January 13, 2010

second guessing my fabric


Was silk brocade the wisest choice? It's very slippery. I've got to work with it sooner or later and I'm thinking maybe it should have been later. I decided to fuse it to the batiste so it would stabilize everything while I cut. Also I thought it might reduce fraying. You can see the black cotton on the underside of one of the pieces here.


Here is the finished pattern.


During all the tests I did with various fusing methods nothing really held the cotton to the brocade well. Steam/no steam, longer time under the iron, High heat settings, more pressure, Wonder Under, basting spray, pre-adhesived fusing, everything peeled away from the silk/rayon blend relatively easily. The black cotton fusible seemed the easiest to work with so that's what I went went. I'll cut the elastic tonight, even though I'm second guessing that fabric too, then it will be time to start sewing.

3 comments:

  1. It is pretty isn't it? But more difficult to work with than my usual cottons.

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  2. It's the rayon! Don't blame the silk! ha ha ha. One of the things I have done to make them stay together is just to baste the two layers together as close to the edge as possible. It's more work than fusing but as long as you do it carefully, it will be more reliable and save you the fuss.
    I made an elizabethan stay out of a synthetic blend and nearly went mad. (of course it was for fun and not actual wearing)

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