The ever elusive SCANT 1/4" seam
#81
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Middle Tennessee
Posts: 360
I have a Janome Horizon and purchased the 1/4" quilting foot with the metal flange. I can make consistent 1/4" seams, but I measure before starting a new project. I have a little plastic guage with a hole in it. I put the needle through the hole and check it for accuracy. Better safe than sorry. Once you get it adjusted, you can't hardly drag it out of alignment. I had to get one to keep me accurate. $23.95 at Janeome, locally.
#83
Super Member
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Here and there
Posts: 1,669
Just as I got really comfortable with a 1/4 inch seam, some diabolical member of the quilt police came up with "scant 1/4 inch," and absolutely meaningless designation that has no reliable definition. Someone wrote to move the seam over "one thread." Here is a hot flash for all you flashers: All threads in fabric are not equal! Some are thick and some are thin and some are in between. Likewise the thread with which you are sewing.
How about giving yourself a break, along with the rest of us? Go back to the 1/4 inch seam, try to sew straight and leave the scant 1/4 inch to all the sadists out there who just can't leave well enough alone.
Keep that seam simple, sewists! froggyintexas
How about giving yourself a break, along with the rest of us? Go back to the 1/4 inch seam, try to sew straight and leave the scant 1/4 inch to all the sadists out there who just can't leave well enough alone.
Keep that seam simple, sewists! froggyintexas
I have a Janome 6600 and I'm using my 1/4 inch foot. I need 8 1/2 x 8 1/2 blocks. Every stinking one I've made is 8 x 8 or a little bigger, not even close to the 8 1/2. It has to be the
SCANT part that I'm messing up. With the 1/4 inch foot, there's not much room to move my needle over. Do I need to change my foot? I'm at my wit's end here. Can anybody give me any advice? I"ve done the search here and nothing seems to 'click' with me. Hellllllp! Please.
SCANT part that I'm messing up. With the 1/4 inch foot, there's not much room to move my needle over. Do I need to change my foot? I'm at my wit's end here. Can anybody give me any advice? I"ve done the search here and nothing seems to 'click' with me. Hellllllp! Please.
#85
Precisely! However, I do think sometimes the the fabric and thread used affects the finished size. Better still would be an adjustable foot so that the "edge" could be moved to the left of the 1/4" mark giving even an 1/8" seam allowance if required. Wouldn't that be brilliant. Not all machines allow the needle to be moved to the right, mine doesn't.
Norma
#86
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Texas
Posts: 512
Just as I got really comfortable with a 1/4 inch seam, some diabolical member of the quilt police came up with "scant 1/4 inch," and absolutely meaningless designation that has no reliable definition. Someone wrote to move the seam over "one thread." Here is a hot flash for all you flashers: All threads in fabric are not equal! Some are thick and some are thin and some are in between. Likewise the thread with which you are sewing.
How about giving yourself a break, along with the rest of us? Go back to the 1/4 inch seam, try to sew straight and leave the scant 1/4 inch to all the sadists out there who just can't leave well enough alone.
Keep that seam simple, sewists! froggyintexas
How about giving yourself a break, along with the rest of us? Go back to the 1/4 inch seam, try to sew straight and leave the scant 1/4 inch to all the sadists out there who just can't leave well enough alone.
Keep that seam simple, sewists! froggyintexas
Gale in Texas
#87
Thanks Linda, Yes Pfaff has the dual feed, called IDT and I have it on both of my machines. In fact it comes on almost all of their machines, I believe, except the Hobby ones or less expensive ones.
#88
Power Poster
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,666
I was looking for help because everything was cut right and all sewn with a 1/4 " exactly and my blocks were not measuring up correctly. THAT'S WHY I brought the subject to the board. And you know what? Now I have several 8 1/2" perfect blocks! Believe me I'd love to sew the 1/4" and be done with it, but it wasn't working for me. I don't know about you but I'm not sewing just to listen to the machine, I want to make a quilt where all squares line up! Now you go back to your 1/4" seams and let us sadists who aren't doing so great using that method find a solution. How about THAT???????
Gale in Texas
Gale in Texas
What did you change doing to get your blocks to come out to the right size now?
(Whatever you did, glad you got the blocks to come out to the size you are hoping for)
#89
Super Member
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 4,783
When cutting your fabric, it helps to place the line for the measurement you want ontop of the fabric, not off the edge of the fabric. If you are placing that line off the edge of the fabric, you are cutting the piece a "scant" too small. There should not be extra fabric showing beyond the line, however. Just make sure the entire thickness of the line is ontop of the fabric, nothing more, nothing less. This "scant" stuff is something we all struggle with to get right. You have tons of company!
#90
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Texas
Posts: 512
bear is gray, I did the 3 strip test that I believe you had suggested, tested and found my 'spot' at 3.8. It's perfect for 'this' quilt and I couldn't be happier. I'll continue to test every quilt with this method. Saved my sanity plus I'm going to get a beautiful quilt to boot. Can't beat that with a stick.
Last edited by gigi712; 05-04-2012 at 04:52 AM.
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