How to Choose the Perfect Fabric for Your Fussy Cutting Project – 10 Expert Tips* April 05 2020

You’ve seen those beautiful Millefiori quilts all over social media, donning magazine covers and filling books.  Those intricate designs and patterns can almost seem intimidating.  But did you know that the magic started with the fabric selection.?

With these 10 Expert Tips*, you can create your own fussy cut masterpiece too!

Before You Select Your Fabric:

• After you have your pattern and paper pieces, make or purchase a fussy cutting viewer which allows you to see what your fussy cut will look like once your piece is basted and then sewn.  Take the viewer with you to fabric store or to your stash so you can see the multitude of possibilities.  You will never see fabric in the same way!

• You can also use a Magic Mirror to audition to see fabric before you purchase it and more importantly before you cut it.   The mirror lets you preview design concepts like tessellations and how they will work before extensive cutting.  Remember, the mirror gives you the reverse image!

When Selecting Your Fabric:

• Look for motifs that don’t have a lot of distracting clutter in the nearby background.
• Small overall prints or large flowing designs do not create interesting images.
• Solids give eyes a resting place but can be flat in overall design.  Tone on tone work nicely.
• Symmetrical prints are excellent and easier to utilize (geometrical, stripes, lines, banding); that said, asymmetrical prints also have interesting possibilities.

Before Purchasing Your Fabric:

• Count repeats in a design. Some have as much as a 24 inch repeat on each side of the fold.  You may need up to 2 yards for one particular motif but you may find numerous other motifs you can also use within the repeat.
• Watch when fabric is cut. Sometimes the fabric might be rolled on bolt at slight angle and you could lose precious motifs.  Consider this in your yardage.
• Always buy more fabric than you think you need.

After Purchasing your Fabric

• Don’t prewash fussy cut fabric. You can, however, use cold water and a Color Catcher (found in the laundry section at the grocery store) when you wash the quilt later.

And that’s how to choose fabric for fussy cutting! Wasn’t too difficult, was it? Just follow these quick steps and see how you can create your own masterpiece in no time (well, slow stitching time…enjoy the journey)!

Do you have any tips you would like to share?

Meanwhile, if you want to learn more about fussy cutting complex designs, here’s a tutorial for you!

*curated from Carolyn Pytlik’s tips and tricks for the Celestial Star Stitch-Along.