Originally Posted by ckcowl
lots of shops tear the fabric...the tear runs along the grain-line insuring you get a straight piece of fabric. when it is only cut often you get shorted...one end could be off by a number of inches! so although you get a stringy edge at least it is straight. and you only have to trim less than 1/2" to get rid of the strings...when it's been cut you could have to cut off 6" to get it straight.
I totally agree with you. The way the fabric is put on the bolt and the sometimes carelessness of the employee cutting the fabric you can really lose a lot of fabric. Tearing for the straight of grain has been around for generations. I have rarely lost much fabric after tearing but trying to line it up straight of grain after it has been cut has cost me lots of inches. The trick is to slowly tear and not rip through the process.