The secret revealed

I wish I'd figured this out earlier. 

There's been this fiddly bit that I've had to do when two melons come together.  I thought I had it figured out.  But then, when I tried it, it was still a fiddly bit.  I walked away from the sewing machine yesterday, trying to figure it out.  And, oddly enough, I figured it out in the shower. 

I went into it knowing where the problem is.  It's when I add those two squares to the end of an arc.  I need the seam allowance to always go toward the square.  But, if I let the seam allowance from the arc go toward the square, I get caught up trying to put two of those squares together.  And, if I let the seam allowance go away from the square, I get caught up at the same place. 

Solution, press that seam allowance open!

Stick with me because it's going to be a few minutes  before I tell you why. 

Then, pin the longer arc to the combined short arc and melon. 

Because that first seam allowance is pressed open, you can pick out a couple stitches, and open the seam allowance on the second side of the square as well.

There's some bulk there, so if you're doing really fine work, you might trim some of that out.  I didn't bother.  I'd rather deal with it when I'm quilting. 

Then, sew the first melon to the background diamond.

Okay, now here's what I solved by pressing those seam allowances open.  When I add a second melon that touches the first one, I have to transition from sewing the melon and background diamond to sewing the two setting squares together.  I couldn't get those two fabrics to match without some playing with it.  But, if everything is pressed open, they match up just perfect!  In the photo below, I have the background folded back so you can see that transition point.  At that point, I will stop sewing the background to the arc and start sewing the two arcs together.

Here's what it looks like with the background folded to the place it needs to be when the seam is sewn.

And, I get a perfect transition from one melon to the next, going around the circle.

If you don't press those seam allowances open, you're going to have to snip into your seam allowance every place that two arcs are joined by their setting squares to get the transition to happen.  Unfortunately, I already have 36 blocks made where I didn't do that. 

But, honestly, that's how I figure things out.  Trial and error.  Yesterday, I used this same trial and error method to solve, in four hours, a problem they told me in our morning conference call could not be solved...that data is NOT available. 

Well, it's available now!

Even my new boss said "I'm anxious to see if Lane can back up his confidence at finding a solution."

Well, I had to after that.

Rob said he will not make a block for our quilt.  But, if I pin a seam for him, he will run it through the machine. 

He's gonna be real surprised when I take him up on it.

Lane