Hi.
I like to make things.
I like to make things.
Need a little help with curved piecing? Or maybe just a confidence boost? Below find all the steps for sewing the curved blocks of the Clava Quilt.
But first, a few bits of advice:
Practice. Before you use your ‘real’ fabric, cut a few extras (you can use scrap fabric) and practice a couple times before you sew the real deal. Do it as many times as you need.
Be easy on yourself. If this is your first time sewing curves, remember - this is a new skill! Your first time might not be perfect, but that’s ok. With practice you’ll feel more and more comfortable.
The Clava pattern is comprised of blocks made from two templates - A and B.
Upon first glance it may seem like the curved edges of A and B don’t totally match up - that’s true! The edges aren’t supposed to. The pieces do match up right at the stitching line, which is 1/4” in from each edge. That’s all that matters.
To help us align the templates, we will fold each curved edge in half to find the center and finger press the fold, which is a fancy way of saying crease the fabric like paper.
Do this to both template pieces.
If you’re having trouble seeing the creases, mark them with a marking tool. Alternatively, the centers are marked on the paper template pieces as small lines, so during cutting you could also make a TEENY - we’re talking 1/8” or less - snip in the edge of the fabric at the mark.
Once you find both centers, flip Template B down over Template A so they are right sides together. Align the center marks and pin. None of the rest of the edge will be lined up yet - that’s ok!
Bring one narrow end of Template B down to meet corner of Template A, aligning corners and straight edges. Pin.
Repeat with other end of Template B.
Align the rest of the curved edge, pinning as you go. You’ll find the two opposite curves meet each other fairly easily with a little finessing. (Tip: once you’re using to sewing curves, you will probably be able to skip this step and align the edges as you sew. But if you’re a beginner, pins are your friend and it’s helpful to pin a lot!) Remember that your goal isn’t to make all of Template B flat. You just want it nice and smooth at the stitching line.
Stitch along the curved edge with a scant 1/4” seam allowance. (Scant means 2-3 thread widths under. This is to account for the turn of cloth - the tiny extra distance the fabric travels when the seam is pressed. It basically means - just a tiny bit less than!) I find it very helpful to use a 1/4” foot when sewing curves. On a lot of machines, a 1/4” seam allowance disappears under the foot as you sew, which can make things tricky. Using the 1/4” foot takes the guesswork out.
A few tips / things to remember when sewing:
The fabric only needs to be flat right at the stitching line. To the left of the needle there will probably be some wrinkles, but as long as what you’re sewing is smooth you’re good.
The only place you should be looking to maintain your 1/4” seam allowance is the edge of the presser foot. If you have lines on your machine below the foot, they won’t be accurate since the edge you’re sewing is not straight (you can see how far away it is from the engraved 1/4” line at the bottom of the photo above).
Turn your stitch length down 1-2 clicks from where you normally sew for more control.
Leave the pins in as long as you can - sew right up to them.
Sew as slow as you need to.
If your machine has a needle up/down control, set it to down so that every time you stop, your needle is down in the fabric holding it in place.
Troubleshooting tips:
If you feel like you’re going to sew over a wrinkle, stop, sink the needle in your fabric, and raise the presser foot. Smooth the wrinkle to the left and behind your presser foot. Lower the foot and keep sewing.
If you do sew over a wrinkle, just keep going and finish the seam. A lot of times what you think is a pucker will actually press out with an iron! If it doesn’t press out, just seam rip about an inch around the pucker and resew just that section
Once sewn, press the seam allowance away from Template A (I like to do this from the right side to make sure I’m really getting all the way down into the seam), then press the whole block for a nice smooth finish.
The block should now measure 10”x10”, and there should be 3/4” of background fabric at the narrowest points of Template B. I find that it’s easy to accidentally sew with too large a seam allowance or have the layers misaligned at the beginning and end, so if you measure less than 3/4” background fabric that’s probably why. Just remember to maintain that scant 1/4” seam allowance all the way.
Like anything, it might take a few tries to feel comfortable sewing curved seams. That’s ok! It’s totally doable, and with a little time and a little practice you’ll soon be zipping through these seams like they’re nothing.
Get the Clava pattern here!
