Pressing & Popping: How to Spin Your Seams

If you’ve ever wondered how to press quilt squares, we’ve got the answers! What goes in behind the quilt top — those mazes of ¼” seams intersecting at crazy angles — seems like such a small thing, and unlikely to interest anyone (unless you’re a quilter, in which case, sometimes the back of the quilt is almost more fascinating than the front)!

Some quilters are dedicated to pressing their seams open. Others, like me, learned to “nest” seams, which means pressing the seams to one side so that they abut when layered right sides together, almost locking in place. This improves accuracy, and you can often get away with using fewer pins.

The big drawback to nesting is that you get a lot of fabric coming together in one spot. With pinwheels, for example, you have 8 layers of fabric coming together at the intersection, creating a dense knot of fabric. (I can hear the ‘ka-thunk’ of my machine trying to get over that lump now…)

These lumps can throw off your seam allowance, dull or even break your needle (on longarm quilting machines, too!), and generally cause chaos. The flatter your patchwork, the more accurate your sewing can be. Popping your seams, also called “spinning your seams,” is a way to achieve flatter patchwork. And it’s fun to do. (If you’re a quilting nerd, like me.)

Popping & Pressing: Basic 4-Patch

The basic 4-Patch is an easy seam to pop, or spin. First, you have to sew and press your 4-patch! Sew your pairs—light and dark. Press toward the dark. Nest the seams by placing the units right-sides together and abutting the seams.

Sew these together and—here’s the fun part—twist the seam so that the threads at the intersection “pop.” (It’s fine, I promise!) Press from the back, and then the front. In the video below, you’ll notice that this time, I pressed toward the light. That’s OK, too! Press the seams where they want to go.

You’ll have nice, flat seams. Make sure you take time to marvel at the miniature 4-Patch it makes on the back of the 4-Patch unit. So cute!

Pressing & Popping: Pinwheel Units

Sewing over a Pinwheel center seam is an education on why you should pop your seams. When creating the Triangle Squares, press toward the dark (I’m using the Sew Easy Lesson: Quick-Pieced Triangle Squares). Trim off your dog ears to get all the extra fabric out of the way.

Sew the pairs together, and then press that seam toward the dark as well. Then place them right sides together, and nest the seam. Next, sew the units together, and then twist that center seam so that the threads pop at the intersection.

From the back, press all the seams toward the dark, and then press again from the front. Finally, take a moment to admire the miniature pinwheel on the back of your Pinwheel unit. Because it’s adorable.

Pressing & Popping: Hourglass Units

These units were made using our Sew Easy Lesson: 3-Color Hourglass Units, but even if you’re sewing together individual triangles, the popping and pressing strategy is the same.

First, press your Triangle Squares (or your quarter triangle pairs) to the dark, and nest the seams. Next, sew the seam. Because of the method I’m using, in the video, I sew a second seam and cut my units apart.

Now it’s fun time — twist the seam so that threads at the intersection pop! Press from the back, and then press from the front. Finally, take a moment to revel in the little baby hourglass on the back of your Hourglass unit. Isn’t it so sweet?