With arthritis and a bad back I prefer to tear anything longer than 24". When I was in HOme Economics class many years ago our teacher told us not to purchase fabric that was offgrain or if the pattern was printed crooked. She told us as long as the customer was willing to pay for bad fabric they would continue to sell it to us. If I am purchasing a plaid or a striped fabric I will insist that the store tear it. That is the only way to be sure it is woven or printed correctly. With the price of fabric constantly going up we should be able to purchase quality.