EasyPeezy

Pinning for sure but there is a little trick to pinning. You can put as many
pins as you want and it could still be out of alignment. The trick is to stab a
pin where the seams meet then pin each side and add more pins if needed.
Don't forget to remove pins before it goes under the presser foot.

gigi10

I only pin if the fabric has a ripple in it. That means 1 side has a little fullness and will not lay flat, usually due to any of the things mentioned in this post. If the fullness is a lot, I rip it and begin the seam again. if this iss your 1st effort, I think you did really well.

LeslieFrost

Here's another suggestion: Find a quilt design that does not require seam matching, like bricks, or strippy quilts! As a beginner, your best bet is to attempt something that you can be successful with.

Also: Your blocks are not that far off. Some mis-matching can be compensated with by pinning the seams together and easing in the excess on one block. Or, you can find the wonky seam and re-sew it to even up that block.

When I began quilting, I was an experienced sewer of clothing and household items, but it took me awhile to really absorb the special rules of quilting, especially the emphasis on keeping those seams straight and even and the same size, over and over again. It comes, but it takes paying attention and doing it over and over again.

Best of luck, and keep on asking questions!

gladgirl

I've learned over the years to square up each block before sewing the blocks together. If you have one block that isn't up to the measurement it's supposed to be, it can throw everything off. Sometimes when I have a complicated block with lots of pieces to it, such as a pineapple pattern, I'll square up 2 - 3 times during the time the block is being constructed.

kapatt

There can be several different things that happen to change your seam allowance. Here are a couple of the main things.... if you have to change your needle, make sure you get the same size needle that you have been using; do all of your sewing on the same machine (changing machines can cause your sewing to be off); press your blocks, don't iron them (ironing is moving the iron back and forth...pressing is putting the iron down on the seam and then picking it up again).

I do a lot of measuring. When I sew two blocks together as a set, I check out the measurements to make sure that they are coming out the correct size. If I need to, I trim the set of blocks before I sew them to the next set.

Pieces2

Precision, Precision, Precision.
Cutting, seaming, pressing, squaring up a block as it is being pieced. Squaring up the finished block.
Pre washing fabric and buying good quality fabric are
extremely important factors in making a great quilt.
Making a quilt is a combination of a lot of factors, any one thing not done correctly can disrupt the entire process.
A quilter needs to be a perfectionist to produce a great finished product. Practice makes perfect.
Start with simple patterns, few seams to match, and work up to harder patterns. Starting with too hard of a pattern can be discouraging. :-D

Mkotch

Also, fudge to fit!

#1piecemaker

Seam allowance!!

Tinabodina

Quarter inch seam allowance. I did the same thing when I started. I didn't realize how important that seam allowance really was until I tried to put it together.

Quilt Mom

sunni, for a first try, that looks great! Your seams are a little off in a few places. The pinning mentioned will help you get the hang of it. I wonder - looking at the pic - if the fabric is flannel. If so, you are dealing with fabric that does not always play well. It tends to stretch a little. Starching the pieces will help - and not just with flannel...