Hold that line!

Oh Gosh Polly! What a pain in the neck. I guess you forgot those outside setting triangles are squares cut from corner to corner....quarter squares. That way the outside edge in on grain. Next time. Back to the current matter.....what about getting some of the water soluble stabilizer and sewing that to your outside pieces? This stuff feels like a paper stabilizer but dissolves into teeny fibers when soaked in water. You could sew on either side of the cutting line and then cut. I would even try the water soluble basting spray to anchor the stabilizer before sewing. Maybe that's overkill. Now, where to get the stabilizer? I have bought some from Ricky Tims and Sharon Schamber at quilt shows. But I'm sure you can order it online somewhere other than their sites if you don't want to order it directly from them. Couldn't find it on Ricky's site on my first glance, but here is the stuff Sharon sells.

think after cutting my block, I'd trim the stabilzer away up to the stitched line and save it for other uses...like Sharon's applique method.Good Luck....I'm sure this is clear as mud.

Not quite sure what you mean Polly? However, if you mean you are not using setting triangles, but are using blocks and will just cut them off along their diagonals (almost!), then I suggest you sew a row of stay-stitching along the actual diagonal (you will be cutting a quarter of an inch away from the diagonal for the seam allowance I presume?). If you placed it just a thread or two into the seam allowance, you wouldn't even have to unpick it. .

In message , Polly Esther writes

Oh, Polly, I feel your pain! There is a way to use larger squares and cut them diagonally (once or twice as needed to keep the edges from being bias on the edges and corners) so you don't end up with bias edges, but it's too late for that now. I'd suggest adding a border cut on the lengthwise grain. Measure what your bias edge *should* be- without stretching- for each block and then measure and mark the border at those same intervals, match the marks on the top and the border and pin carefully. Sew the border on with the bias edge on the bottom against the feeddogs. That should get you a stable border edge. Then continue as usual. Good luck.....

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO.

I cut carefully and baste rather closely, and never have a problem. Of course, I do all my stitching by hand, and I'm sure that makes a difference.

Hi Polly - as I read this, you already have bias edges along all the sides of your quilt top? Have you checked that there has been no stretching of the outside edge by comparing the measurements of the edges against that of the centre lines of the quilt? Assuming that no stretching has happened, my solution would be to use an iron with 1.5inch cut strips x the correct diagonal measurement of the setting squares of freezer paper or iron-on stabilizer - use the iron to tack down both ends of the strip in place - 'snap' the stable paper into place by holding the tacked ends - press in place using the grain direction not the bias (don't press from the v-corner to the wide edge but pick either the left or right v-seam and go in a straight line from there)...

If stretching has already happened - then you would have to do a small gathering stitch to ease in the excess as you work - the diagonal measurement is important to know in advance so that you can make the adjustments block by block. If the diagonal edge is your binding edge

- I would consider using the straight grain of the fabric to make the binding strips rather than the cross-grain - this would help to stabilize the quilt edges also - you could mark off the diagonal measurement of the blocks on your binding strip - pin in place at each corner of the diagonal - then ease the diagonal to fit the binding strip and sew it down as you go.

Use your feed dogs to help draw up any stretch on the bias edges by having the quilt top on the bottom of any stabilizing trick that you select - working from the wrong side of the quilt top.

Test a couple of suggestions on scraps to decide which idea might work best for you considering the size of your quilt top and your work area. Go have a cup of something before deciding to make any cuts........jennellh

Thanks and hugs to all of you. I am using a pattern by Anne Gallo and Susan Raban in Fons & P Nov '04. I really thought I had carefully studied it before I began and that everything appeared to be well-planned. The outside corners of the quilt's top are cut right (to my way of thinking). Only those 4 pieces have the straight-of-grain where it should be. When I re-read the instruction: trim edges straight (with a diagram showing all of the outside points being cut away) all of my brain's warning beepers started alarming. No stretching has happened. I just want to be Certain that none does. Again, I thank you kindly, Polly

What about stay stitching? I'm sure that those of us in the US, who went to school in the dark ages, had home ec and had to sew something that included stay stitching.

Bonnie, in Middletown. VA

This is the same solution that occurred to me, Polly. Though I can't imagine why they didn't have you make setting triangles with the straight grain along the outside edges; that would have saved some fabric and a lot of headache! :S

something Very stable before I cut? Polly

STARCH! Lots and lots of starch, until it is a stiff as a board. I did that to the fabric before I cut out hundreds of diamonds. Didn't have a single stretch anywhere. Spray lightly, dry it with your iron, spray again, dry again, spray again....do NOT move the fabric until it is STIFF.and completely bone dry.....then go on to the next section. Sewing is a breeze...loved that 'popping sound' when the needle went in out of that 'board' of fabric. It all came out in the wash. I'd do it again in a heartbeat as it saved hours of worry and NO STRETCHING biases :)

Yea, it'll take time so don't plan on doing it all in one day. There better not be a deadline like next week or so..might take a few days just to get it stiff.but it is so worth it in the end. Have a bottle of alcohol to wipe your needle down *IF* you need to (I can't remember if I did or not). No, dearie, not for drinking--there are better things to drink out there AFTER you're done for the day. No use having wonky seams by imbibing too soon after all that slaving over the hot iron.

