1. Home
  2. Sewing Discussions
  3. Upholstery fabric questions

Upholstery fabric questions

For Christmas, my brother got me two "books" of upholstery fabric swatches. I decided that I'll use them to make some sort of patchwork slipcover for my ottoman, and was excited to see that each swatch is teflon-coated... great, it won't stain so easily. But then I also noticed that they're each labeled with a "Cleaning code" and can't figure out what this means. Google didn't help, either.

Nearly all of the swatches have a cleaning code "S," one says "SW" and one says "W." What do these mean? Can they be washed? Dry-clean only?

Also, I've noticed that quite a few are fraying at the edges (each one has adhesive paper around the edges, which I'll have to cut off, since it doesn't peel off easily and leaves a gooey residue)... the frayed areas are held in check by the paper, but I'm afraid if I cut the paper off now the swatches will fray themselves to death as I'm trying to sew them. How do I deal with these? And what's the best way to sew them together? (My machine is straight-stitch only, though I'm looking into buying both a serger and a machine that does zig-zag stitches.) Can I sew them straight-stitch (maybe with double seams?) and use fray-check? Should I wait till I buy the serger and zip around the edges with that? (And then sew them together how?) Wait till I buy the zig-zag machine? It's lovely fabric and I don't want to mess it up. Help!

Cina

Reply to
Cina
Loading thread data ...

Wow. I just learned something new myself. Fabric Cleaning Codes

formatting link
Do you have pinking shears? That would help immensely. Or can you iron each of the fabrics onto fusible lining?

Reply to
RLK

Or can you iron each

oops. i don't think that last sentence came out right. I meant can you iron fusible webbing onto the backs of the fabrics.

Reply to
RLK

My next door neighbour and her daughter do this sort of thing all the time. They make throws, dog beds, all sorts. Auntie Mo Next Door works in (and manages) a curtain and carpet shop. Her experiments have led her to say:

1: Serger is best! Use the widest cut you can and a full 4 thread stitch 2: No serger = no great problem: stitch d once with the straight stitch, and then over the edges with the zig-zag... 3: No zig-zag? Ok, just stitch twice, about 1/8" apart, or top stitch each seam as you do it.

Use jeans needles and make them size 90 or 100: remember to inspect and change them frequently!

Reply to
Kate Dicey

Don't know about the labels - I would imagine they're dry clean only or dry clean advised - washing might damage that Teflon coat. It should only need cleaning once a year, so perhaps this is an expense you should build in. If you want to test it, it's up to you, but you'd have to wash lights and darks separately and see if there's any shrinkage - and finish all edges before doing so, too.

If you want to start before getting your serger, then 'staystitch' around the edges of each piece - I'd do two rows, one about one-eighth of an inch inside the other, and pink the edges too, if you can. You might just have to trim off the gooey bit, or it will gum up your needle. Once you've got the whole lot sewn together, fuse it as one piece onto fusible interfacing and then treat it as one piece of fabric.

I've done exactly this with a bunch of upholstery samples that included some very high-end fabrics I could never afford by the yard. I used the really stiff ones (mohair velvet and flamestitched linen) for cushions, which you can see at:

formatting link
Trish's Wearable Arts, Needlework. Another one of these fabrics cost £1,230 per yard! And it was only 22 inches wide, too - daylight robbery.

:) Trish

Reply to
Trishty

Thanks for the site. Great info.

another Sharon

Reply to
Life Experience

InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.