I've become a confident piecer, and my blocks are coming out mostly right since I did my deep dive into understanding where the bias is in the block (and all the various construction methods) Did you see that bias post? I think that it is pretty interesting largely because it helped me! Maybe it will help you too.
That ole "Perfect practice makes perfect" really is on the mark. Because the people who demonstrate this "stuff" are so excellent, we mere mortals think our first efforts should look like there's.
While I prefer to piece on Brown Betty, I do not have as much a visual because the toe of the foot is so narrow. I have two Bernina's. For my newer 530B, I have the gated piecing foot, and I just got the regular piecing foot.
The Bernina 57 Gated foot rolls over any ridges and does not get caught on anything. But you cannot see the markings on the outside edge Frankly I bought a set of cheap feet, and they are just that...cheap. The 1/4" foot did not line up accurately with my needle and I ended up with several broken needles, because the hole on the foot was so narrow. I tossed and I have never looked back. I also purchased a single hole plate.
Many don't like to do all of the seam marking necessary to make the accurate starts and stops required by inset seams. Well, the #37 is well marked. (As are brands) If you want to start perfectly at 1/4" inside the diamond shoulder, just line up the middle mark with the outside of the diamond shoulder. Because the foot is a perfect 1/4" you are inside the corner exactly 1/4" which is where your dot or cross would be.
My 530B will be my go-to piecing machine for Y seams. I don't need the gated foot for Brown Betty as the foot is a perfect 1/4" (scant) and I have lovely machined guide that screws securely into the machine and keeps fabric edge where it needs to be.
My frustration over my LeMoyne Star block has abated quite a bit. While I have have tried other methods, my hybrid method of piecing (sew the diamonds; join the halves (locks down all bias on lower diamonds); inset the squares (locks down the biased edges on the diamonds and you can PRESS), and then inset the triangles gives me the best overall results.
I feel that for me, it is too much fabric handling and my diamonds start to get droopy on the bias edge. If my technique were perfect, then my results might be different. For now, I feel like at least when I start, I will have a usable block at the end. I have a few that were beyond rescue.
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