Many people have asked me for an explanation of how to sew inset seams or Y-seams after reading my Luminosity Stars pattern in the Fons and Porter March 2005 issue.
Basically an inset seam develops at the intersection of three seams meeting at a single point, such as in the pattern Tumbling Blocks, where three diamonds meet at a single point, or when you sew together rows of hexagons. My Luminosity Stars pattern involves both of these configurations, and lots of Y- seams so it will give you a great deal of practice in learning how to do this! You will be an expert after you make this quilt.
Once you get the hang of it this is actually a very easy maneuver to execute, but it takes a little bit of precision and some advance planning. First of all you need to be able to sew an accurate quarter inch seam. Either you use a sewing machine foot designed especially for quarter-inch seams, or measure from your machine needle to a quarter inch away and mark your sewing machine with a piece of tape.