Quick Tips: How to Cut Fabric Perfectly

There is no anxiety a sewists dread more than the anxiety that comes when you are snipping away at your precious fabric. The saying “measure twice, cut once” is there for a reason. If you cut your fabric incorrectly, it can ruin a project and it can cost you a ton of money. Fabric is not cheap and if you do not know how to cut fabric properly, it can do some serious damage. It is even harder to learn how to pin and cut a pattern on fabric. You have to cut your fabric to match your piece, ensure that your print is going the right way, and make sure that you cut the right side facing out. Stressed out yet? Don’t worry, sewists. That’s why we are here yet again to help you out. Quick Tips: How to Cut Fabric Perfectly is going to give you the top 5 things you can do to cut fabric perfectly every single time.
Quick Tips: How to Cut Fabric Perfectly


Prepare your fabric: Make sure your fabric is ready to cut before you even thinking about figuring out how to cut fabric for your projects. That means washing (if you are making a wearable) and pressing your fabric to destroy any wrinkles.

 

Make sure your tools are ready, too!: If you cut fabric with a dull blade or pin it with a dull pin, it is going to do a lot of damage. You want something that will snip the threads in your fabric precisely and not something you have the saw at.

Match your selvages as closely as possible: Oftentimes when you are cutting fabric, your pattern will indicate to fold your fabric in order to trace several pattern pieces at once. Insure that your selvages are aligned perfectly.


 
Selvage (n.) – the self-finished edge of your fabric aka you best friend when it comes to learning how to cut fabric perfectly!
 
Listen to your pattern: This might seem like a no-brainer, but it is so important. Patterns are written and created by experts. They are labeled to give you the best project necessary. Most projects will have directional arrows on them that will indicate the direction of the pattern. Make sure these are parallel to your selvage.







Double check before you do anything: So, you have read your pattern, measured your fabric, pinned your pattern, and you are ready to go. The next step is to start cutting, right? NO! Now is the time to double check everything. Lay out your pieces and look them over. Is everything in its place? If so, snip away! If not, good thing you double-checked.