HOW TO CHOOSE FABRICS: A GUIDE TO DIFFERENT

FABRICS AND THEIR PROPERTIES

When it comes to fabric shopping, it can be difficult to know what type of fabric to buy for a particular project. To help make your shopping trips easier, we've created a helpful cheat sheet for you to refer to. This cheat sheet will show you which fabrics are suitable for different kinds of projects, so you can easily decide which one is right for you. It's also a great reference to have on hand, so feel free to pin this picture to your sewing board for later!

Breathability is the ability of a fabric to allow air and moisture vapor to be transmitted through the material making it either more or less wearable.

Comfort is how the fabric feels on your skin when you are wearing it. This is based on both the breathability and the thickness and surface of the fabric itself.

Wrinkle Resistant is related to whether the fabric easily wrinkles or whether it can be folded or creased without wrinkles forming.

Function relates to the fabric and how it interacts with your skin. When choosing a fabric, make sure to choose one that reflects how you want to wear it – when choosing summer fabrics go for cooling ones and when choosing winter fabrics make sure they are warming.

Machine Wash relates to whether a fabric can be easily cleaned in the washing machine. If it cannot be machine washed, you can assume it either needs to be hand washed or dry cleaned.

For More fabric types - read the full vocabulary!