There are many ways to cut out a pattern. You can pin the paper pattern pieces to the fabric, you can copy the pattern onto freezer paper and iron it onto the fabric, cut and then peel it off (I'll save this is for another blog post) or you can trace the pattern pieces onto the fabric. You can have the fabric folded in two so you are cutting two pieces at once, or you can have the fabric unfolded, so you are only cutting through one layer at a time.
That's a lot of choices.
When sewing with children under 10, I think tracing the pattern onto the back side of an unfolded piece of. fabric works best.
First, why?
- No pins involved.
- Most patterns are printed on regular paper, not tissue paper, which is difficult to pin.
- You won't need to use the iron.
- If the fabric is unfolded it is easier and more accurate to cut one layer at a time.
- This method better preserves pattern pieces, which are secured to poster board.
Here's how to make your pattern pieces:
- Use a copier to copy the pattern pieces onto Matte White Sticker Paper. Roughly, cut the pieces out. #1 in visual below.
- Stick them onto white poster board #2.
- Accurately cut out each piece in the center of the black outlines. When you are done you should have a sturdy tracable poster board piece of each pattern piece. #4
- Sharpen a colored pencil. #3
- Have your child trace the shapes onto the backside of the fabric. If they trace on the front, there is more of a chance that lines that go astray may be visible.
- Next, your child should cut along their traced lines.
- Keep the paper pattern pieces nearby while sewing so you can tell what each piece of fabric is.
