A Notion For...

A Notion For...Velvet

Velvet is woven with an extra set of warp yarns which form a pile. Originally made of silk, velvet is now available in cotton, rayon, acetate, polyster and blends.

Burnt-out velvet is made using two different yarns with a pattern effect produced by destroying one of the yarns in a printing process that employs chemicals instead of color.

Crushed velvet is pressed in different directions to create a pattern with various color shades.

Cut velvet is woven on a jacquard loom to create a distinct pattern in pile on a plain background.

Panne velvet is a long-pile velvet that is flattened during the finishing process so that the pile lies in a uniform direction resulting in a shimmering, lustrous appearance.

Velour is a fabric that is commonly knitted, similar to velvet, but has a thicker pile.

Cutting and Marking

Velvet has a definite nap. Run your hand over the fabric. If the nap is going down, the velvet will look darker. Generally, velvet garments are cut with the nap going down.

Just be consistent! Use a sliver of soap or a chalk marker on the wrong side of the fabric to mark the direction of the nap.

Lay the fabric as a single layer with the wrong side of the fabric facing up so you are laying the pattern pieces on the fabric backing.

Use silk thread and tailor’s tacks or dressmaker’s pencils to mark dots and other necessary interior markings.

Make small snips into the seam allowance for notches along the pattern edges.

No tracing wheels, please!

Hem Finishes

Before hemming a velvet garment, let it hang for 24 hours, giving it time to relax. Re-measure and re-cut the hem length if necessary.

A simple hem is best. Turn it up and stitch using a catchstitch by hand or a machine blindstitch.

For longer garments, interface the hem using bias-cut cotton flannel. Catchstitch the top and bottom edges of the interfacing to the wrong side of the velvet before folding the hem in place and stitching again.

Pressing

Pressing velvet is delicate work. It is easy to mar the fabric with an iron, so never allow the iron to touch the fabric. Steam and finger pressing only!

Use a needle board next to the pile when pressing.

Or better yet, cover your ironing surface with a large piece of heavy, coarse fabric such as mohair, velveteen or frieze.