hope you are all having a fantastic weekend!!!
Much Love!!!
That is a very fresh looking line of fabric. So cute.
ReplyDeleteI use to always press to one side but sometimes it makes too many layers of fabric no matter how much planning I do so now I am finding that i do both. I like the way the seams lock with both one side, but when it just won't work I opt to press open.
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ReplyDeleteFor years I pressed to the side because that was the trend. My grandmother made quilts when I was young and she always pressed open her quilts were amazing. Then I read a book by ELizabeth Hartman, and she speaks about why she presses open..Now I go with my gut and press open my seams are perfect.
ReplyDeleteI press my seams to the dark side always because I don't like seeing shadows under the light colored fabric and I can get my points and blocks together when I nest my seams.
ReplyDeleteI've always pressed to the side because that's how I learned. Is it harder for seams to nest together when pressed open? I'm looking forward to seeing what you do with your layer cake as I have the same one ; )
ReplyDeleteUsually I press open. Elizabeth Hartman's blog was one of the first I started reading when I was a beginner quilter (I guess I still am sort of a beginner quilter, having less than 10 quilts to my name) and she's an open presser and so I became one too. I also think it makes things lay flatter and nicer than side pressing. I also find that it's easier for me to match points with open pressing.
ReplyDeleteI press whichever way the fabric tends to lean to. Sometimes pressing it one way or the other is a fight trying to keep it down.
ReplyDeleteI press to the side. I made a lap quilt for a friend and pressed open and it felt so wrong somehow. I couldn't quit wondering if I was using a small enough stitch length and what if I wanted to stitch in the ditch and messed up the stitches. So I decided to spare myself that stress and keep pressing to the side. My dilemma is whether to press to the dark side only or the side with the least resistance.
ReplyDeleteI do press open with really bulky seams, like if a lot of seams meet up at one spot.