Realigning Fabric
 

So, I am very new to quilting. I have made hot pads and paper pieced some log cabin coasters. I am working out of a new book called Quilter's Academy. It is actually a series of 5 books the teach you about piecing quilt tops. (There is a separate book for the quilting part). The instructions tell you before you start that you are to tear a 2 1/2 inch strip from each edge of your fabric (That's 5 inches) to realign the fabric and then iron and starch to create a new center fold. I had never heard of this before. I feel like I am wasting fabric when I do this. Does anyone ever do this and is it necessary? Thanks in advance!!

I've never heard that before. I don't think you need to do it with quilt shop quality fabric. I do cut my selvages off - I cut 1.5" on the printed side and save them for projects, and about 0.5" off the other end. Then I iron and square up along those cut sides.

way back when, when we sewed fashion, we made sure we had straight grain. Doing this for quilting, is indeed a waste of fabric. I use the fold as my point of reference, and if you cut with your ruler lined up along the fold, you will have straight cuts. There is a wealth of knowledge on this site! Keep asking questions! I'm so happy to welcome you to the quilting community!

I do tear a new edge typically after I've washed the fabric. The yardage is generally so badly cut/folded on the bolt that I rarely get anything close to a straight cut. I figure out the low side and snip about 1/2" from the edge, typically I get about 2" off on the long side. I don't starch, but my prepared fabric is crisp and folded into fourths and ready to be cut into strips. I used to leave the corresponding raw edge ragged but over the years I've gotten fussy and cut/tear off both ends.

It can make a person angry if they let it, the terrible bad cuts we get, again it isn't all the cutter's fault though, some of it is how it is on the bolt. And don't get me started on how awful I've found store cut fat quarters... But yeah, if I have two ends both 4" off, that's 8" or an 8th of a yard of loss which is just not money nor fabric I wish to throw away but neither is it usable to me. 2.5" seems excessive, you do need about half an inch to start for a good tear, and then I cut off about 1/4" with the rotary cutter to take off the warp from the tear. I've started buying an additional half yard of extra wide backing fabric because I'm tired of not having enough after you take care of the bad cuts.

I'm big on being straight on grain because that was what I was taught in Home Ec back in the day... how to pull a strand and then cut along it. The reality is that it doesn't matter so much really, at least depending on what you are doing. I will fussy cut fabric with no regard at all to grain line. The grain can and does matter on bias edges, some people have more problems with bias than I seem to.

If you are really fussy, you should know that tearing isn't enough! With the high speed processes during the process both in the initial weaving and again in the folding and putting on the bolt, the fabric can be twisted or skewed. So your selvedges can be straight and true or the tear line, but not both. In those cases most of us just pick a good compromise, or you can tug on the fabric from the opposite diagonal/bias corners and straighten the fabric.

The big thing is when you cut your first strip from your prepared fabric is to unfold it and look at it. It should be straight with no big V at the fold line. I check my strips about every 3-5 cuts to make sure I'm still cutting straight and the fabric is still straight.

On the downside of being correct with grain is I seem to be covered in a lot more threads than people who are deliberately slightly skewed!

I should add... as a scrap quilter, I never throw any odd pieces of fabric out! You just might be able to use it another time!

I am a pre-washer of all yardage (not pre-cuts though). With the pre-washing comes the task of ironing and refolding the fabric. I iron the fabric flat, then I align my selvedges and wiggle them side to side so the 'bubble' at the bottom fold goes away. I then smooth from the fold to the selvedge edge then iron. That generally leaves you with uneven side edges. I trim one side to get a straight side and that is where I then do my subsequent measuring and cutting. Honestly, it probably does equate to about 2.5 inches per side in the long run.

Like Iceblossom, starting with your fabric on grain was a learned habit from garment sewing days in both home ec classes as well as from my grandmother. And while there are many quilters who do not worry so much about grain, I feel it makes your seams less likely to ravel/shred.

I'm with s..faye. I place the ruler line on the fold and trim the leading edge and then also on the WOFs. I almost never get a v-cut strip.

What the book is talking about is getting the fabric straight on the grain so that any cuts you make will be straight with the proper balance. If the grain is not straight the fabric can bunch up from the bias side or if you are cutting long strips and the fabric is folded in 1/2 you may find an uneven hump at the fold when you open you cut pieces. It is an old habit from dressmaking days to straighten the fabric. I still do it with my quilting fabrics. Especially when I prewash my fabrics. Now I don't cut off 2" since I am hopeful that my grain is not that far off. But it could be off by 2" on one side and only 1/4" to the other side which is why you straighten it. I will line the salvages edges first so I have a visual straightening before I lay it down make a notch and then tear it across. The more difficult part is making sure you keep the fold straight and press it flat. Pinning helps.
Now do I do this all the time no. I do how ever because I am a bit OCD do it more than 50% of the time. Ligning it up on the grain makes for a much nicer block when squaring up your pieces and your blocks.

100% agree. And prints particularly plaids and stripes are seldom printed with the straight of the grain so ripping to get the straight of the grain precise would be no help at all. Also ripping leaves you with a bruised edge that still needs to be trimmed off.

welcome to the board! I've been quilting since dirt was new and still learn stuff every day. Part of the joy of being a quilter.