03/13/09
October 31, 2001  It's time for another mystery! What makes this one different from the others? This one is going to use "fussy cuts"! The one I've chosen is of snowmen, but any "fussy cut" is fine. "So", you ask, "What is a fussy cut"? Simply put, it is when a motif or a picture is taken from fabric and cut out so that the picture is centered in the piece of cut fabric, without clutter surrounding the fussy cut. In other words, there isn't another picture in the background to distract from the motif. A fussy cut is a great way of showing off specific images in a fabric.

This Mystery Quilt (MQ) has several different options from which to choose. It is highly recommended that you know the following before you begin:

1. How large do you want the finished MQ to be? Is it going to be a quilt, a wallhanging, a table topper?

2. How large/small is your fussy cut?

Since there can be a dozen different sizes for fussy cuts and numerous quilt sizes, I'm going to give the directions for this MQ with the following options:

1. Two different sizes for fussy cuts; 3.5" and 4.5",

2. Three different quilt sizes for the 3.5" fussy cuts,

3. Three different quilt sizes for the 4.5" fussy cuts.

The approximate quilt sizes for the 3.5" fussy cuts are:

• Small - 46" x 46"

• Medium - 46" x 59"

• Large - 72" x 72"

The approximate quilt sizes for the 4.5" fussy cuts are:

• Small - 59" x 59"
• Medium - 59" x 76"
• Large - 93" x 93"

Note: The approximate quilt sizes given above includes two borders; one large and one small. Of course, the quilt size can be adjusted by varying the border sizes, the number of borders, or leaving the borders off completely.

Once you know the size of your fussy cut and you know the size (small, medium, or large) of quilt you want to make , you're ready to go!