Laser Shape Design Features for Piecing
My primary goal for creating these designs was to make the most perfectly pieced quilt top. I didn't want to cut just perfect plain simple squares, triangles, and rectangles, I wanted to create the perfect design that would solve all the problems that quilters face in making a quilt top. So, I have been developing and testing these designs for 4 years and I think I finally have a great design. I have probably made 50 different versions of the basic shape design, each version trying to improve on the last version, but sometimes having to go back to the digital drawing board and starting over. I have made many discoveries along the way, always striving to improve on the basic design. Check out the gallery tab for real examples of blocks and some quilts my mother and I have made during this time.
Key Features
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Correct size
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Minimal manual cutting
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Rounded corners
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Needle notches
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Match points
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Snipped Curves
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Y-seam Dot
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Compound shapes
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Diamond windows
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Merged centers
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Fray resistant
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Ready to sew!
Seam Guide and Pressor Foot
Sewing straight edge shapes requires the installation of a seam guide on your machine. See the section on Dragonal Seam Tape. I recommend a wide pressor foot with good visibility in the middle or a walking foot. You will need to test out your machine to see what works best. A 1/4 inch foot without a guide is recommended for curved seams. A foot guide will get in the way of the match points.
Correct Size, Never Oversized
All shapes are the size they should be: The finished size plus 1/4 inch seam allowance all around. You should never have to trim anything. I can guarantee that if you sew them carefully and according to the directions, you will not feel the need to trim anything. Gone are the days of over-size cutting and trimming down to size. And no more special rulers.
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If your block is not the correct size, it's because there is something wrong with a seam. It's best practice to find the problem and correct it rather then to just cut it out. I recommend ripping out your stitches and/or resewing the seams as you go. Trimming actually alters where the match points will line up with the adjacent units. It will make your piecing more inaccurate and your blocks will not be as flat as they could be. You will become acutely aware of inaccurate seams because the notches are there to tell you where the seam should start and end. I have been amazed at how flat and uniform my blocks and my quilt tops turn out since I started using laser cut shapes.
Minimal Manual Cutting
The only time you will need to manually cut anything is when you are sewing compound shapes. After sewing the 2 seams of compound shapes, you will need to cut between the seams and separate the shapes. This can be done with a scissors or a rotary cutter.
Design Terminology
Cutting line
Sewing line
Edge Cuts
Rounded Corners
Notches
Match Points
Snips
Inside Cuts
Merged Center
Diamond Window
Merged Notch
Y-seam Dot
Rounded Corners
When I started testing my designs using just the basic shapes (squares, rectangles, and half-square triangles), I naturally squared the corners on all the 45° points, or as quilters say: "cut off the dog ears". I made several projects with these shapes and didn't have a second thought about it. Later, I tested shapes with all sorts of angles and had a terrible time trying to figure out how to trim the corners. I realized that when I rounded the corners all the shapes fit together perfectly no matter what shapes I put together. To illustrate this, I have a half-hexagon and a right triangle positioned like they would be sewn. The seam allowance is in gray. You can see how the curve is rotating around the point similar to the way a compass works to draw a circle. The edge of the cut shape is always 1/4 inch away from the finished shape. An added bonus is that there is less bulk in the seam intersections. You might think it would be odd to sew without a nice point on a square. It took me about 2 minutes to get over it. I use the notches, the edge of the fabric, and the seam guides, as you will see below.
Notches
The purpose of a notch is to give the needle a place to start and end the seam. It is the guide to sewing a straight seam. Notches can be cut either vertically or at an angle wherever a seam may be sewn. As shown in Figure 1, the black line is the border of the finished shape. The notches are cut on the seam allowance side of the black line. The stitching will go into the seam allowance, leaving the finished shape the correct size. The width of the notch is the same as the width of the needle and the middle line (red line). See Frigure 2 and 3. As you sew, the notch at the end of the seam should be kept on the middle line and the edges of the pieces should run along the inside (left side) of the right line on the seam guide.
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Match Points
Match points are used for matching the 2 pieces of fabric together where they should be and keeping them lined up. The feed dogs will naturally shift the 2 pieces when sewing, usually advancing the bottom fabric slightly more than the top. The match points are there to help you keep the pieces where they should be. They can also serve as a substitute for pinning. Use of a walking foot can lessen the problem of shifting pieces. On a curve, match points will help you distribute the fabric evenly and give you a much better result.
Snips
Snips are put into every concave curve to make sewing easier. The depth is about 0.17 inch so the seam will not be weakened. My mother and I have sew-tested many curved designs including double wedding ring, winding ways, flowering snowball, and drunkard's path.
Y-Seam Dot
A tiny circle can be cut just inside the corner of the seam allowance of any shape that has a y-seam. This saves you from having to measure and write a dot on the pieces. The dot is no bigger than a pin hole and the needle should land on the dot in the last stitch so no worries about a larger hole forming.
Compound Shapes
The merging of two or more shapes creates a compound shape. This is commonly done in rotary cutting to make half square triangles, quarter square triangles, and flying geese units. Many other shapes can be merged like the two squares below. There is 0.5 inches plus an extra 1/48 inch of fabric between the two shapes. The 1/48 inch extra fabric accounts for the width of the black line on the seam guide and allows for the diamond window to be centered on the black line of the seam guide. I know it sounds like a small amount but it truly makes a difference when you place the shape on the seam guide.
Diamond Windows and Merged Centers
Diamond windows and merged centers serves as both seam guides and as match points. When this seam is long, these are very useful because the fabric will tend to shift and the seam will extend past the bed of your machine. There is no need to draw any lines on the fabric. There is no "squaring up" because they are cut the correct size. Sew it carefully and it will be perfect. The finished unit will have far less bulk in the center because this unnecessary fabric was removed.
4 quarter square triangles merged into one compound shape (4QST) - showing seam allowance in blue
4QST - cut design
The Versitile Square
B
C
A
A is always the same size
B is always 0.5 inch smaller
C is always 1 inch smaller
Corner Triangles
All squares can be used as a compound shape. There are 6 extra diagonal notches built into every square 1.5 inches or larger. Squares less than 1.5 inches have 4 extra diagonal notches. By sewing any 2 of the lines, you have sewn a compound shape
2" SQ + 2" SQ, sew A and B = 2" 2HST + 1.5" 2HST (scant seam allowance)
2" SQ + 2" SQ, sew A and C = 2" 2HST + 1" 2HST
2" SQ + 4" SQ sew A and B = 4" SQ with 2" corner TRI + 1.5" 2 HST (scant seam allowance)
2" SQ + 4" SQ sew A and B = 4" SQ with 2" corner TRI + 1" 2 HST
Fray Resistant vs Brown Edges
It's important to understand that the edges are burned so they will be slightly brown on the edges and will bleed inward over time. It is only noticeable on light colored fabrics. I have seen it bleed from the seam allowance to the quilt top, but I have never had an issue with this because most of the discoloration will wash out. I cut these two shapes about 4 months ago. The one on the left shows discoloration all the way to the notches. I washed the one on the right with just tap water. Most of the discoloration was removed. The benefit of the burned edge is that it makes the edge clean and fray resistant which far exceeds any risk of discoloring the quilt, in my opinion.
Ready to Sew!
My elderly mother has so enjoyed receiving my care packages of laser cut blocks. She can sit right down to her machine and just sew. See many of her wonderful quilts in the Gallery section. She is approaching 90 years old and still quilting. She keeps telling me this is her last quilt and then I get a call from her to order more blocks. I am so grateful she taught me how to sew.