Fabric guide
Choosing and buying fabric
Every pattern carries a fabric estimate on its cover sheet, calculated from the pieces your own measurements produced. This page explains where that number comes from, how many extra meters a narrower bolt costs you, and what to do with the fabric before you cut it.
How many meters to buy
Every model is laid out on all 5 bolt widths we quote. The range covers the whole category, from its thriftiest model to its most demanding one. A 110 cm bolt always costs more meters than a 180 cm one, because the large pieces stop fitting side by side. Your own PDF carries the exact figure for your measurements and the options you picked.
| Category | 110 cm bolt |
|---|---|
| Dresses | 2.2–3.5 m |
| Tops & shirts | 1.0–2.6 m |
| Pants & skirts | 1.3–3.8 m |
| Comfort / athleisure | 2.0–3.7 m |
| Outerwear | 1.8–4.4 m |
| Kids | 1.4–2.8 m |
| Underwear & corsets | 0.3–1.8 m |
| Cosplay & historical costumes | 0.2–2.9 m |
| Elements | 0.8–0.8 m |
Calculated for a sample body: 176 cm tall, 96 cm bust, 78 cm waist, 102 cm hip. The estimate already allows for shrinkage and an imperfect layout. Napped fabrics and large repeats need more than this.
Four things to do before you cut
Lay the grainline parallel to the selvedge
Every piece carries an arrow. Measure from both ends of that arrow to the selvedge and make the two distances equal before you pin anything down. A piece cut off grain twists on the body, and no amount of pressing straightens it out.
Wash the fabric the way you will wash the garment
Natural fibres shrink on the first wash. Wash, dry and press the fabric before cutting, at the temperature the finished garment will see. Skip it and the pattern was right while the garment comes out a size too small.
Napped and one-way fabrics all face the same way
Velvet, corduroy and any print with a top and a bottom force every piece to lie in the same direction. You cannot flip a piece upside down to save space, so buy extra length for them.
Stripes and plaids need extra for matching
For a plaid or a stripe to run unbroken across a seam, each piece has to slide along the bolt until its lines meet those of its neighbor. Buy a surplus so you have something to slide with: about a quarter of a meter for small plaids, half a meter for medium ones, a meter for large ones.
Fabrics that come up most often
61 of 62 models carry a fabric suggestion generated together with the pattern, 30 different fabrics in all. These are the ones the catalog returns to most.
Linen
26 models, 6 categories
Cotton twill
19 models, 6 categories
Wool crepe
17 models, 5 categories
Cotton poplin
15 models, 7 categories
Cotton lawn
11 models, 6 categories
Jersey
11 models, 5 categories
Cotton jersey with elastane
10 models, 4 categories
Silk crepe
10 models, 4 categories
Each model page lists the suggestions for that particular garment. They are a starting point, not a restriction: the draft is built from your measurements and does not change with the fabric you pick.
How to take your measurements for a patternHow to print and assemble your pattern