When I was new to sewing, the thing that confused the heck out of me was fabric. So for all who are new to sewing, here is a crash course in fabric. To start…
FABRIC IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR PROJECT!
Sorry if I startled you with that. I have just seen and experienced so many times how a bad fabric leads to a terrible outcome. An outcome that makes you guess your sewing abilities, and makes you cuss enough to make a sailor blush. Let’s agree if you find a fabric that doesn’t 100% meet your needs, or you can tell it’s poor quality- put it down- regardless of how cute the print or inexpensive.
Fabric has two things you need to look for, fabric fiber and type (knit or woven). You can have a cotton woven, or a cotton knit fabric. The fiber is what the fabric is made of, whereas the type will determine what it’s best used for. Within these two type categories, are different subcategories which we will address below.
FABRIC FIBERS + FABRIC TYPE = YOUR FABRIC
FABRIC FIBERS
Fabric fibers are what the threads of your fabric are composed of, regardless if they are wovens or knits. There are animal, plant, and synthetic based fibers which each have different characteristics. You can pick and choose which fiber you are looking for, depending on your project. There are many more fibers than I have listed below, these are the ones you are most likely to encounter. You will find that many of these fibers are blended together.
ANIMAL BASED
These fibers are made from the hair of various animals.
Silk- Made from the silk worm, known to have a cool effect.
Wool- Made from sheep, known to be warm.
PLANT BASED
These fibers are made from plants.
Acetate- Made from wood pulp, its known to be shiny. Typically combined with another fiber.
Bamboo- Made from bamboo (as the name suggests), known to be lightweight and soft.
Cotton– Made from the cotton shrub, known to be lightweight and absorbent.
Flax- Made from the flax plant, it’s used primarily to make linen (which is exclusively woven). Known to be lightweight and absorbent.
Hemp- Made from Cannabis, known to be strong and durable.
Lyocell- Made from the eucalyptus tree, known to be soft, lightweight, and absorbent.
Modal- Made from the beech tree, known to be soft and lightweight.
Rayon- Made from wood pulp, known to be soft, lightweight, and absorbent.
SYNTHETIC BASED
These are man-made fibers, and not the most environmentally friendly.
Acrylic- Made from petroleum products, known to be lightweight, warm, and dry quickly
Nylon- Made from petroleum products, known to be lightweight, durable, strong, and dry quickly
Polyester- Made from petroleum products, known to be lightweight, durable, strong, and dry quickly
Spandex/Lycra/Elastane- Made from petroleum products, is elastic, known to be strong and lightweight.
Rayon- While made from wood pulp, it is chemically converted so it is a semi-synthetic. It is known to be soft, lightweight, and absorbent. However, it becomes weak when wet.
KNIT FABRICS
Knit fabrics are made by knitting, which weaves threads together in a looping process which provides stretch. It is more flexible and by far the most popular fabric group in commercial fabric today. T-shirts, leggings, jackets, and sweatshirts are all made from knit fabrics. The face side of a knit has ‘wales’ while the back has ‘courses’. This is how you can determine the right and wrong side of a fabric. Within this knit group, there are subcategories which are:
Jersey- This is a lightweight knit, that can be made from various fibers. There is a definite right and wrong side, with the face having wales and the back side having courses. Buying a jersey with about 3-5% of Spandex is ideal for kids clothing.
Can be made into: T-shirts, tank tops, lightweight crews and hoodies, lightweight pants, leggings, hats.
Interlock (Double Knit)- This fabric takes two layers of jersey, and interlocks them together on the wrong side. This makes it so the front and back of this fabric look the same, and makes it a heavier weight than jersey fabric. The edges of the fabric do not curl, and it is by far easier to work with than jersey. Buying an interlock with about 3-5% of Spandex is ideal for kids clothing.
Can be made into: T-shirts, tank tops, lightweight crews and hoodies, lightweight pants, leggings, hats.
Brush Back Fleece- This is a medium to heavy weight fabric, that gets brushed on the backside so it has a soft and fuzzy texture. This is the fabric you find in sweatshirts and sweatpants.
Can be made into: Jackets, crews, hoodies, and sweatpants.
Double Sided Fleece- This is a medium to heavy weight fabric, that gets brushed on both the front and back side so it looks the same. You find this primarily in sleepwear.
Can be made into: Jackets, crews, hoodies, sweatpants, and pajamas.
French Terry- This is a light to medium weight fabric, that has loops on the back side. This is the fabric you find in lightweight sweatshirts and sweatpants.
Can be made into: Jackets, crews, hoodies, and sweatpants.
Ribbing- This is a medium to heavy weight fabric, that is used in neckbands and hems. It looks the same on both sides, with distinctive vertical lines. It stretches very well and has excellent resilience (it stretches back without getting warped).
Can be made into: The neck and hem bands of any garment. Make sure to match the weight of your ribbing with that of your fabric to ensure they work together.
WOVEN FABRICS
Woven fabrics are made by interlocking fabric threads over and under each other. Think of a basket weave. There is hardly any stretch from side to side or up and down. However, when stretched at an angle (from corner to corner) you will have stretch. This is called the bias. Stretch will vary greatly depending on fiber, but as a general rule, the above is true for all wovens.
Quilting Cotton- This is a medium to heavy weight fabric, that gets brushed on both the front and back side so it looks the same. You find this primarily in sleepwear.
Can be made into: Jackets, crews, hoodies, sweatpants, and pajamas.
Flannel- This is a light to medium weight fabric, that has loops on the back side. This is the fabric you find in lightweight sweatshirts and sweatpants.
Can be made into: Jackets, crews, hoodies, and sweatpants.
FABRIC WEIGHT
Fabric weight is determined by grams or ounces. The higher the gram or ounce weight, the heavier it will be.
I don’t like to provide buckets for these, as a heavyweight t-shirt material could be considered a lightweight jacket material. When shopping, just compare the weights you are seeing for a particular type of fabric and decide based on what you’re making. Better yet, get a swatch. You’d be shocked at how an in-person swatch can be so different than what you’re seeing online.
Common sense also goes a long way on this one. If you are making a sweatshirt, don’t choose a fabric that feels it belongs to a lightweight tank. You won’t get the results you’re after.
EXAMPLES OF GOOD/BAD FABRIC
No skewing from left to right- If you look at your fabric from selvage edge to selvage edge, does the grainline go straight down the middle or does it hook to one side? If its straight, it’s good! If it doesn’t, walk away! The skewing will get worse in garment form through washings.
An even selvage edge- If you look at your selvage edge, and notice it is wavy, this means it was stretched unevenly during its creation. Part of your fabric is already stretched, which is no good.
Good resilience- This is a stretch test. Stretch along the crosswise grain a 3-4″ section of the fabric. Stretch about 1″, or until it stops naturally without forcing it. When you let go, does it go back to its original size? A good knit will. This is a subjective test, so use your best judgment. If it doesn’t stretch back at all though, walk away!
