Uncover The Best Quality Fabrics
Sewing is one fabulous hobby. Rising out of necessity, the modern creative hobby enjoys almost endless possibilities.
Sewing taps the advanced computerized convenience, productivity, flexibility, and dependability to provide a highly creative and satisfying hobby.
A vast array of modern threads, notions, fabrics, colors, and textures give the sewing hobbyist huge creative possibilities.
Making choices in light of all the amazing options available today is one of the biggest challenges facing the modern sewer. Therefore, the following nine tips are offered to help you make creative choices on fabrics for your next project.
Tip One: Consider the advice available to you. Too often we try to make our own choices without considering what the experts say. You can save loads of frustration by asking experts, teachers, and trusted friends for their advice. Reading the backs of patterns can shortcut the decision making process. While all advice is not equal, you are still in control. Use your own common sense, after getting all the suggestions you need.
Tip Two: Consider Quality. If you think about your project, and how much time and effort you put into it; ask yourself what quality materials do you need? Rest assured there are differences in quality. Three bolts of fabric may look just alike, one may be junk, another may be good quality, and the third may be top quality. Durability, finished appearance, and ease of sewing can vary greatly based on the quality of the fabric.
Tip Three: Factors To Consider. The quality and character of fabric depends greatly on the base fabric. Often the same fabric print will be produced on different greygood qualities. The fabric count can very greatly with low quality fabrics using very low thread count per inch, and top quality fabrics using high thread counts. Fabric may look the same at first glance, but be very different in real quality.
Tip Four: Find out how to evaluate the quality of fabric. Sewing books often include sections on the features, attributes, and value of fabrics. Sewing teachers and educators can help you figure out the true value of fabrics.
Tip Five: How do you tell the quality of a fabric? Touch it. How does it feel? Hold it up to the light. How much light can you see through the fabric? Look at the edges. Do you see signs of potential fray? Examine the fabric for grain line. Is the fabric square? Is the bias consistent? Stretch a portion between your hands. Does the fabric hold its shape if you stretch it? Scrunch it up in your hands. Does it wrinkle easily?
Tip Seven: Labels on the end of the bolt will often identify the composition of the fabric as well as recommendations for its care.
Tip Eight: Use lots of cotton fabrics. Certainly cottons are the most popular fabric today offering huge variety in color and print. Sewers love them for all types of sewing. Since cotton is a natural fiber, it does have a tendency to shrink. While some high end cottons are pretreated for shrinkage, it is a good idea to set cottons before using them. To set the fabric, wash in warm water and cool dry.
Tip Nine: Due to the great qualities of cotton fabrics, you will often find other fibers blended with cotton. Polyester is essentially plastic, but polyester cotton blends are great. They add durability, reduce shrinkage issues, and generally eliminate problems with wrinkling. It is important to check the fabric label for the percentage of fiber content. If there is a high polyester content, the character of the fabric will be more like polyester than cotton. A shirt with 70% cotton and 30% polyester, is going to give the cotton the good features of the polyester, but maintain the good features of the cotton. The result is a shirt that wears wrinkle free with high durability that still breathes. Reverse the percentages, and the increased plastic features appear resulting in a very hot shirt. You will also find blends with other fibers. Examine the labels and consider the characteristics blended between the two fibers.