Cutting your own fabric for homemade garments is both gratifying and practical. Instead of paying top dollar for the perfect blouse or button-up shirt, you can craft your own using the materials of your choice. Before you begin sewing your item, you need to accurately measure and cut the fabric. If you are using a pattern, this part of the process is made even simpler. With a few simple sewing tools, you’ll be ready to begin sewing in no time.
Step One
Determine the dimensions of the fabric required for your garment. If you are working from an instructional book or sewing guide, check the necessary width and height of each piece of fabric involved in the garment. Record these dimensions on a piece of note paper for reference purposes.
Step Two
Place your fabric near a large, flat working surface. If you are cutting several different types of fabric, arrange them in the order to be cut. Spread your self-healing cutting board onto the working surface and set all tools to the side of the board.
Step Three
Spread your fabric onto the cutting board. Align the top and side edges of the fabric with a top corner of the grid. Gauge the amount of fabric you wish to cut using the appropriate unit of measure, printed along the edges of the cutting board.
Step Four
Mark the fabric in the places you wish to cut, using the dimensions you recorded in Step 1. Check your marks for accuracy by placing a transparent ruler over the fabric and cross-referencing with your recorded dimensions.
Step Five
Hold your fabric firmly in place on the cutting board and move your rotary cutter along the cutting mark in a single pass. Repeat for the other mark. If your fabric is very thick, you may wish to use fabric scissors instead of a rotary cutter.
Step Six
Repeat the above steps for each piece of fabric that requires cutting.