I started quilting just before the rotary revolution. I have certainly used cardboard templates and/or paper patterns because that was really most of what we had back then was just the old newspaper patterns like Kansas City Star/Ruby McKim. Her 101 Patchwork Patterns was my first quilt book.
http://mckimstudios.com/
I figured out that I could buy desk size blotter paper with a 1/4' grid on them, they were basically the exact size as the folded in half fabric, so I would draw my lines on that and could cut 4-6 layers with my big heavy shears.
And then came rotary cutters and strip piecing techniques. Love them. Learned them. How to draw grids and sew mass amounts of HST at a time. Ways that you can do things on sewing machines, some patterns are easier done by hand. Some easier redrafted to eliminate unnecessary seams or add seams to make it easier to piece on machine.
I still feel a connection to previous quilters. I know some of them would have been all over the cool stuff we have!
edit/ps: Last year or the year before I bought a template set for a Grandmother's Fan project because I wanted that sturdy consistent fan blade and each piece I was using was unique and fussy cut. I did cut them with a small rotary blade so don't know if that counts as both or not!