I have seen and heard her talk about tearing her fabric to be sure she is starting with a straight line. I finally just saw her do it on one of the shows I Tivo.

Does anyone alse do this? And does it work well for you?

I am always amazed as I watch the shows at how easy it all seems when she does it. :)

When you tear the fabric, it kind of "bruises" the edge of the fabric, and it must still be cut, it gets kind of ruffly and makes a soft fringe, but it is useful if you have lots of yardage that you want to cut some off from. I often buy a bolt of black, and tear off just a yard or two when I want some.

If you decide to tear fabric, make a small cut, and tear fast! You will have to tug on it twice, but if you go slow, it seems to make the fabric stretch worse on the torn edges.

As a teen in the early 60's when I worked in a fabric department we were taught to tear some fabrics and cut others. I still tear my 100% cotton fabrics sometimes. And Pam's advice in the post above is right.

I tear large yardage pieces all the time. Smaller cuts like fat quarters etc. I prefer to be cut.

I tear if the piece is noticeably uneven, then I square it up on the cutting mat to get rid of the fraying.

Yup. I *do* tear, and then when I'm making strips, I trim off the little 1/4" that's furry. It's scary at first, but if you have a piece with no selvage it's worth a try.

When I lay out the fabric for my backing, I will tear it. It's much easier than trying to cut straight.

I'm with Candace, I tear large pieces all the time as well. I always measure a little more than I need, then tear it. That way I have a smaller piece to work with and can then cut it to the measurement I need.

I never tear small pieces of fabric either since there isn't that much to begin with and don't want to end up with less yardage than I need.

Thanks! I tend to not know all the time which way the grain actually is. I think I just need more practice. I have a ton of scrap pcs with no salvedge (sp) and it seems for the life of me I can't cut straight :)

ditto