We love answering your questions about fabric! Lately we’ve been getting questions about sustainable fabrics, so today we’re highlighting a selection of our sustainable knits & jerseys—fabrics that will fit perfectly into your spring wardrobe. Working with these beautiful materials inspires us to continue the pattern of sustainability by sewing quality garments that will be a part of our wardrobe for years to come!
Sustainability can refer to the origin and quality of the the materials as well as the manufacturing processes used to create a fabric. Sustainable fabrics may carry certifications such as GOTS (certification of organic materials, with and manufacturing according to ecological and social standards) or OEKO-TEX (materials and process have been tested and confirmed free of harmful chemicals), or a fabric’s content may be labeled “organic.” All of these fabrics live in our website’s organic fabric category —it’s a great place to start if you’re looking for a fabric with a specific certification or organic fiber content. We’re always adding fabrics to this collection, and we list find any information we have about materials and certifications in the product listing.
San Francisco Bay Area fashion label Amour Vert has made a commitment to sustainable and eco-friendly fabric production—we love that their fabric production process is socially- and environmentally-responsible, transparent, and traceable. And all of these knits are manufactured in Los Angeles! These jerseys are great choices for comfy wrap dresses like Appleton, and Alcott, and the sweater knit would be absolutely perfect for a Pearl Cardigan.
These Granville tencel/modal jerseys come to us from Lady McElroy in England and are OEKO-TEX certified. We love these beautiful, rich colors for spring and summer! These jerseys are quite lightweight with a pretty drape, so they are perfect for garments like the Nikita Tank and Dress, the Elle Reversible Top, and the Westcliff Dress.
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Art Gallery Fabrics’ line of cotton/spandex jerseys features OEKO-TEX certified fabrics with unique and colorful fashion prints. These fabrics are super soft with a nice stretch and recovery, so they make great garments for babies, kids, and adults. We love these knits for patterns like the Elysian Bodysuit, Jeanne Knit PJ Set, the Dune Tank and Briefs, and more!
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Feeling inspired to start sewing with knits? If you’re new to working with knits, we highly recommend choosing a beginner-friendly pattern. A t-shirt or tank top is a perfect first garment—not only is it a quick and satisfying project and a great way to build your skills, but it’s an everyday staple you’ll love adding to your wardrobe. Here are a few of our favorite beginner patterns for knits:
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Now that you have fabric and a pattern picked out, let’s talk about tools for sewing with knits. No serger? Not a problem! Most sewing machines have an overlock or elastic overlock stitch that will make stitching knit fabrics a breeze. Using a rotary cutter will help you cut knit fabrics accurately. You can sew with your favorite all-purpose thread. To ensure successful sewing, you’ll want to invest in some sewing machine needles specially designed for knit fabrics. Now test your stitching on a scrap of fabric, double-check your pattern’s seam allowances, and you’re ready to sew!
Ready to meet your new favorite thread? We are super excited about Mettler’s Seraflex stretch thread , which is new to the shop this month. This 100% polyester thread has a high elasticity, so it is perfect for sewing any knit garment on your home sewing machine—think t-shirts, underwear, leggings,
and more! Seraflex thread is recommended for use with a straight stitch, but we couldn’t resist testing it out with a zig-zag stitch and a few stretch stitches. The thread worked beautifully with all of the stitches, we wound the bobbin on our machine as usual, and we found that getting the correct tension was a breeze! We currently carry Seraflex in six neutral shades , with more colors on the way soon.