Broderie Anglaise (sp)?

Like this:

?That looks like what we (I'm in the U.S.) call eyelet, and it can be made of any number of fibers (or combinations).If so, your treatment of it depends a lot on *fiber content* and how you intend to clean it later. If you don't know the fiber content, check with a burn test: . Laundering will also let you know if the fabric is color-fast. Measure the exact length of the yardage before laundering.Then if it's 100% cotton and you are going to want to wash the garment when it's done, pre-wash the *fabric* in cool water with a small amount of soap or detergent, tumble dry *low heat*, and press. Check against your original measurement to see if/how much it shrank. Then go ahead and make up your garment. If it's a cotton poly blend, you can probably wash and dry as you would any other blend.

If it's rayon, or silk, or linen, you might want to consider having the finished garment dry-cleaned, but if you still want to be able to launder it, go ahead and wash the fabric. Again, I'd suggest cool water, and either air-fluff or hang to dry. If it's linen it might be difficult to press.

HTH,

Beverly

Thank you Beverly for that detailed reply. Yes that's the material - eyelets all over the place.

I would say it is 100 cotton. I don't think it is the type that will hang well unless the stiffness is out of it.

So will try as for cotton - measure it first, then wash it, and hang outside to dry, then measure it again. I bought material in 3 different colours would you believe. I'm a sucker for colours, but I must stop doing that. I only have a very small house :-)

Will report on progress when I get to do it. It is winter here, but on the odd warm day like today, I can get it dry in no time.

Katherine

You're welcome.

If you don't know/remember what the fiber is, I strongly recommend doing the test first. Can't hurt, and could save you some heartache.

Beverly

Thanks again. Yes I will do the burn test. Will the glue/starch or whatever it is to make it stiff when you buy it, make a difference to the burn test results? Just thinking again :-)

Katherine

I don't know. If you have enough fabric, (and it only takes a small sliver to do a burn test) cut *two* samples, wash and dry *one*, then do the burn test on both. Unless it's really, REALLY inexpensive fabric, doing the test is a good way to avoid disappointment in the finished product. And even with inexpensive fabric, your time making a garment is worth *something*.

Beverly