If I was closer, I'd help cheer you on.

Butterfly (note, I did not say help with the use of the iron)

Polly, leave the outside edges until the next thing has been sewn to it. Just mark the "cutting line" with your ruler and marker of some sort. Then sew on the border if you are using one. (Sew with the straight cut border on top.) If the cut edge is to be the outside edge of the top, without a border, then quilt with the excess part hanging out there Then trim after you have quilted. You will be sewing on the bias, but not having it cut will keep it from stretching as much. If you can, next time plan the setting triangles so that they are cut in such a way that the outside edge is not on bias. For the sides that means using Quarter Square Triangles, and for the corners Half Square Triangles.

Have fun and don't worry about it. Pati, in Phx

Polly Esther wrote:

Howdy!

You can do this. You ain't no "woe", you're a quilter, sweetheart.

My solutions: I sew a line all the way around the quilt 1/4" away from where the outside edge will be; this stabilizes it before & after the cutting of those diagonal lines. "Sew gently" so as not to stretch anything.. I mean on the quilt. For some time I've been sewing a fake border on the outer-most edge of my quilts, something for the hoop to hold onto while I'm quilting; keeps me from stretching that outer edge, straight or diagonal. I quilt right up to that fake border, then remove it and save it for the next quilt. This has pretty much stopped the rippled lettuce effect. ;-)

Good luck! Iced tea helps, and chocolate... or chocolate w/ mint..or w/ pecans.

R/Sandy --w> Brevity isn't my strong suit but I'm going to try. The quilt top I'm

Even doing the stay stitching can result in wonky edges after the block has been trimmed. The only certain way I know of (and I have done a LOT of sewing with bias edges) is to put strips of tissue paper cut the appropriate length along the basting/cutting line. Baste the tissue right next to the cutting line and then cut the block. LEAVE the tissue paper on until the next portion of fabric is sewn to all of those bias edges. Now, you can use Solvy that is water or heat soluble (you'd still need to leave it on until those bias edges have been sewn to something) but that can get to be *very* expensive if there are a lot of bias edges. That's why I recommend tissue paper. I save up old tissue from gift boxes and cut it into long strips that are about 2" wide. I have found from experience that using strips any narrower are just too

*$&%^$*$)% difficult to deal with. I'm not sure Polly wants or needs to go to all that much trouble but it's just an idea I thought I'd toss out in case one of you had a need in the future :-). CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

And do the stay-stitching before you cut.

Julia

Patti wrote:

Polly, do you have a serger or know someone who does? A narrow two-thread overlock stitch is just the ticket for taming bias edges....

-Irene

hopefully the pattern has been checked and as it's an unusual method, it has been worked through and determined that it doesn't matter in this instance, I've put bias edges in places it wouldn't be recommended more than once and have it work out fine. I wouldn't do it for a simple setting triangle, but the places I have done it, it's been fine, with minimal extra measures, I'm not someone who tends to stretch when they machine stitch anyway, all I do is be generous on the starch.

Cheers Anne

I do have wonderful sergers but I'll have to save solution for when we are closer buddies. By the time I got all the differentials, tensions, widths and lengths perfected, I'd be too old to finish the quilt. There have been so many good, good, good suggestions here and I'm going to use lots of them. This quilt is for a returning military wounded and it does need to be special. I am very grateful for all the help. Thank you so much, Polly

"IMS" Polly, do you have a serger or know someone who does? A narrow two-thread overlock stitch is just the ticket for taming bias edges....

The lettuce edge is a dressmaking term. When you're doing a rolled hem, you can tug on the fabric as you stitch and it will do a really cute ruffly-looking edge. This is okay for bridesmaids' dresses that will (and should be) thrown away as soon as possible. Also cute on little girl clothing. Not cute on quilt edges. And as to 'Bullets in her yet' - our local newspaper must be written by the 5th grade on a rainy day at camp. DD and I laughed for days at their headline, Drycleaner Shot in His Parking Lot. We hoped it didn't hamper his love life. Polly

"Sandy Ellison" Good luck!

The starching and the stay stitching , one or the other or both ought to do the trick. If you want yet more stability, just sew some cheap rayon seam binding all around, and then either whack it off when you are done, or stick it inside the binding. That flimsy bit of ribbon won't add enough bulk to sing about, but it will keep naughty edges from wiggling.

NightMist