What Is the Quilters Select 3" x 18" Non-Slip Ruler?
The Quilters Select 3" x 18" Non-Slip Ruler is a quilting ruler sized for the long, straight cuts quilters make every day — trimming strips, squaring pieces, and checking measurements across a block. At 3 inches wide and 18 inches long, it is long enough to span most fabric strips and fat quarters, yet narrow and easy to handle on a crowded cutting table.
Quilters Select has made non-slip rulers since 2016, and this one carries the features the line is known for: clear, easy-to-read markings, an ambidextrous numbering system, an exact perimeter measurement, and a unique non-slip coating on the back that grips fabric while you cut.
Why Quilters and Sewists Use It
Accuracy in quilting starts at the cutting mat. If a strip is cut a fraction off, every seam that follows inherits that error, and blocks stop matching. A ruler that slips mid-cut is a common cause of wavy edges and uneven strips.
The non-slip coating is designed to keep your fabric in place for clean, accurate cuts every time, and it is made to last even if the edges show wear. The markings include 1/8", 1/4", 1/2", 3/4", and 1" measurements, plus multiple angles, so one ruler handles both straight cuts and angled work.
Left-handed quilters benefit, too. The one-inch perimeter lines feature dual-number systems that read left to right and right to left, so you never have to count backward or lose your place.
How to Use It, Step by Step
- Start with a flat, stable surface. Lay your fabric on your cutting mat, smooth and squared, with the edge you want to trim facing your cutting hand.
- Align the ruler. Place the ruler on the fabric and line up the measurement marking for the width you need with the fabric's edge. Use the exact perimeter measurement to confirm the ruler sits precisely where you intend — it helps with squaring blocks and eliminates accidental cuts.
- Let the coating grip. Press down firmly with your non-cutting hand, fingers spread and safely away from the cutting edge. The non-slip coating holds the fabric so the ruler stays put as you cut.
- Cut along the edge. Run your rotary cutter along the ruler's edge in one smooth motion, keeping the blade snug against the ruler from start to finish.
- Check before you move on. Before lifting the ruler, glance at your cut edge. For angled pieces, use the ruler's angle markings to align, mark, or measure before cutting.
Practical Tips
Measure from the perimeter. Because the ruler gives you an exact perimeter measurement, use the outside edges when squaring finished blocks — it is a quick way to confirm a block is truly the size your pattern expects before you sew it into a row.
Read the numbers that face you. With dual numbering on the one-inch perimeter lines, turn the ruler so the numbers read in the direction you are working instead of counting backward from the far end. It sounds small, but it prevents the classic "cut at 2 1/2 instead of 3 1/2" mistake.
Use the fine markings. The 1/8" increments are there for the small adjustments quilting often needs — trimming a scant amount from a strip or checking a seam allowance — so zoom in on them rather than estimating between the quarter-inch lines.
Care and Storage
Store the ruler flat or hanging with your other rulers so it stays straight and the edges stay nick-free — a chipped edge can steer a rotary blade off course. Keep the back clean so the non-slip coating can grip as designed. The coating is made to last even if the edges show wear, so normal signs of use do not mean it is time to replace it.
Project Ideas
Reach for the 3" x 18" size when cutting binding and sashing strips, trimming strip sets into segments, squaring blocks before assembly, or cutting borders from yardage. Its length suits the long, repeatable cuts strip-pieced quilts depend on, and it is equally handy for checking finished block sizes as a quilt top comes together.
Shop the Quilters Select 3" x 18" Non-Slip Ruler at Linda's Electric Quilters.
