I struggled with the Chain Link quilt for a number of reasons. Once was the charm square sizes. Charm squares are supposed to be 5″, right? The charm squares for Chain Link were “about” 5 inches. Some were less and some were more.
I try not to buy pre-cuts for this reason, but cutting charms into 2.5 inch squares is a quick way to make 16 patches.
I didn’t wash the Moda Grunge charms I bought recently even though I normally do. I happened to measure the first stack before I started to cut them up. I found they were larger than 5 inches. So I trimmed them, then cut them into 4 pieces. Why can’t charm squares be 5 inches?
I really think that cutting accurately is key. Having charm squares that are touted as being 5 inches NOT be 5 inches is false advertising. It also leads to a lot of problems:
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- designers assume 5 inches and write patterns for 5 inch squares
- there is an implicit suggestion not to wash the charm squares
- starting with an inaccurate size compounds problems across the quilt
- the above affects a quilt’s outcome and can affect the quiltmaking experience.
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I buy fabric to use. If pre-cuts are primarily made to look pretty on a shelf, they should be marketed that way. My advice: cut your own charm squares!