Quilting is considered an American craft.  Early Pioneer
women made quilts from scraps of material left over from
the clothing they made for their families.  To make a
design, a template was made and used to draw the design on
the material.  Then the individual pieces were cut with
scissors.  This was tedious and time-consuming work.

Today's quilters have many specialized laborsaving
quilting equipment to make the process of measuring,
cutting, marking & stitching easier. Patchwork is about
accuracy, careful marking & measuring so it's worth
investing in proper tools.  When the end result is done
properly, quilting is beautiful and fun.  

Basic very beginning tools are a large size rotary cutter,
6" x 24" ruler, 18" x 24" cutting mat.  These items can be
found in local fabric stores, specialized quilt shops or
one the internet.  As you start quilting, there are more
specialized equipments you can purchase.

Rotary Cutter Is a round blade mounted on a handle. It
should be with a retractable blade guard for safety because
the blade is very sharp.  
The rotary cutter should be used only on a cutting mat and
with rotary cutting ruler.  

They come in several sizes. The best size for cutting 4 or
more layers at once is with the 1 ¾" (45mm) blade.  Some
rotary cutters come ergonomically contoured to fit your
hand.  This will lessen fatigue when doing a lot of
cutting.  Replace when blades become they become dull
(don't cut w/out pressure) or nicked (skip spots).  I keep
extra blades on hand.  This is for when you are cutting
late at night and the store is closed, just change the
blade and keep cutting.

Rotary cutting self-healing mat comes in many sizes and
brands The 18"x24" is the minimum size necessary.  The 24"
x 36" mat is better as it is large enough to cut material
easier.  Always use a cutting mat to protect blades and the
surface below.  Mats with 1" grid lines are helpful in
cutting straight, accurate strips.
Do not leave in direct sunlight after you purchase your
mat, it can warp and become unusable.  Always store flat.
And never, never set an iron on the mat.  I did once, it
warped and now the expensive mat is worthless.  

Rotary Cutting Rulers are thick clear acrylic ruler
specifically for use with rotary cutters.  These precision-
made rulers are needed for successful quilt making.  Rulers
must be accurate, have lines running horizontally and
vertically.  The basic 6" x 24" ruler should have
guidelines for 45° and 60° angles also.  They should have
legible and frequently spaced 1/8' markings.  Rulers
shouldn't have thick lines as this could distort your
measurements.   

There are many sizes available to make cutting faster and
easier.  I switch rulers as I work using the right-sized
ruler for the task.  The basic 6"x 24" rectangle is used to
cut strips.  A 6" square is used for a second cut on strips
or for trimming triangle squares.  The 12 1/2" square or
16" are used to square up fabrics or blocks.  The squares
can also be used cutting larger strips & squares.  The 3" x
18" rectangle is used for cutting narrow strips.  I also
have different angled triangles for more advanced projects.

These three basic tools can get you started making
accurate cuts of your quilting material.  

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