How to sew with stretch fabrics

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Follow our top tips and create beautiful garments with stretch fabrics!

Most machines now have a stitch especially for stretch fabrics, it’s slightly angled and will stretch with the fabric so shouldn’t crack seams. Use a serger or attach a walking foot to feed the fabric without it stretching as you sew. Opt for a Universal H, Ballpoint H-SUK or Stretch HS needle.
Sewing with knitted fabrics can be tricky, but the key to handling this fabric is pretty simple. Selecting the correct needle is a vital part of stitching stretch fabrics. When pinning, ensure all pins are kept within the seam allowance, to avoid creating holes in the fabric. A good way of stabilising the fabric when sewing is by sandwiching tissue paper in between the fabric layers. This prevents the slippery fabric moving against each other. Once you've sewn your seam, the paper can be removed by tearing is away.
Knit fabrics stretch across your body, so straight stitches will often break when the material is pulled tightly. When using your standard sewing machine, it's best to either use a stretch stitch that's built into your machine or a narrow zig zag stitch.

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