Thank you, Annis, for the choices clearly laid out and as always, Rosemary, thank you so much for being willing to take the time to spell things out for me, when it gets too confusing. You seem to be able to put your feet in my shoes and bail me out... A LOT! The irony is that in her video Laura said this was going to be a real easy block... I'm sure it is, I just didn't get it. Oh, well...

Renata wrote:
Renata, if I were making this block I would want the seams joining the four quarter-square blocks to "twirl" so that each seam is pressed towards the dark and there is no lump in the very center. Like everything else in quilt making, there are a lot of methods for pressing and different reasons for each one. You just need to try several and learn which one works best for you.

You can see how I did my HST blocks (from the SOTTT exchange) using that technique here: [url]daily-blog/103-good-advice/14753-margo-turns-hsts-into-pinwheels[/url]

So basically try out all possible combinations and see which one you prefer, I think is the answer.

Always lots to consider ! How will it be quilted ? Is a Ditch necessary? Where does the bulk need to be?...Does the color show thru?
I surely love it when the pattern has it all worked out for me ..It just doesn't happen all that often !!

Renata wrote: Press all the seams clockwise, and see if you end up back in the same place after a bit you will be able to see which way you want to go. As a cheat if one of your seams is going one way at one end, but it would be better to be going the other way ath the other end, you could put a small snip in the seam allowance up to -BUT NOT OVER! - the stitching line - I got this off of one of the shows, possibly Jinny Beyers' one and used it to useful effect on my Sottt's quilt.

Personally I like pressing my seams open, but that stems from my dressmaking/tailoring background, unless it is a hand stitched seam, which I don't think holds the fabrics as close together as a machined seam.

I won't be following the instructions for these, but I like to press all of the seams counterclockwise on the front (clockwise on the back). That's just my preferred method. Use the method that works best for you. When sewing 2 triangles together they should all be pressed the same direction. When sewing pairs together you have the option of pressing the full seam to one side, press the seam open, or twirl the seam. When sewing the 4 blocks together either twirl the seams or press them open.

twiglet wrote: 'Who's she? the cat's mother?'

I was only slightly mathmatically challanged - and managed to have enough hst's for 8 pinwheels

I've found that just when I think I've "got it" I don't !! There are so many ways to do these things...
and most of the time it is so forgiving that you can do it what ever way feels best to achieve the
quality you want. Much of the time seams are pressed to one side or other to get a smooth transition
without reguard to color...tho ,to the dark is preferable ...or pressed open which is less common . Sometimes
that is inconvenient, too.

loise98 wrote:

I am glad I did not have time to sew my QST's together today. I am going to let you guys stumble throught the confusing parts. By the time I have time to sew you will have it all figured out for me. Thank you all, very, very much!

Marilyn, we both read the instructions the same way. I just did not know how to press when putting the four final blocks together because Laura said nothing about it neither in the pdf nor in the video. What you say makes sense. I've just never seen that many seams pressed open in a block before... but what do I know? Thanks!!!

Rosemary, I agree with you that you can't press the seams all to the dark side or you will have a heck of a time going over humps with the stitching. There's got to be some methodical approach to ensuring you can nestle seams though. Do you press half of your half-square triangles to the dark and the other half to the light, putting a pressed to the left piece against a pressed to the right, and twirl in the middle? I'm just looking for a method I can remember and that makes sense so I can do this again in the future. This is starting to feel like a square dancing dosey do...

I don't think she read them.

idaho wrote: Oh good! - someone who has actually read the instructions

Renata.. in the PDF under Sewing: She indicates to press the tri. pair seams to the dark. Then in
step 2..press joining seams open. It would follow in this project to have the 4 quarter sq blks joined
and pressed open, too. That's my take !