Fussy Cutting

Quick Tips for Fussy Cutting

When using a fussy cutting technique, you can cut out certain motifs in a fabric in order to center them, highlight them within a block design, or create new designs entirely. While fussy cutting big prints for mini quilts is a great way to highlight fabric, the technique Toby demonstrates is a great way to create new designs within a fabric.

She begins by explaining how to locate the repeats in a fabric. Some fabrics may only have a repeat going in one direction, either horizontally or vertically. Other fabrics may have repeats going in both of those directions, and some even in three directions: horizontally, vertically, and diagonally.

Toby then shows how to use mirrors to allow you to see the designs you will be creating by fussy cutting out a specific area before you cut into the fabric. The angle at which you set the mirrors will depend on the angle you plan to cut out your pieces. Toby demonstrates an easy way to set the mirror angle using templates.

Once you have identified the repeat you wish to use within the fabric, Toby shows how to cut out the pieces using templates, giving tips for using templates along the way. These tips include how to ensure that your fabric does not slip on the template as you cut it, and how to ensure that you are cutting out the same areas of the fabric each time. She then shows how to lay out and stitch the pieces together.