1926—The New-Way Course in Fashionable Clothes-Making
Lesson 18—Preparing Material
Preparing Material for Sewing
Each season has its favorite material. Each season brings forth striking new color notes, handsome new textiles, very often entirely new names. Such materials as Canton crepe, Baronet satin, duvetyne attest to the constant demand for newness with which textile manufacturers must contend.
With so wide a variety of beautiful materials to select from, the woman who makes her clothes at home should have no trouble in selecting fabrics that are distinctive and attractive. But unless she knows how to prepare these materials for sewing, how to sponge and press and shrink them according to the most approved methods, she is likely to be the least bit disappointed in the finished clothes.
There are certain materials that must be sponged before being developed into dresses. There are other materials that must go through the process of shrinking. And when the material is finally ready to be transformed into some delightful thing to wear, it is necessary to know how to fold it, how to lay the pattern on it and how to proceed with the cutting.
Shrinking Cotton and Linen Materials
If a dress will be laundered after it is made, it is best to shrink the cotton or linen while it is still in the piece. Very often, in making children's clothes, you will find that it is impossible or impractical to allow both for shrinking and for the child's growth. In this case, the material should first be shrunk, and when cutting sufficient material should be allowed for the possible growth of the child.
It is necessary to exert extreme care in shrinking linen, as this material seems to shrink a little with every washing. If the linen is very heavy, it may be wisest to have the shrinking done by a professional, but if this is impossible it can be accomplished at home. The process for shrinking linen and cotton are alike and we will take up both at the same time.
To shrink either cotton or linen material do not unfold but place the material, folded in about one-yard lengths, in water. Be sure that the material is entirely immersed and that every part of it is thoroughly wet. If the material is white, hot water may be used; if colored, use water that is either tepid or cold. (Do not attempt to shrink plain or flowered organdies.)
Instead of wringing the material after shrinking, suspend it smoothly across a bar, allowing it to drip and dry. Do not hang it on a line, as the weight of the material will cause the line to sag and the fabric when dry will be badly wrinkled. If the bar used is long enough to allow the material to lay smooth and straight, very little pressing will be required.
At times, it is quite necessary to set colors. This should be done at the time of shrinking. Test a small sample of the material before wetting the whole piece. Following are tested rules that may be followed in setting colors at the time of shrinking.
Soak cloth containing blue for two or three hours in a solution of one-half cup of vinegar and one tablespoon full of powdered alum to two gallons of water. Rinse well and hang over a bar.
Cloth containing lavender, green and yellow should be soaked in a solution of one ounce of sugar of lead to one gallon of boiling water. When the solution is cold place the material in it, first being sure that all the lead is dissolved. Allow it to remain in the solution for two or three hours. Rinse well and dry. Sugar of lead is poisonous and should be handled carefully.
Pink and black materials should be soaked two hours in cold salt solution—one cup of salt to one gallon of water. Rinse in cold water.
Sponging and Pressing
The cloth for a coat or jacket, and sometimes for a dress, must be sponged to prevent shrinking or spotting. For this process you will need a clean, well-covered ironing board and a small sleeve board. You will also need a sheet of heavy unbleached muslin one yard wide and a yard long, and a smaller piece of the muslin for pressing the small seams. Have a sponge and a bowl of water ready, and your irons hot.
If you have an electric iron the work of sponging will be simplified, but if you have the old-fashioned type of irons you will need three, one light weight iron, one of about eight pounds and a large one as heavy as can be conveniently handled. This large iron is used in tailor work.
As pressing is the final touch of good workmanship, be sure that your pressing materials are in good condition. To achieve the best results, have three tailor's cushions for pressing the finished garments—one small cushion to be used when pressing the bottom of the sleeves and a larger one for the tops of the sleeves. The largest cushion is used for pressing large curved seams. These cushions are rounded pads of cotton and are very easily made. They may be covered with unbleached muslin, and loops or pockets made on one side so that they can be slipped on the narrow end of the sleeve board.
Woolen materials should be sponged before making, and if possible should be done by a professional. Your dealer, where you buy your material, will have this done for you. However, if it is necessary to do the sponging yourself at home, proceed in the following manner:
- Take a piece of unbleached muslin one yard wide and one-half yard longer than the material to be sponged.
- Dip this muslin in warm water and wring tightly.
- Spread the wet muslin smoothly on a table.
- Now place the material to be sponged on the wet muslin, leaving it folded in the center with the right sides together.
- Roll the material and the muslin together with the extra length of the muslin wrapped around it.
- Allow the material to remain this way, rolled with the wet muslin, for from two to four hours according to the weight of the material.
- Then unroll and press on the wrong side until thoroughly dry. Never make up woolen goods into clothes without sponging.
Some woolen materials are sold already sponged; but do not depend on this sponging—either sponge it yourself or have it sponged. Silk and satin should never be sponged and no water should ever be used in their pressing.
To remove the shine from material, caused by pressing, place a piece of dry, heavy muslin over the shiny place and over this a piece of wet muslin. With a hot iron, go over the wet muslin quickly and while it is steaming lift the muslin and brush the steam in. This lifts the nap which had been pressed down and the shininess is removed.
Preparing to Cut the Material
Before cutting a garment, all material should be pressed free of creases. The center fold in double fold material remains, of course; but is marked with basting and the crease removed by pressing as soon as the garment is cut. The parts of the pattern should also be pressed and each piece carefully noted. If you are unfamiliar with the use of patterns, we suggest that you write the name on each piece so that it will not be necessary to refer constantly to the cutting chart.
Most commercial patterns today are provided with a chart indicating the method of placing the parts of the pattern on the material. Sometimes this can be followed exactly; other times the plan of cutting must be changed because of the width of the material used. Do not buy professional patterns which give no instructions or cutting chart.
Before placing the pattern on the material be sure that you know just which is the right side and which is the wrong side. In most cases the right side of double fold materials is inside—but this rule is not invariable. If the material is twilled, the twill should run downward from the left shoulder to the right when the garment is worn. If the material is used wrong side out the twill will not run this way.
Cloths that have a nap will have up and down as well as right and wrong sides. Place the cloth flat on the table and rub lightly with the hand; one way will be smooth and the other way the nap will seem rough against the hand. In cutting the material should be so used that when brushed downward it feels soft and smooth. The only exception to this rule is velvet, the nap of which should run upward.
If you hold a piece of material up to the light and look across it you will observe small knots or ends. These appear on the wrong side of the material. If you study closely, you will find that the finish on the right side is quite different from the finish on the wrong side. Be sure that you never make the mistake of using the wrong side of the material.
In cutting materials with a floral design, be sure that the stems run upward. Plaids sometimes have an up and down, a right and left, and a right and wrong side. To cut plaids correctly, the most pronounced stripe should be in the center of the front and back—otherwise the finished garment is likely to have a crooked, uneven appearance. Keep in mind that the plaids must balance as nearly as possible. Be sure above all that stripes in the plaid design match where they meet at the seams. A garment in which stripes run in every which direction, never meeting and never harmonizing, is a failure no matter how beautiful the rest of the workmanship is. Perhaps it will be best for a while, until you had quite a bit of experience, to use solid color materials instead of stripes or checks.
