Rotary cutter

This article is about the fabric cutting tool. For information on lawn/agricultural rotary cutters, see Brush hog.

A rotary cutter is a tool generally used by quilters to cut fabric. It consists of a handle with a circular blade that rotates, thus the tool's name. Rotary blades can be found in different sizes: usually smaller blades are used to cut around corners, while larger blades are used to cut to straight lines. Several layers of fabric can be cut simultaneously, making it easier to cut out patchwork pieces of the same shape and size than with regular scissors. In conjunction with a rotary cutting ruler – specially designed to be used with a rotary cutter, and made of thick and resistant plastic – it is also a practical tool for achieving the straight, squared lines that are so important in patchwork. The first rotary cutter was introduced by the Olfa company in 1979.