The Sewing Place
The Emporia => In the wardrobe => Topic started by: mudcat on May 04, 2021, 07:14:28 AM
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This is a question strictly for non-quilters. When you cut out garment patterns do you use scissors or a rotary cutter?
I have assumed for quite a long time that most people use a rotary cutter. However, I had a conversation with my pattern fitting course instructor where I mentioned using the rotary cutter to cut out patterns and she responded that I was brave to use a rotary cutter. So now I'm wondering if there are still a significant number of people who still use scissors.
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I use a rotary cutter for larger pieces and scissors for smaller pieces.
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From an ex quilter coming into the lightside I have tried to use a scissors on a number of items but the bottom part ends up bigger than the top. I love my rotary cutter. Now for tricky curves I want to get myself a smaller rotary cutter because using the big one it feels like the blade is going to brake.
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I use large tailor shears for longer lengths and for smaller pieces I will use smaller scissors. I haven’t tried cutting out a pattern with a rotary cutter. My largest board is A2 so I would either need to buy a larger one or keep shifting the smaller one around the table.
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@mudcat Clearly I'm greedy because I use both!
I prefer scissors for fiddly curves and a rotary cutter for the rest. :)
I don't think it matters what you use so long as it works for you. :thumbsup:
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Same as @Puzzler - my cutting board is plenty big enough for patchwork, but not big enough for clothes.
Until recently I would also have said that my rotary cutter was nowhere near accurate enough for curved pieces, but having bought a 28mm one a week ago (for patchwork pieces with tight curves) I no longer feel that way! I've never had any problems with scissors on normal fabrics, but I am about to make a camisole from something slithery, so, as the pieces are small, I might use my new rotary cutter for that.
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I have a rotary cutter but only tried it once.
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I’m old school and use scissors, have done for decades...only use rotary cutter and ruler for cutting bindings for the coverstitch machine. I think rotary cutters for dressmaking are a relatively new fangled thing.
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I use scissors only too. I bought a rotary cutter (it was on a promotion in Jo Ann fabrics when we were in Florida one time) and it just didn't cut and I got more uneven edges than I had ever had with scissors. I don't feel inclined to try another cutter either.
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Dressmaking shears are what I'm used to and I like them. Big enough cutting board would be a problem for me. I do, however, use a rotary cutter for straight pieces like apron ties. Tbh can't be bothered ti learn rotary cutting round fiddly stuff!
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Scissors all the way, i seem to have a different pair for all occasions: shears for heavy upholstery, large blade for big pieces, bent handle for precision and @Acorn serrated edge for fine/slippy fabrics.
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Another old school sewist here who learned to sew using scissors and shears.
I use a rotary cutter for patchwork and for cutting any long strips of binding etc but my reasons for using scissors include:
1, I don't have a big enough cutting surface - my 35" x 23" mat is nowhere big enough to cut out garment size pieces.
2, Cutting part of a piece, moving the mat and then cutting the rest would likely result in inaccurate cutting. It would also interfere with laying out the pieces especially when tight with fabric, especially if the pattern pieces are not pinned down.
3, For me freehand rotary cutting is not accurate. In last week's GBSB did you notice how one of the contestants sliced off a quarter of an inch of paper pattern, so presumably a quarter of an inch from the fabric, when cutting a pocket?
4, People who use rotary cutters tend to use weights and not pins. How do they prevent the pattern from moving around?
5, Cutting proper outwards notches is very difficult, even with a small diameter rotary cutter. Two reasons why I was taught to cut notches outwards, as I always do. Snipping inwards effectively removes the seam allowance so you have no wriggle room if the garment is a bit tight and needs letting out a little. Also the tiny inwards notches are easy to loose if the fabric frays. Remember the last series of GBSB where a couple of them had two left sleeves! That was all down to cutting inwards notches and loosing them. Sometimes my outwards notches are extra large but I don't loose them, and they get trimmed off when the seam is neatened anyway.
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Scissors all the way, i seem to have a different pair for all occasions: shears for heavy upholstery, large blade for big pieces, bent handle for precision and @Acorn serrated edge for fine/slippy fabrics.
@sewmuchmore serrated edge- ie pinking shears?
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Shears for me. I bought a cheapo (Janome-branded) rotary cutter at an Ally Pally K&S show but didn't get on with it - I tried to use it for my one foray into patchwork but wasn't comfortable and went back to my trusty Fiskars.
