Tuesday, June 24, 2008

'no-join' method of cutting fabric strips

This method is by far the BEST way to cut doona (duvet/quilt) covers into strips. Love it, love it, love it! Plus it works brilliantly for pillowcases. I have also successfully used this method to cut sleeves/legs of clothing into strips. It works for any 'tube' of fabric. And it's also the method I use for cutting plastic bags into 'plarn'

As I said... love it, love it, love it!

This is a speedy system of cutting which results in a long continuous strip being formed.

EDITED TO ADD - I have had a fabulous and simple suggestion from one of my regular readers (thank you Karen!)

if you are working with a flat piece of material, such as a sheet... take a few minutes to stitch a seam up one side and make it into a tube... then proceed with the method described below

I have used a pillowcase to demonstrate the technique, and taken lots of photos. Hopefully they will help you in your recycled crafting endeavours.

(click on the photos to enlarge)

1. lay the pillowcase flat, with the opening to the left
step 1

2. begin folding from the bottom up as illustrated
step 2 step 3

3. fold to about an inch from the top edge
step 4

4. trim the left hand side so that you have a straight flat edge... for a pillowcase you are removing that whole thick section of fabric at the opening... for a doona cover you are removing the strip which contains the fasteners/buttons... etc
step 5

5. start cutting strips approximately 1/2 inch wide... cut through folded layers all at once... stop before you reach the very top edge
step 6

6. continue cutting until you reach the end... cut the last strip all the way through
step 7

7. shake out the folds
step 8

8. slide your hand into the tube from the top left hand side
step 9 step 10

9. use fabric scissors to make cuts between the strips... start at the end of the 'spine' and cut diagonally up and left to the end of the first strip as illustrated
step 11

10. continue cutting from the top of one strip to the bottom of the next, moving diagonally up and left... until you reach the end
step 13 step 14

11. make the final cut as illustrated
step 15

12. you now have one continuous strip of fabric which can be rolled into a ball
step 16 step 17
at

41 comments:

  1. TracyJune 24, 2008 at 6:53 PM

    Thank you for sharing that Sharon. Will have to have a go :)

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  2. AmyJune 24, 2008 at 11:10 PM

    I am so impressed I just rushed to get an old pillow case immediately! It worked brilliantly. I now have my first ever ball of recycled yarn waiting to be knitted into something. I may tackle my old pile of t-shirts next. You are a genius, Sharon!

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  3. DotJune 26, 2008 at 11:53 AM

    how clever! i remember doing something like that with paper when i was a child... you'd make a big circle and you'd walk through it..

    thanks for the tip!
    dot

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  4. P DragonJune 26, 2008 at 12:47 PM

    That is totally brilliant. I have been wanting to cut up some plastic bags for recycled knitting purposes, but have been at a total loss as to the best way to do it. So I have to agree; total genius!

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  5. AnonymousJune 26, 2008 at 10:10 PM

    Thanks for sharing. I'll have to try this out.

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  6. UnknownJune 28, 2008 at 9:12 AM

    Thank you, this is very handy.

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  7. KarenJune 29, 2008 at 12:33 AM

    I turned a length of fabric into a tube by sewing up the two ends and then cutting with the 'no join' method - yes!!! How great to make small cuts and save the wrist and hand. Thank you.

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  8. TessJune 30, 2008 at 10:21 AM

    Hey, I recognise that pillowcase! Delighted to see it being put to good use already.

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  9. AnonymousJuly 1, 2008 at 12:23 AM

    Very cool! Thanks for sharing!

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  10. ReginaJuly 2, 2008 at 1:56 PM

    Fabulous!!

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  11. BelAugust 13, 2008 at 10:18 PM

    This is awesome. I cannot wait to try it out. Thank you so much for your awesome blog.

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  12. LaurelAugust 22, 2008 at 3:27 AM

    this is a wonderful technique - thanks for sharing it!

    i blogged about this as part of MomAdvice's Notebook Experiments... come check it out!

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  13. UnknownAugust 31, 2008 at 10:29 PM

    Thank you, Sharon!
    This is so clever and simple ...
    I`ll have to try this out and make something new...

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  14. laughing purple goldfishSeptember 1, 2008 at 2:43 PM

    happy snipping everyone... but it really is addictive :)

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  15. KhrisOctober 10, 2008 at 3:34 PM

    What a brilliant method. I have sent this link to my yahoo groups. I am about to try one of your rag bags. Have never done one and the tutorial looks terrific for a beginner...thanks heaps. Hugs Khris

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  16. laughing purple goldfishOctober 10, 2008 at 7:55 PM

    khris - fabulous... have fun with it, and feel free to pop back and ask questions if you get stuck with anything

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  17. AnonymousOctober 20, 2008 at 10:57 PM

    I have just run into your site, and it's brilliant! I am going to use almost every single crochet related suggestion you've made!

    ReplyDelete
  18. laughing purple goldfishOctober 21, 2008 at 9:17 PM

    shape5 - thanks... enjoy your wonderful world of discovery! so pleased you found my blog inspiring :)

    ReplyDelete
  19. .December 19, 2008 at 2:54 AM

    Muito obrigada!
    Gostei!
    Beijos
    Josi
    http://josicroche.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  20. laughing purple goldfishDecember 19, 2008 at 11:40 PM

    josi - glad you liked it!

