Happy Friday! Welcome to Part 3 of the Pixelated Rose Quilt Sew Along! If you are just joining me, you can grab your FREE downloadable pattern for this gorgeous quilt HERE.
This week I assembled Row 4 of the quilt, following the basic instructions outlined in PART 1. You can find out more about the Design Boards I am using in PART 2. Today, I want to talk a little bit more about pressing — and more specifically, setting your seams.
This is a step that is pretty tempting to skip, so let’s talk about why this is important. What does it mean to “set your seams?” Setting a seam is simply pressing the stitching on the wrong side of your fabric (see above photo). Doing this does two things: 1) It smooths out the thread. Similar to how a straightening iron smooths out your hair, the texture and bumps on the thread are made smooth. And while this may be unnoticeable to the naked eye, it makes a big difference in the accuracy of your quilt blocks. And 2) It sinks the thread into the fabric, which will give you straighter seams when you press them in the next step. If you are skeptical, try unpicking a regular seam. Then try unpicking a seam you have “set.” Unpicking a set seam is not for the faint of heart, because those stitches really are smooth and embedded into the fabric.
To save time, I sew a row of squares together, then set each seam. After setting each seam, I press the seams in the direction stated on the pattern.
After my individual rows are sewn and pressed, I assemble them into a block, also following the pattern instructions. Once the block is assembled, I set the seams of each row, then press those seams open.
Aren’t the colors just fabulous together? All of the colors come from Riley Blake Designs’ CONFETTI COTTONS collection, which offers a fantastic array of solids.
Join me again in two weeks for Part 4 of this sew along and share your progress on Instagram using #rileyblakedesigns #iloverileyblake.