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@sewmuchmore serrated edge- ie pinking shears?
I think she meant scissors with micro serrations like those made by Karen Kay Buckley
https://www.karenkaybuckley.com/store.php?cat=5 (https://www.karenkaybuckley.com/store.php?cat=5)
Available in UK from Amazon etc. Lovely scissors.
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Scissors for me too although like @HenriettaMaria I bought a rotary cutter for my short foray into patchwork but couldn't get the hang of it. Not enough practice I guess. I love my Fiskars shears which I bought when I returned to dressmaking about 10 years ago.
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I use both but mainly scissors. I have several pairs and all for different jobs but I must admit I have recently started reaching for my serrated scissors more and more. They look like ordinary scissors but have a tiny serrated edge and cut beautifully.
My rotary cutter and board is always out so I use that if an application is suitable and small enough to fit on my board but mostly for dressmaking and precision work it's scissors. On my recent shirt make I think it was scissors all the way.
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Of all my (garment) sewing friends I am the only one using rotary cutter. Most people I know have patterns with no seamallowances, so the sort of 'wing it' and add the SA while cutting out. I don't trust my skills, so I always add the 1cm SA to the pattern and cut with a RC. I did try scissors, but then I have to cut next to the pattern, extending the SA and cutting wobbly and all that. Much more precise with RC.
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@sewmuchmore serrated edge- ie pinking shears?
@annieeg no not pinking shears, although i have those as well, these (https://www.prosharp.co.uk/detail.asp?item_id=1562&item_name=KAI+Dressmaking+shears+serrated+edge%3Cbr%3E11inch%2F275mm) are the serrated edge.
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Scissors here. I do have a rotary cutter and mats, but I find them a hassle to get out. I do use it occasionally. I know a rotary cutter is supposed to be better for slippery fabrics etc. but I prefer to use tracing or tissue paper as a stabiliser and still use scissors. I attempted to 'quickly' cut tulle with my rotary cutter when making my wedding dress crinoline petticoat and it was a disaster, so the rotary cutter has been in the naughty corner for a good few months! :laughing:
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Always scissors, and I am not going there, more tools in the door.
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Dressmakers' scissors for me. I've always used scissors and had never heard of rotary cutters until I read about them on the old forum. They sound sharp and scary and I don't want to stain good fabric!
I don't have any reason to change as I'm content to continue with what I'm used to. It would only be more stuff to buy and store.
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I've tried with 2 sizes of rotary cutters and cannot get on with them at all.
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Rotary cutter strictly for straight measured bits but not with a pattern piece. Apart from that, pins and scissors for everything.
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Scissors for adult clothes as I don't have a big enough cutting mat but I do use a rotary cutter - 28mm for my Angel baby stuff as I find it easier than scissors for some reason - and quicker.
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I had to cut lots of felt into strips once, went out and bought a rotary cutter as it was killing my hand doing the cutting with scissors. Only used it for that though. I always use scissors for fabrics.
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Depends what i'm cutting or what mood i'm in, if it's a long straight edge then i use my 43mm rotary cutter, then i cut round the notches using my scissors. I have the Fiskars razor edge shears and other numerous pairs of scissors/pinking shears, i mustn't buy anymore as i've run out of hanging space :laughing:
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Obviously I'm out of touch. :laughing:
There is a definite learning curve to using the rotary cutter. I didn't like it at first but I've been using it for more than 20 years and actually I don't think it's all that new as the fabric store I used to go to in Portland (Mill End) sold Olfa mats and rotary cutters w/seam allowance gauge for Burda patterns even back when I was in my 20s.
As far as weights ... I use all my various rulers for weights and things do not move. Plus there's nothing to keep you from pinning. Sometimes I do pin small pieces that the rulers are too big for. I also nearly always cut single layer as I feel that is more accurate grain wise. I don't cut out notches. I snip the seam allowance. I feel like the rotary cutter is far more accurate then scissors which lift the fabric when you cut. I am lucky to have an enormous kitchen counter that will fit four of the 36x24 Olfa mats so space isn't an issue.
I have one of the smaller cutters (28mm) that I used with curves some years back but now that I'm experienced I don't find it problematic to use the 45mm one for all curves.
