Do I have to iron before I sew together?
#22
Member
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Northern California
Posts: 75
I hate pressing because it's time consuming. However, if I don't do it I usually end up spending more time fixing mistakes I didn't catch earlier in the process.
Pressing gives you an opportunity to really look at what you're doing and make sure everything looks OK before taking the next step. I also like doing it because I'm obsessed with points being perfect and everything squared. I keep a grid ruler and rotary cutter nearby so when I see pieces that look "off" I can fix them, (or rip out and redo if I have to). It's easy to get caught up in the anticipation of seeing what your final quilt will look like, but I find taking it slower ends up saving me time in the long run.
Pressing gives you an opportunity to really look at what you're doing and make sure everything looks OK before taking the next step. I also like doing it because I'm obsessed with points being perfect and everything squared. I keep a grid ruler and rotary cutter nearby so when I see pieces that look "off" I can fix them, (or rip out and redo if I have to). It's easy to get caught up in the anticipation of seeing what your final quilt will look like, but I find taking it slower ends up saving me time in the long run.
#24
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 947
Decide for yourself. Make two small quilts, one which you press, one which you don't. Time yourself, and also evaluate the end product. Then decide for yourself.
I personally do press, because I find that my finished blocks always look much better and I experience less frustration in piecing. If that's not the case for you, then don't.
I personally do press, because I find that my finished blocks always look much better and I experience less frustration in piecing. If that's not the case for you, then don't.
#27
Guess I'm in the minority. I press finished blocks, but I don't press the seams of horizontally joined blocks before joining rows vertically. That allows me to change the direction the seam lays as I join them. I have learned the hard way to join the rows in numerical order rather than in groups. I'm a bit obsessive about seam allowances all laying the same direction from row to row.
#28
Super Member
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Central Ohio
Posts: 1,079
For me, it works best if I press every seam. I've done more pressing in the last 13 years that I've quilted than I did ironing clothes. I think it's easier to butt the seams together, and a big one for me is that when I square each block there is a difference in the size, although just a tiny, tiny difference, with the non-pressed versus pressed blocks. I'm all for whatever makes life easier, and although the pressing takes time, I find my blocks are more accurate.
#30
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: AR/NM
Posts: 358
I have found that if I wait to press the top when it's completed, it's way too hard to actually iron all, going the right way. The iron is just too big to fit in the right places, with matching seams alternating going opposite ways.
As a result, I always press each row as I go, then sew the rows together.
As a result, I always press each row as I go, then sew the rows together.
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