As the long winter seems to have finally packed its bags and given way to spring, we’ve seen the interest in some of our lightweight dressmaking fabrics shoot up as everyone begins to dream of sunny days on the beach with the kids or warm evenings sat in the beer garden wearing summery me-made clothes.
Now that we sell online we’ve really tried to really swot up on each of our fabrics and describe the qualities as best we can for those who are unable to pop into the shop and get a feel for them. We can talk about width, weight, drape and handle all day long … but what we really need is people who have got to grips with the fabrics and made them their own to tell us the good, the bad and everything in between.
So that is exactly what we did! We asked two talented ladies to give us the lowdown on two different summery fabrics.
I’ll hand over to Carrie, a talented seamstress who has a wardrobe bursting with hand made clothes. She chose our floral Bubble Crepe for her latest make …..
Hi, I’m Carrie and I am a sewaholic. Everything about sewing fills me with happiness and the more I make the more I want to sew. I learnt how to sew 9 years ago and have never looked back. I generally made bunting, home décor and gifts. This year my new year’s resolution was to make a me-made wardrobe and currently it stands at 43 garments I have used 1stFor Fabrics to make many of my wardrobe makes as the fabric is great quality and the customer service is excellent.
My latest makes were made using the Bubble crepe floral fabric from 1stfor Fabrics. I was drawn to this fabric instantly the colours were fresh, and the design was modern I knew that this fabric would look lovely for this time of year. I purchased the mint and the navy bubble crepe. The projects that I had in mind for this fabric was the Tilly and the buttons marigold trousers and the marigold jumpsuit. The pattern requirement was a fabric with drape and bubble crepe ticked this box.
When I received my happy post, I couldn’t wait to get started it washed well and dried fast on the line. Naturally the fabric frayed post being cut but I found that bubble crepe frays less than cotton, so this is a bonus. I did not need to press my fabric before cutting as it didn’t crease. Whilst cutting I used a large cutting mat, rotary cutter and lots and lots of pins to keep it in one place. Bubble crepe isn’t as slippy as viscose or rayon, but it can move. The fabric felt luxurious and had a texture and matt finish.
Whilst constructing my garments on the sewing machine I made sure I had the workspace to take the gravity of the fabric as it felt weighty whilst sewing.
The fabric worked well under the sewing machine and my overlocker without puckering. This fabric also coped well under the iron. I had to unpick a few sections and had to take extra care not to pull the fabric as it wasn’t as forgiving as cotton.
I really recommend this fabric if you want a showstopper garment this fabric has become one of my favourites to work with mainly because of the drape and its non-creasing quality’s.
Lots of love Carrie
@carrie_can_make_it
Thanks so much Carrie! If you want to see more of Carrie’s gorgeous garments, then head over to her Instagram page and be prepared to BE INSPIRED!
Check back later on for Fabric 101 – Part 2: MummaB makes the Rayon shine with this stunning maxi dress ….