Preparing your fabric well
It's the step you skip when you're in a hurry — and the one that ruins the most projects. Preparing your fabric takes ten minutes and saves you from watching your garment shrink in the first wash. Here are the essentials.
In the app, the very first step of a project is 'prepare the fabric': wash, then press. It isn't a formality — it's what decides whether your garment will keep its shape. Here's why, and how to do it well.
1. Pre-wash: always
Most natural fabrics — cotton, linen — shrink in the first wash, sometimes by several percent. If you sew first and wash later, your garment shrinks afterwards, and all your fitting work goes down the drain.
Wash your fabric the way you'll wash the finished garment: same temperature, same drying method. You 'use up' the shrinkage before cutting, not after.
For delicate materials (wool, silk), look up the right care before you start — too aggressive a wash can damage them. When in doubt, ask me: I'll guide you according to your material.
2. Press before cutting
Creased or rippled fabric cuts crooked: the pieces will be distorted, and the assembly won't line up. Press your fabric nice and flat after washing — that's the move that makes cutting precise. While you're at it, keep the iron on throughout the sewing: you press each seam as you go, not just at the end.
3. Spot the grain
The grain is the direction of the threads running parallel to the selvedge (the finished edge of the fabric). The pattern pieces must be laid in that direction: it's what gives structure and stops the garment from twisting when worn. On patterns, an arrow shows the grain direction — always line it up parallel to the selvedge before pinning.
4. Right side, wrong side, nap
- Right side / wrong side: spot the 'good' face. On some fabrics the difference is subtle — mark the wrong side with a little bit of tape or chalk so you don't mix them up at assembly.
- Nap: velvet, napped fabrics or fabrics with a directional print have a direction. Every piece must then be cut in the same direction, otherwise the shading or the motifs won't match up.
5. The reassuring test
Unsure how a fabric behaves (it slips, it frays, it marks under the iron)? Run a test on a scrap before cutting the real piece: a line of stitching, a press, an overlock. Five minutes of testing beats a wasted metre of fabric.
In short
Pre-wash, dry, press, spot the grain and the right side: once these reflexes are in, they become automatic. Your fabric is ready — you can choose your pattern, cut it out with confidence and move on to the assembly.