/cgl/ - Cosplay & EGL

>>10519995
Oh I hit the nail on the head, cool. So when I talked about similar stretch, it means two things: the amount and direction. Direction is the easiest, just tug the fabric in a straight line horizontally and vertically. All fabrics will have some stretch along the 45 degree angle (or bias) so when testing, you must stretch in a straight line for the test to be accurate. There are 2 way and 4 way stretch fabrics. As the name suggests, some fabrics will only stretch in two directions (left and right OR up and down) while others will stretch in all directions (left, right, AND up & down).

You also need to know how much stretch a fabric has because they aren't all made with the same percentage of stretch. If you're using a commercial pattern, the back envelope will likely have a ruler printed on it for you to test the amount of inches a small swatch of fabric will have. You need to use the same percentage or inches of stretch between your practice and final fabric. If your final fabric isn't too expensive, just buying extra of it (in a same or different color) is fine.

Oh and yes, buying bigger clothes to practice tailoring or just using it for scrap fabric is one of the best kinds of beginner projects because 95% of the necessary sewing is already done for you.

Hope that helps, good luck!