If you saw my previous post the tunic dress, you will see the same fabric I used for the tunic dress. Bought 4 meters of this fabric and I have only cut 2 meters from it for the tunic. And now, I'm gonna use it for another project. Yay!
These are the steps that I've gone through before cutting the fabric.
Though I'm so eager to continue with cutting the fabric directly, but I always pre-wash my fabric first.
a) Easy version- I just toss the fabric inside the washing machine. I don’t have a dryer (thanks to the weather in Malaysia) so basically I need to wait. I know it’s torturing but this step helps a lot in case your fabric might shrink a bit and lose it shape.
b) Tougher version- Soak with water for few minutes and let it dry on the drying rack. It’s a little bit annoying if you have few metres long of fabric. But, sometimes I use this method when the weather is really hot. You can save a bit on your electricity bill.
And when the fabric is completely dry, do iron and press the fabric to smoothen out the wrinkles and giving back its shape. Try to iron with lower heat at first, and increase the temperature if you can still see the wrinkles. You wouldn’t want to stamp a burning hole on your lovely fabric.
Let’s get going and move on with the cutting part.
Place the fabric right side together and lay the pattern on the fabric. Try to accommodate all the pattern pieces and at the same time making sure you provide some space for the seam allowance; which I always allow ½ to 1 inch. Follow the straight grainline (depending on your pattern’s requirement) when you’re cutting the pattern to make sure the fabric holds the pattern of cloth you were making.
I hope this tip helps you. Mat said the same too, but this time she wants me to buy her a Hello Kitty sewing machine. Ughhhh!!!
