Hello, Makers! 

Coming back this week with another tutorial, if you missed what we spoke about last time, make sure to check out my Reverse Applique Flower Patch tutorial! As many of you may or may not know, my quilting journey started pretty recently as I dove headfirst into this industry and fell in love with fabrics! As I progressed my skills in the quilting world, my research was always intense as I was craving to learn more about it every week. One of my favorite things I learned about was Fussy Cutting! Which is a technique of choosing a bit of a print to highlight when you cut around it and place your patchwork project. 

When I first learned about it, the concept seemed so easy! Just cut out your design on the fabric, right? It wasn't until I finally brought the fabrics to the cutting board that I realized there is more to it than meets the eye. 

Using Maureen Cracknell's "Autumn Vibes" fabric collection in the print "Foxes in Fall" and Bonnie Christine "Lambkin" fabric collection in the print "Little Entomologist" was the perfect example for me to demonstrate this technique.

Also, please note that if you plan to do a lot of fussy cutting, it may require to use of more fabric since you are only cutting out one design at a time. 

In order to have your desired piece of print on your block, you first need to measure the size of the square you need to cut. 

For example, on the print "Foxes in Fall", the fox print measures about 3¼’’ x 2½’’, so if you want to fussy cut this print, I would suggest measuring with a ruler and cutting it at 4½’’ x 4½’’ square. This way, when you sew your project at a ¼’’ seam allowance, you’ll still have your fox print intact. 

You can also use the fussy cut technique with any EPP projects. For example, to cut Bonnie Christine’s print in "Little Entomologist" you can fussy cut the insects with hexies templates. 

The fun thing about this print is that you can play around with the insect’s direction when constructing your project.  Make sure to center your hexie template and cut ¼’’ bigger than the template so you can have enough fabric to fold over with working your EPP project.

When they say "Measure twice, cut once" they couldn't be any more accurate for this technique, and it's the quote you have to live by when fussing cutting! Practice always makes perfect, so I gathered some of my favorite free sewing patterns from AGF's website where you can take this skill and apply it to other projects. 

Have fun cutting your favorite elements in our "Luna & Laurel" fabrics to create these coasters! 

Here some bonus patterns like this cradle arranger where you can fussy cut our Pine Lullaby Rediscovered PANEL print or enjoy some English Paper Piecing to create our Buttercup Necklace! 

Download Pattern Here

Download Pattern Here

I hope you enjoyed my brief breakdown, and if you have any other tips for this technique, please share them in the comments below! As a beginner, I am always shocked by the tips I find every day, so If you have anything to share, I'd love to read it. 

Until next time,

Happy sewing!

– Jannelle