Beginner's Guide To Quilting - UK (2020-04)

All about...

CUTTING

F

or first-time patchworkers it’s

all too tempting to dive

headfirst into your fabric

stash and start cutting. But there’s

nothing worse than squandering

beautiful fabrics due to a careless

cut in the wrong place. We’re here to

teach you a few basic skills that will

equip you with the know-how you

need to cut your fabrics in a way that

makes your patchwork projects look

great every time. We’ll show you how

to prepare your fabrics, square up

fabric on your cutting board and

accurately cut a few basic shapes.

Once you’ve mastered the basics,

turn to our ‘Shapes’ section on page

77 to try your new skills on triangles,

hexagons and curves too.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN...

It’s always a good idea to spend a little

time preparing fabrics before you use

them. For patchwork and quilting, you’ll

mostly be using cotton fabrics. See pages

30 and 31 for our handy guides to

pre-washing and pressing your fabric.

Before you start, check all fabric pieces

for straight edges – it might not have

been cut accurately when you bought it.

If the fabric isn’t straight use your rotary

cutter and ruler to trim it (see the How to

Square Up diagram, below). You’ll also

need to trim away the selvedge – the

tightly woven fabric edge. It’s often more

than ¼in (6mm) wide so could show in

your patchwork.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

You’ll find your patchwork is easier, faster

and more accurate if you treat yourself to

a few basic tools. Of course you can

always cut your fabric with scissors but

rotary cutting equipment gives the most

accurate results.

Start by investing in a self-healing

mat, rotary cutter and acrylic quilter’s

ruler (see page 16). Safety is key when

you use rotary cutting equipment as the

circular blades are extremely sharp.

Use a strong acrylic quilter’s ruler –

normal rulers are not suitable and, in

fact, can be dangerous as the cutter could

slide up over the edge. Place your cutting

mat on a firm surface at a height

comfortable for you and your back, and

always cut away from you, replacing the

guard the moment you have finished

cutting. To keep your edges neat, replace

or sharpen the blade when the cutter

starts skipping threads.

HOW TO ‘SQUARE UP’

For the best results, cut your fabric pieces

so they’re right-angled and on the

straight grain. Rotary cutting equipment

is recommended for this. You can also

check that a finished quilt top is

right-angled using the same technique.

Place your pressed fabric on your

cutting mat so a selvedge is aligned with

a horizontal marking on the mat. (If your

Can’t wait to start snipping up your beautiful fabric finds into

patchwork blocks? Hold on to those scissors! Here’s the

lowdown on how to get the best strips and squares...

Patchwork Made Easy

Square

quilter’s

ruler

Selvedge

Selvedge Selvedge

Lengthwise cut strip

Crosswise cut strip

34 Beginner’s Guide to Quilting

Check fabric

edge lines up

with mat.

HOW TO SQUARE UP CUTTING DIRECTIONS

Top tip

Find a large work

surface to put your

mat on so you have

room to use it

from more than

one angle.