What is Fussy Cutting?
Fussy Cutting is one of those things that seems to mystify people and make them think that it’s not something that can be done easily. I’m here to tell you that it can be learned, you can do it and there’s nothing super secretive or black arts about how it’s done. Before we can get down to learning the techniques lets learn a little bit more about what it is.
I love fussy cutting so much that I wrote a book about it – Fussy Cutters Club: A Bootcamp for Mastering Fabric Play – so if you’ll indulge me a little I’m going to share some of the information that you can find in that book (because, why reinvent the wheel!).
WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHEN YOU SAY “FUSSY CUTTING”?
Fussy Cutting refers to cutting fabric while paying deliberate attention to the placement of a print or design with the cut piece. It’s not cutting strips or shapes from fabric and letting the print fall where it may; it’s about being aware of how the use of a particular part of a particular fabric will enhance a project.
In its simplest form, fussy cutting highlights a specific aspect of a print, such as a character in a novelty print. At its most complex, fussy cutting uses the design in fabrics to create a secondary pattern.
Angie Wilson “Fussy Cutters Club: A Bootcamp for Mastering Fabric Play“
I’ve seen people call it intentional piecing or precision cutting – whatever you call it, it boils down to being mindful about what will be seen in the final quilt block. This means you have to be considered in relation to your seam allowance (and you have to be consistent with your 1/4″ seam!).
What do you need to be a fussy cutter?
There’s 3 components to being a fussy cutter:
- Fabric,
- Tools, and
- Attitude
1. Fabric
This is the foundation that fussy cutting is built on. We can’t cut it if we don’t have it! Now you’ll be forgiven if you think you need to have a stash filled with novelty prints to be a fussy cutter – you don’t! You need a well balanced stash, which means you need feature prints, blenders and solids.
What is a Feature Print?
This is a print which you want to show off, or make a feature of. It can be something as simple as a novelty print where you want to pick out a specific character or it could be a big scale floral. The scale of these prints can vary and you’ll need to consider the scale of the patchwork you wish to use this in when picking your fabrics.
It’s no use buying a print that’s 10″ x 10″ wide when you’ll be working with 2″ x 2″ pieces as you’ll be losing the impact of that print when it’s in the patchwork.
The Red Queen print below is designed for 8″ x 8″ square. The Kinship: 100 Block Fusion Sampler quilt blocks finish at 8″ x 8″ so the scale is nearly perfect, however as you can see below to make it work in the blocks you’ll need to cut off some of the detail of the print.
What is a Blender?
Blender prints could also be referred to as complimentary prints as they’re used to keep the focus on your feature print but add a bit of texture or detail to your work. In my Kinship Block 1 above I’ve used a stripe and polka dot to frame the feature print.
Ditsy prints and tone-on-tone prints fall into this category. They’re prints that don’t compete with your feature prints but allow them to shine.
What is a Solid?
This is pretty straight forward, it’s a fabric that consists of just one colour, hence why it’s called a solid. It needs to be said however that you should buy the best quality solid fabric you can afford as it will hold it’s colour longer, not fray and it’ll wear as well as the rest of your quilt.
Solid fabrics are a great way to “quieten” a busy quilt. If you don’t want to go over board on feature prints or maybe you need to provide some contrast to all the prints you’ve got going on, whatever it is you should always have a working collection of solids in your stash.
A FQ bundle of solids from your favourite fabric manufacturer will go a long way. I always try to keep one in my stash to pick from across multiple projects. The other great thing about solids is that they’re easily found and cheaper than printed cotton which means you can splurge on a feature print you love and make it sing with solids.
2. Tools
I still maintain that you can fussy cut with only a rotary cutter and ruler, you don’t need to get all fancy. However, I’ve found that there’s a few tools in my arsenal that have contributed to my consistency, accuracy and fabric conservation so now they’re my desert island must-haves.
My must have tools are simple: From Marti Michell Templates and Rulers and an Olfa Rotary Cutter.
[CLICK HERE] to purchase the From Marti Michell 6.5″ Fussy Cutter Ruler.
If you’d like to see how I use the templates be sure to tune into the Kinship: 100 Block Fusion Sampler tutorial series – coming 1 July 2021.
3. Attitude
You’re going to make mistakes. You’re going to cut into something precious and realise that you’d rather use something else. You’re going to slip on a cut and ruin something. You’ll get a whack seam allowance and something will be off centre. Trust me – I’ve made all the mistakes and I’m still making them. The key here is to PRACTICE!
You’ll learn how to pick the prints that will work for what you want to do. You’ll find a method for cutting that works best for you. You’ll find people on social media to follow for inspiration. You’ll match a seam like a boss. (And then you’ll be walking like this!)
Where to from here?
If you’d like to know more be sure to check out my book Fussy Cutters Club: A Bootcamp for Mastering Fabric Play.
[CLICK HERE] to purchase Fussy Cutters Club: A Bootcamp for Mastering Fabric Play.