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Scissors for me too - the only way I can use a rotary cutter is against a ruler edge, and even then I can easily manage to run it over the ruler :laughing:
I do have one of these cutters (https://sewing-online.com/quilt-and-sew-ruler-rotary-cutter.html?utm_source=google_shopping&m=Abstract&gclid=Cj0KCQjw4cOEBhDMARIsAA3XDRhvmXgUVR-Ag_Bly6HfSclnPsSedCRbT0EXry4gYrj6vdfWioOSgmgaAqTSEALw_wcB) for cutting binding or straight edges.
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I'm in a minority! I use the rotary cutter almost exclusively to cut out although I have shears and snippy scissors if necessary. I find my hands seize up if I use scissors or shears too much and being left handed, find the rotary blade much more accurate even though I have left handed versions of all my scissors.
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Scissors for me too. I tried with a rotary cutter once, and it took on a life of it's own despite me being supposedly being in control of it.
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I'm in a minority! I use the rotary cutter almost exclusively to cut out although I have shears and snippy scissors if necessary. I find my hands seize up if I use scissors or shears too much and being left handed, find the rotary blade much more accurate even though I have left handed versions of all my scissors.
What @Nevis5 and @mudcat said! I'll take a rotary cutter any day of the week over scissors. They are extremely accurate if used correctly which BTW many people don't do. Cutting outside notches? That is so last Millennium. It's been over 30 years since I've done that. Just adds more fiddly work. Either a small snip in or pencil or chalk mark or my happy little Frixon pen. Weights or pins. I've never had anything weighted slip.
I think fear of messing up causes most of the problems people experience with rotary cutters. It's like learning to ride a bike. Pedal slowly and you'll wobble all over and have no control. Speed it up a bit and you have much more control. The RC is just another wheel so the same thing applies. I can usually freehand pattern cutting with the RC, even straight edges but use rulers where they make more sense.
It is so much faster to cut with a RC. Also I have Carpal Tunnel, over 30 years, and a sharp RC blade is much kinder to my hands than any scissors, including my spring loaded Fiskars.
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Yes I was going to mention that it's way easier on my hand to use the RC. I don't have carpal tunnel but I do have a sensitive right hand due to all the years of heavy mouse use at my job plus I have nerve damage on my right thumb from an accident with a drinking glass many moons ago so I using scissors for very long can cause a bit of pain and numbness.
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Scissors always.
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Re notches: I was taught to snip outwards to not weaken the s/a. Then I did them as an inwards snip but it's often difficult to see. Then I got a water soluble pen oh joy, that was great. Until the fabric which was permanently marked :angry: now I use a felt tip pen if my water soluble marker is not to hand. Small dots a couple of mm away from the cut edge. This gets chopped off by the overlocker so it's fine unless I need to unpick!
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Shears for cutting out as I feel it’s more accurate. Also like @BrendaP says you can get an economical fabric lay which you couldn’t otherwise. I have no problem with sheers and slippy fabric as they always get cut out with tissue paper under. Not he’s definitely cut outward or you can’t let a seam out slightly and it does weaken the seam cutting them inwards. Years ago when patterns were one size notches were marked outward on the paper. With multi sized patterns that’s not possible. I think that’s where this cutting notches inwards comes from.
Watching them on GBSB using a rotary cutter scares the life out of me. How they don’t chop their fingers off is a real mystery. I’ve heard of too many nasty accidents with them I only use them with a proper ruler and for straight cutting like binding, bag patterns or pieces with no pattern pieces just measurements.
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Snipping doesn't weaken the seam. If you're sewing an old school pattern with a ⅝" seam and make a ⅛" nip it doesn't do as much damage as using pinking shears does. If I'm using the overlocker it's all trimmed off anyway. I've never needed to let something out where that would be a problem. If I'm really unsure I'm going to cut a wide allowance and either mark with pencil or pen or thread.
Cutting with shears distorts. When you slide the lower blade under it has moved the fabric and it is no longer aligned exactly how it was laying flat.
Clipping "notches" came into play in the early 70's as a way to speed up sewing for working women. I believe the outward notch idea was because they didn't think the little ladies at home were bright enough to line things up properly without it sticking out like a flag.
Just do what works for you but don't be afraid to try something else.
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A snip an eighth of an inch long can very easily get lost as the edge of the fabric frays - some fabrics are of course worse than others - hence my comments about the two left sleeves on GSBS.
Anything cut into the seam allowance reduces the possibility of letting out if necessary.
Outwards notches (or pen marks) every time for me.
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I don’t have any problem with distortion using shears. Depends how you use them. If you just use shears and chop away it probably would be a problem but I use my left hand to stabilise everything while cutting.
