Reed Sew-Along: Cutting

Today we're cutting our Reed Skirts! Cutting is pretty straightforward but takes a bit of time making sure you've got everything you need cut out. Since the Reed has so many options we've prepared four illustrations that show exactly which pieces you need and how many of each for every view.

Reed View A

Important points for cutting View A:

• Trim the front of Piece 1 along the line that says "Trim along this line for views A & B"
• You'll need Pieces 2 & 3 for your side front
• Make sure you cut two of Piece 7 in interfacing as well as your main fabric
• You'll need four of each waistband piece in your main fabric and another two in interfacing.

Reed View B

Important points for cutting View B:

• Trim the front of Piece 1 along the line that says "Trim along this line for views A & B"
• You'll need Pieces 2 & 3 for your side front
• Make sure you cut two of Piece 10 in interfacing as well as your main fabric
• You'll need four of each waistband piece in your main fabric and another two in interfacing.
• Make sure to cut Pieces 8 and 9 for the hem extension

Reed View C

Important points for cutting View D:

• DO NOT trim the front of Piece 1 along the line that says "Trim along this line for views A & B"
• You'll need Piece 4 for your side front
• You'll need 4 of each waistband piece in your main fabric and another two in interfacing.
• Cut Patch Pocket Piece 14 - you can ignore the grain on this piece if you'd like decorative pockets

Reed View D

Important points for cutting View D:

• DO NOT trim the front of Piece 1 along the line that says "Trim along this line for views A & B"
• You'll need Piece 4 for your side front
• You'll need 4 of each waistband piece in your main fabric and another two in interfacing.
• Cut Patch Pocket Piece 14 - you can ignore the grain on this piece if you'd like decorative pockets
• Make sure to cut Pieces 8 & 9 for the hem extension

In addition to the notes above, make sure you mark and snip your notches! It can seem like something that's alright to omit but you'll run into problems later during construction if you don't mark them.

Refer to the pattern layouts in your instruction booklets for the yardage layout for your particular size. 

Often you can get a better fabric yield by cutting flat so if you find a fabric in your stash but you're a bit shy on yardage, see if you can fit it by not cutting on the fold!

Mark around your pattern pieces and then cut the markings off as you cut. This way your pattern and cut pieces are the same size.

Do you have any hot tips for cutting that you'd like to share? If so let us know in the comments below!