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Sewing with Velvet Session 1: Introduction

National Sewing Circle Editors
Duration:   4  mins

Description

Get an overview of what you will learn in this course, such as the weaving process of velvet, tips and techniques for sewing this tricky fabric, and the supplies you will need to create a velvet circle skirt.

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Since its invention thousands of years ago, velvet has been associated with glamour and royalty and with good reason. Recent manufacturing innovations have made this fabric more widely available to everyone. But that doesn't mean everyone is using it. Velvet is notoriously tricky to sew. But we don't have to be intimidated by it.

The shimmery look of velvet can be yours in any project simply by learning a few practical tips and tricks for working with this shifty fabric. In this course, I'll start out with a overview of the rich history of velvet. And we'll talk about the weaving process that gives velvet it's distinctive pile texture. Some people think that a velvet is a velvet is a velvet, but that's not true. There are a wide variety of velvets available in a wide variety of different fiber contents.

Since when we say velvet, we're not talking about a specific fabric with a specific fiber content. We're just talking about the weaving process used to create the fabric. So rayon, acetate, silk, cotton, polyester, anything, any fiber that can be woven in this specific weaving process, we're going to call velvet. So that means there are a wide variety of different textures and hands and weights of velvet, which is great because any project you choose, you'll be able to find a velvet to suit your needs. The 3D texture and the 3D structure of the fabric means that there's a lot of shifting and movement when we're working with the fabric.

So we're going to be talking a lot about stabilization techniques to ensure our seams stay even when we're sewing. The shifting of the pile is never more than when we put pile to pile with right sides together and sew the fabric. So there are a lot of tools that we can use to help ensure our seams stay even such as presser feet. And we'll talk a lot about the right combinations of needle and thread to use when we're sewing velvet. Pressing will also require specific considerations, since heat and pressure will crush the pile texture of the velvet.

And we don't want to do that. I'll talk about the best pattern types to use when sewing velvet and the best hem types to use since the pile can get kind of bulky. And after we learn a myriad of techniques for stabilizing and sewing velvet, we will make a half circle skirt out of velvet. And this is a great intro project for sewing velvet. It's very easy.

Plus you get instructions on how to draft your own half circle skirt pattern to your measurements. So you can sew one up later in any fabric you choose. It will require about one to two yards of fabric, depending on your measurements, and you'll need to use a stretch velvet. So something that's woven with Lycra or spandex or a knit velvet, which is technically called a velour. We'll talk about that later.

And one inch wide elastic, depending on your measurements, and all purpose thread and a ballpoint needle. And that's all you need. Velvet can seem intimidating because it is so different from the standard fabrics we use in our daily sewing, but that is what makes it unique and different and beautiful. So let's start out with an overview of the history of velvet, and we'll talk about the weaving process that makes velvet velvet.

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