I do small clips for notches on some fabrics but anything expensive, delicate or liable to fray I’ll tack a mark.
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I'm afraid tacking always eluded me. The few times I tried it the threads seemed to fall out. Obviously, I did something wrong. But yeah do what works for you. I'm lazy and take shortcuts where and when possible.
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Generally speaking, i use a rotery cutter for patchwork and for everything else scissors.
But donot forget "generally". I suppose i might use the rotory cutter more if i had a larger workspace with a very large cutting pad...
For weights i use, well.. weights. From the dumbbell that sits close to where i cut. They work well, though 5kg is a bit overkill...
WD
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I nearly always use scissors as I find a rotary cutter difficult to use.
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Rotary cutter - it's far more accurate.
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Rotary cutter - it's far more accurate.
:dance:
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I mostly use a rotary cutter for dressmaking and don't have any problems regarding economical layout of pattern pieces. I do like to give my Gingher serrated edge scissors an outing sometimes though. Notches are cut outwards.
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I've used scissors since I was a child, so accuracy is not a problem. A few years back, I finally invested in Kai 9-1/2" Dressmakers shears and received comparable Ginghers as a gift two weeks later. So happy I have both! They each cut differently and use my hand muscles differently and place pressure on my arthritic fingers differently - so switching between the two is so helpful.
I helped my niece cut out her first pattern made dress with rotary cutters as the fabric she chose was the slipperyest I'd ever dealt with. I also bought a small rotary cutter and small mat just for trimming thrift store silk neckties into hongkong binding strips. Other than that, cutting an entire garment with a rotary would definitely irritate my carpal tunnel. (When forced to use one of those newer styled veg peelers with the blade perpendicular to the handle, my carpal tunnel is screaming halfway thru my first potato - I switch to a paring knife.)
As for notches, I don't cut them at all. I use my conté pencil (chalk) and mark them. If I think the chalk won't hold on a fabric, I use a felt tip and just make dots.
If I were to ever take up quilting, I'd definitely use a rotary. Cutting straight against a straight edge doesn't bother my carpal tunnel, but stretching my arm and free handing a curve is really uncomfortable.
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Another rotary cutter fan here, 100%, for garments, bags, anything. I have three. My shears barely see the light of day. 1/8" snips for notches only if they're really necessary, minimum number of weights.
My sewing instructor (decades in the industry) swore by scissors but I found her method too time-consuming - all that pinning! It felt like so much unnecessary effort. My cutting table is only 80% covered with mat and DH was asking me what I'd like for my imminent big birthday......so there's a thought :).
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Scissors. I tried RC but it blunts so quickly - what a pain! I had some electric shears which were great, but gave up the ghost.
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I don't pin my patterns. I use weights and trace all around the patterns onto the fabric and then pick it up and use scissors to cut it out. If i had the space (and budget) for a big mat and small rotary cutter i might try it. I have two smallish mats and rotary cutters for quilting/patchwork.
I was cutting both outside and inside notches... Kind of on a whim. Mostly outside though, to preserve seam allowances as I'm really not confident in my lining up and fitting skills. I'm gonna try the felt tip and marking in the seam allowance next, though!
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Notches- those on the edge I mark by taking a small snip into the seam allowances at right angles. Inner markings I make by pushing a lace pin through the tissue into both layers of fabric, and when the tissue is eased off the tiny pin head either chalking where the pins sit or putting a lace pin in each layer to mark the place. This is mainly for dart points. All of this depends on the fabric a bit of course, as well as the complications of the pattern. A loose weave tweed needs a different technique.
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@whofilets
I also use weights and chalk instead of pins. As I have to draft everything myself, I use craft paper which doesn't pin well at all.
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I have a mat the size of my cutting table so more often than not I use the rotary cutter to cut things. I am more accurate with the rc than with scissors most of the time, and with the tendinitis in my hands I can struggle with scissors.
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I use scissors because I struggle to use a rotary cutter. I can’t keep it against the ruler and it wanders off the straight and narrow. I do use it to cut bias bindings but frequently switch back to my big Fiskars, especially if the rotary develops a notch in the blade and misses bits.
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I only started sewing garments last year and have been using a rotary cutter mainly.
I also use a spare rotary cutter to cut out traced off pattern pieces and it’s where I use my used cutter blades when no longer OK for fabric cutting.