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  21. AnonymousDecember 28, 2008 at 1:46 PM

    That is great! But what do you like to do with your pillow case strip ball? Are you knitting with it? What kind of items?

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  22. AnonymousDecember 28, 2008 at 1:48 PM

    That is great! But what do you do with your new ball of pillow case yarn? Are you knitting with it? What kind of things are you knitting? Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  23. AnonymousMarch 24, 2009 at 1:40 PM

    Love it! Thank you for posting this!

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  24. AimNovember 30, 2009 at 4:17 AM

    Amazing! And I've been a seamstress for millions of years and never heard of that!!! Thanks for sharing =D

    ReplyDelete
  25. BobbieJuly 30, 2010 at 7:59 AM

    I tried to subscribe via my email and was told I could't. Then I tried to with the reader and got this, how do I subscribe?

    There has been an error of some kind. Ack!

    FeedBurner could not deliver this feed to you because of the specific problem listed below:
    Feed Address: http://feeds.feedburner.com/LaughingPurpleGoldfishDesigns

    HTTP Error (Code) and Message: (404) Feed not found error: FeedBurner cannot locate this feed URI.

    What can I do about this?
    If you are a potential or current subscriber, contact the publisher to notify them that their feed content is not available. This may be temporary problem that requires their intervention to resolve, or the publisher may have permanently removed the feed from FeedBurne

    ReplyDelete
  26. BobbieJuly 30, 2010 at 8:01 AM

    I have signed up for follow ups so hope you can tell me haw to subscribe I love your blog!

    ReplyDelete
  27. G.AruljothiKarikalanApril 22, 2011 at 11:10 PM

    really useful thanks for sharing

    ReplyDelete
  28. AnonymousJune 14, 2011 at 7:06 PM

    EXACTLEY what I was looking for and good job on the foto's!
    Thanx!

    ReplyDelete
  29. LoriAugust 8, 2011 at 2:04 AM

    Thank you so much for posting such a time and energy saving method!

    ReplyDelete
  30. laughing purple goldfishOctober 20, 2011 at 10:12 PM

    bobbie...

    I have fixed the subscriptions, so you shouldn't have a problem now

    ReplyDelete
  31. Nurse2December 29, 2011 at 2:28 AM

    This method looks so much better than the plarn method of loop ties that I was using! Can't wait to try it, have a big bag full just waiting... Love your designs and tutorials, and just subscribed to your blog. CU later.

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  32. CynthiaFebruary 2, 2012 at 4:35 PM

    Thanks for the great tutorial, I have so many clothes made of beautiful fabrics that I just can't bear to part with - this is a wonderful way to use them all. Now... What the heck DO I use them all for once I've made my fabric ball? Got any ideas? Maybe a hand bag would be nice... do you leave the ends as they are or stitch a hem in them?

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  33. laughing purple goldfishFebruary 6, 2012 at 9:42 AM

    Cynthia...

    I've made hand bags, coasters, bowls, baskets and floor mats... and I'm sure that's just the tip of the iceberg as far as ideas go!

    I haven't ever bothered with a hem, but then again, I do LOVE the scrappy look...

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  34. Stessy TestaApril 17, 2012 at 12:43 AM

    I just used this method to cut up old tube socks and used the “yarn” to crochet mop heads for an old “Swiffer” I found. They work beautifully and I can just toss them into the washing machine when I’m done. Thanks for the tip!

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  35. UnknownJuly 28, 2012 at 1:48 AM

    Thank you for this great tutorial. I've used this method in the past for cutting shopping bags into plarn. This is the first time I've seen it used on fabric.

    I've added a link to your tutorial on my blog.

    Thanks again!!

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  36. PaulaMarch 28, 2013 at 4:05 AM

    Thank you very much for sharing, especially for this method of cutting strips of fabric, I subscribed to your blog by email, but I will keep visiting the site, greetings from Chile!

    ReplyDelete
  37. UnknownFebruary 10, 2014 at 2:41 AM

    Do you think thi swould work with tulle for scrubbies?

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  38. UnknownOctober 30, 2014 at 1:16 AM

    Can't wait to cut the 2 yards of fleece I have waiting to make my daughter a big scarf cuz she lives in Minnesota with her to be husband and last year she could have used it but I couldn't find anything to make it out of now I can hardly wait to get it all cut up so I can start on it

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  39. UnknownJanuary 14, 2015 at 1:20 AM

    Just wanted to say that I love your blog and have posted a link on my new post on your tutorial for cutting continuous strips! thanks :)

    http://www.babybellescrochetshop.com/free-crochet-pattern-for-grocery-purse/

    ReplyDelete
  40. Tasty DestinationDecember 8, 2015 at 9:20 PM

    You had some really great ideas and uses of materials like dressmaking fabric Kudos and thanks for the inspiration!

    ReplyDelete
  41. DeborahApril 22, 2018 at 3:02 AM

    Awesomeness..such cool cute idea..will be making these..My fiance works in wood I'm going to see if I can make a 3 sided lil box for them ...to hold them..would make a cute gift..Thanks for ideas God Bless ya..debb

    ReplyDelete