Steve

"...anyone that can sew a straight line and follow instructions should have little if no problems paper piecing."

I humbly retract the previous statement (eating crow as I type). It is a little more involved than I'd have thought after the square, and of course this star has me asking all sorts of questions again. For instance: how to pin a small piece without the pins getting in the way? Do you use the ¼ -inch foot for final assembly? Why on earth did I try to square it, fully aware that it needed ¼ inch all round?

Live and learn, live and learn, live and learn...
:roll:

patricej

who cut? you or Army Buddy?

amma

Steve you did great on the piecing, your colors are awesome, too. :D :D No need to eat crow, too many feathers to spit out, LOL We all live and learn, if we never make a mistake I wonder how much we are actually learning? :wink:

ChristineD

Thank you so much...I have been trying to make sense of the instructions I could find. This clears up all confusion.

lin

Are you kidding? That's awesome! Pass that crow to someone who deserves it. ;)

To answer your questions, I never pin past the first two pieces. I find them cumbersome. Once I've got the first two patches sewn on, I feel like the piece is stable enough to simply place the next one and hold it while I turn the piece over to stitch. Try that. Check it once just before you put it under the needle in case it slips a bit. Even if it does, you should be able to see if you've got the next piece on there straight enough to sew. If you have your ¼" line marked around the outside of each piece, you shouldn't need to worry about a special foot, just follow that line making sure you've lined up the two blocks carefully. It's nearly foolproof. (Not that you're a fool! LOL)

I have no idea why you tried to square it up. LOL (did you not have a ¼" line marked all around the pattern? If you have that line, it makes it easy to trim it right. You just cut ¼" from that sew line.

You're doing really well. No way would I have tried something that hard right out of the gate. I stayed with some really simple pping for a long time. I'm a chicken. LOL

annmarie

Steve - I guarantee you'll never square up without the 1/4 inch again!!! Do another one right away (get right back on the horse :mrgreen: ) and soon you will be addicted too. The Spider Web Star - BOM for May1 would be a good one to do. Your color choices are great!! Have fun!!

Steve

I figured out what went wrong with the 1/4 inch. I was using a small clear ruler with the 1/4 marked alongside an 8th. I must have used the smaller mark (at least twice that I can see), making it look like I needed to trim when I should have left well enough alone. Oh, well... will do another as soon as I can and this time pay attention and mark the ruler as well.

Celeste

Steve

I really appreciate reading how you choose to persevere rather than tuck tail and slink off! Also, that you are willing to share the problems you face. I shows those who may be afraid to start because they think they'll make a mistake. You really are inspiring!

Steve

Thanks, I was afraid folks were thinking me the braggart from my other posts (truth told I am proud of the work). Still, I want to know how to quilt and get as many techniques under my belt as possible while I have the chance. Maybe it's simply my age that makes me latch on like a dog on the mailman, but I feel it's knowledge, and a little perseverance isn't going to hurt in attaining it. Think of how much time has been wasted in front of the TV watching reruns.

I've found the worse thing in life is not failure, it's not trying at all. Whether showing a kindness or simply in doing, we’ve one shot at this life, and I say go for it.

amma

Steve, you do not come across to me as a braggart, you sound confident. Big Difference. You share your accomplishments as well as your learning experiences, and is that the not function of this board? Keep up the postings, pictures and commentary on your progress :D :D :D