How to cut perfect square

[jyanla]

I'm making cloth wipes. So it doesn't have to be perfect square. But when I cut, I was wondering how quilters cut their squares. Is there a trick for them to cut perfect squares? Any special tools?

[rubelin]

A huge clear ruler!! My mom got me a rotary cutter set in college with a mat, the cutter and a ruler and that 6" x 24" ruler is the best thing I ever got!! I use it for every single sewing project and art projects, too. It works great with the rotary cutter (that's how I cut my wipes) but it's also good for drawing lines to cut with scissors, for lining up grain lines and just for holding patterns down when you're cutting. Mine is 1/8" acrylic, made by Dritz, but I've seen lots of brands out there.

[seraph]

I have a bunch of clear square rulers for quilt blocks that I use with the rotary cutter and mat. I find that the 6.5" square one makes nice washcloth size and the 9.5" square makes good wipes. I got them at my local fabric store.

[fraya]

nak

a tip: if you're using a woven fabric (eg flannel), you can rip it from selvage to selvage. Just snip w/ scissors a tad past the selvage (like 3/4 in. in from edge) and then grab the sides and rip. That gives you one straight line for your square (and it helps you find the cross-grain, fyi).

[rubelin]

nak

a tip: if you're using a woven fabric (eg flannel), you can rip it from selvage to selvage. Just snip w/ scissors a tad past the selvage (like 3/4 in. in from edge) and then grab the sides and rip. That gives you one straight line for your square (and it helps you find the cross-grain, fyi).

The only drawback to that method is when fabrics are off grain, which happens more than I like So after you rip one end, check to make sure it's actually perpendicular to the selvage before you start cutting or ripping anything else, or you'll end up with diamonds

[fraya]

I actually rarely find materials off-grain, but I'm buying more expensive textiles nowadays.

And my approach to off-grain actually seems to be the reverse of yours: I want to know what the grain is, so I find it by ripping. Then, I do not set the fabric selvage-to-selvage if it is off-grain, I just match-up the on-grain side (the ripped side). That way, I know that what I'm cutting is on-grain.

So, if I were cutting squares in off-grain fabric, I'd rip it selvage-to-selvage at the desired intervals first. Then I'd match-up the ripped sides, and then I'd cut straight across (perpendicular to the ripped edges), disregarding the selvage -- that is, I would use the ripped edge as my guide rather than the selvage, because the selvage is off-grain but the ripped edge is on-grain.

Whatever you choose to do, have fun!