How to Cut Long Strips for Quilts

It is important to properly measure your quilt strips.

You can make a handmade quilt in a wide variety of different patterns, some using triangular pieces, and others using rectangular strips. If you are interested in making a quilted blanket using rectangular strips, it is important to cut the strips to the exact measurements to ensure that the edges will match up properly. This way, the quilt will look more visually pleasing and the pattern will look like it is made correctly.

Things You'll Need

• Fabric, cotton, wool or flannel
• Measuring tape
• Quilting pencil
• Pinking shears

Instructions

1. Determine how large you want your quilt to be. If you are making a quilt throw blanket, it should be 4 feet high and 6 feet long.

2. Measure out enough strips to have a certain number of rows and columns. For a 4-foot-by-6-foot quilt, measure out 48 strips that are 6 inches wide and 12 inches long.

3. Mark the measurements using a quilt pencil.

4. Cut the quilt strips using pinking shears. Pinking shears allow you to see the lines of the strips more clearly than using scissors.

References

• Day Style Designs: Cutting Fabric