Free Quilt Patterns - Rotary Cutting Tools - What You Need to Get Started Quilting

Rotary Cutting Tools

Rotary cutting is one of the most time-saving skills a quilter can master, because it eliminates the need to mark and cut individual patches of fabric. Not only does rotary cutting speed up quilt assembly, if done correctly it can enhance accuracy.

Rotary Cutters

Rotary cutters resemble pizza cutters, with an important difference—their blades are razor sharp so they can slice through fabric. I'll never forget how frightened I was when my then 7-year old daughter came to me crying, her hands covered in blood. She had found a new rotary cutter, which I thought was tucked away safely, opened the package and proceeded to cut construction paper. Thankfully, her cuts weren't deep. I'm not sure she'll touch a rotary cutter to this day.

Many styles of rotary cutters are available, all with different shapes of handles and a variety of protective sheaths. In general, larger rotary blades allow you to cut more layers of fabric at once--but cutting too many layers at a time can destroy your accuracy, so get plenty of practice before you stack loads of fabrics. Replace the rotary blade when it no longer makes a swift, clean cut through the cloth.

Rotary Mats

You'll place your fabric on a special rotary mat to cut it. Mats are slightly rough to help grip the fabric and they're made of a material that keeps your blade from becoming dull too quickly.

Most rotary mats are self-healing, meaning that any nicks the blade leaves as is passes over the mat are not permanent. Some mats are reversible, with a dark and a light side to contrast with different colors and shades of fabrics. Most rotary mats are marked with a grid, which is an excellent guide to fabric placement but not accurate enough to measure strips for cutting--you'll need a rotary ruler for that task.

Purchase the largest mat you can afford that fits your work area, because large mats make it much easier to cut fabric into strips.

Rotary mats warp easily, so be careful to keep them out of direct sunlight and away from heat sources.

Rotary Rulers

Acrylic see-through rulers are used to align and hold your fabric against the mat and to create an edge for accurate cutting. Look for rulers with very thin line markings, because narrow lines make it easier to align the edge of the fabric accurately instead of guessing where the fabric edge might be under a thick mark.

Start with a few basic rulers and add to your collection as you discover what works best for you:

A 6" x 24" rotary ruler is a must and enables you to make nearly any type of cut. It should be marked with 30, 45, and 60-degree lines, with dimensions are in 1/8" increments. Omnigrid's 6x24 neon marked ruler is a good choice.
A 6.5" x 6.5" square ruler is perfect for aligning and cutting squares and triangle squares. Dimensions are duplicated along two adjoining sides, with a diagonal guideline running through them. Marks should be in 1/8" increments--like this.
A 12.5" x 12.5" square ruler helps you make sure blocks are square, but you'll find lots of other uses for it.

There are hundreds of kinds of rotary rulers. Start with the basics and add to your collection as you discover which rulers work best for your needs.

Recommended Rotary Products

Olfa NCM L 24" x 36" 3 layer Rotary Cutting Mat in Green

Olfa RM CLIPS/2 23" x 70" 2 Piece Continuous Grid Rotary Mat Set in Green

Olfa RTY 3 60mm Deluxe Manual Rotary Knife Blade Fabric Cutter

Or Explore a Large Collection of Rotary Cutters & Mats

Quilting Cottons
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