THE Q & A SERIES

USING STRIPED FABRIC ON THE COLLINS TOP

Hi Emily

I'm making my third Collins top and I wanted to try something fun with stripes.

If I change the direction of the fabric like your model picture so some stripes are going different directions, do you have any advice on which pieces don't run parallel with the selvedge or does it not matter once the garment is all together? Should I also need to buy more fabric to allow for direction change?

Many thanks for your help.

Nicola

Hi Nicola,

I am pleased to hear you have been enjoying using the Collins top pattern and have another one in the works.

I would suggest cutting the pieces the same way I did. I think swapping them out, so that the side panels were cut the other way, might look a little strange at the side seams due to the stripes running horizontally and the pieces being A-line. You could swap the way the sleeves were cut if you like, so that the stripes run in the opposite direction to how I cut them. Make sure you are using a fabric that has a consistent amount of give in both directions, so that cutting on the crossgrain doesn't impact the drape. The fabric I used had the stripes running parallel to the selvedge - this is also something to keep in mind when considering using a striped fabric.

If you want to have a play with stripe direction on a technical drawing, you can download a copy here.

I just looked at the cutting plans, and it does look like you might need a little bit more fabric for changing the cutting direction. Potentially though, if you cut the pattern pieces on flat fabric, rather than on the fold, this might limit the amount of fabric you require.

If you want to know exactly how much fabric you will need, you could print the A0 pattern out on A4 paper and work out what scale the pattern is in by measuring the test square. You could then place the pieces on a table / paper to work out how much fabric you need in relation to the width of fabric you have or want to buy.

Let me know how you go!

Happy sewing,

Emily