Margo wrote:
I've seen that block!! :shock:

Oh, Eileen this would drive me crazy!! Sorry you are in the situation. What sort of quilts does your teacher friend make?

I totally agree to learn it right to start with.

From Margo: "Pick the kind of work you want to produce, and then do what it takes to get there!"

It's a loooong journey to get where I want to. :shock: Maybe I'm almost halfway there. But I gotta say, that picture is priceless. Thank goodness for TQS and my quilting buds...sure makes getting there more possible and fun.

The first quilting classes I took, back in the 80's, were based on Mary Ellen Hopkins' "It's OK..." book. If I recall, the exact 1/4" seam wasn't emphasized. You worked with the "approximate" 1/4 inch seam that your machine produced, and you adjusted block sizes accordingly. Your machine created your "PPM"--Personal Private Measurement. As a beginner, it worked for me--I had success with nine patches, Irish chains, rail fences, and log cabins. I went on to more classes, and more complicated blocks and learned the importance of that accurate 1/4" seam. Since I had already mastered the beginner basics of piecing, it wasn't hard to adjust to more accuracy.
Hope your friend comes to enjoy the whole process!
Sue

Lorchen wrote:

Hey, Margo, how did you manage to get hold of my block??? ........................ Can I, please, have it back! ............. It's the one on the left!!

Seriously: I'm quite relaxed and can live with 'flawed perfection', but I'm very glad that my first quilting teacher gently, but with steely determination, insisted on accuracy. Having had such a solid start means that I can get it right (if I want to). I even own a large can of spray starch!

Margo, that picture is priceless. But you know, the frumpy block is kind of cool looking too in a primitive kind of way!

Wow, Mago, you are genious. Your photo made me laugh. I have never seen a block like that and it would be very difficult to figure out how to do the one to the right .

Pick the kind of work you want to produce, and then do what it takes to get there!

Eileen, I think she was in my class as a teen--or someone just like her perhaps. Kake's idea of showing the difference between a well-sewn block and a "good-enough" block is a good one. Failing that, she's an adult and not much you can do if she doesn't want to learn. Marge

eileenkny wrote:
The saddest thing about keeping your council unless asked a direct question Eileen is your "student" is missing out on your knowledge as a quilter who has been there, done that and learned to do it the correct way already. I realize that some people have to learn the hard way, but it can be so irksome when you already know the way down the path to a great quilt instead of one that needs more correction than a newbie can fathom. Maybe your other "teacher" friend needs to have a listen to a show and tell lesson on the difference between a crooked not so quarter inch seam vs a carefully sewn perfect quarter seam...AND a look at a block that feature one of each. Just thinking that could maybe help since a picture is worth a thousand ignored words.

quiltinggrandma wrote:
Marge,
I just used the word teacher to differentiate between her and the friend who's learning. I shouldn't really have said it the way I did, it's mostly the girl who's learning. She can't be bothered to listen. I've stopped saying anything at all except when I'm asked a direct question.

I have a friend who sews clothing and now wants to learn to quilt. The first thing I thought of, that is different in quilting than in sewing clothing, is that in quilting we use a 1/4" seam allowance and in clothing we generally use a 5/8" seam. So, I think it is one of the most important things a novice quilter should learn.

I have only been patchworking for about five years and at the beginning thought I was very clever by teaching myself......aaahhhh what a mistake that was I can tell you.......after joining TQS I have found out the easy but CORRECT and best way to do so many things....the 1/4 inch seam what was that back then, I had messy blocks by not knowing how important that is along with the others you mentioned.

It's a shame it is not working out for you.