DebD800

"When chain piecing, I now "sew" about 1/2 inch between each unit - because I feel that leaving about 1/4 inch of thread extending beyond the fabric helps minimize pulling apart of the pieces."

I only just recently figured this out. It's made a huge difference!

DebD800

"I'm actually hand piecing"

I believe that when hand piecing, pressing to one side adds to the strength of the seam. That's not the case when machine piecing.

DebD800

Tartan

For hand quilting I like to stitch in the ditch on the side without the seam allowances. If your fabric closely matches the thread you used to piece with, you could press the seams open. You will be quilting through the layer of fabric in the top, plus the seam allowance fabric if you stitch in the ditch though. If the piecing thread is a contrasting colour, when you hand quilt, the stitching will pull the seam open a little so you will see the thread. It's your quilt and you can do it the way you are most comfortable with.

Madan49

In my opinion, the right answer is.. there is no "right answer"! There are times when pressing your seams open IS the best option, for many reasons. It's really a case-by-case decision, depending on the block you're making... or sometimes just the unit within the block you're making. Sometimes you'll do it to avoid bulk, sometimes to avoid having a darker color show up behind a lighter one. If pressing your seams open gives you a smoother and better looking end result, then THAT is the way to go in THAT situation. Your seams shouldn't be any weaker, either. If you fear that they will be, take shorter stitches, and take an extra stitch at the beginning and end of the seam. There's always a way to do what pleases you.

AZ Jane

Always "Come to the dark side, Clarisse"!! LOL (of course you have to say it with a creepy voice)!

sewmary

There is no one answer.

I do want to say though that I always press my seam open and have never had batting come through. The only way I could think for that to happen is if one is using a very long stitch.

Never had a seam pop open rither.

Jingle

When hand stitching use very close small stitches. It will be easier to quilt with the seams pressed open. Try it and see if they will be okay. I would buy a cheap machine and sew them that way, Unless you are very young or very fast you won;t get many quilts made. Good luck.

Farm Quilter

Tartan is correct...as a longarm quilter I have found that if there are more than 4 fabrics at an intersection, it creates a lump and pressing open those seams helps to spread out the thick lump of fabric! Other than that, there is no "rule", so press in a way that works best for you. If I am stitching in the ditch, it is easier to hit that ditch with the fabric pressed to the dark - for some reason the lighter thread hides in the ditch more easily for me. But ditch work is really usually only done on a DSM if you are doing that all over or for show quilts when it is done on a longarm (expensive because it takes some time to slow down and hit that ditch precisely!).

joe'smom

Personally, I would never press hand-sewn seams open. There are gaps in a hand-sewn seam, whereas there are not gaps in a machine-sewn seam. When you press to the side, you are covering the gaps in the seam, which is why this practice developed in the first place. I think hand-sewn seams pressed open would almost certainly result in batting coming out. Plus, you don't really have a ditch to stitch in if you open seams. For hand quilting, you'd want to stitch on the side without the seam allowance. Yes, it is a real pain to hand quilt through seam allowances, which is why I try to avoid it whenever possible. This is one of the reasons why quilting designs for a hand quilted piece will be very different from designs for a machine quilted piece. Seam allowances don't have to be avoided when machine quilting.

quiltingshorttimer

Absolutely don't SID on those open seams!!