Re: [h-cost] size for a test swatch
Elizabeth Walpole wrote: So for those who regularly wash a test swatch how big do you cut yours? I try to get a couple of inches, and I measure it exactly. I'll trim it square with a rotary cutter on a gridded mat to be sure of the size. Then I can measure it again after it's washed and see what it does. With silk I'd expect shrinkage. Dawn ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] size for a test swatch
Dawn wrote: Elizabeth Walpole wrote: So for those who regularly wash a test swatch how big do you cut yours? I try to get a couple of inches, and I measure it exactly. I'll trim it square with a rotary cutter on a gridded mat to be sure of the size. Then I can measure it again after it's washed and see what it does. With silk I'd expect shrinkage. I'd also expect the fabric to lose a lot of its crispness and get rather softer and limper. I've seen this happen to a friend's brocade. One of the things I love about silk brocade is how much body it has, but if you want it drapey, washing will do that. For a Tudor gown, you might be better off with a crisper hand. Melanie Schuessler ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] size for a test swatch
Melanie Schuessler wrote: I'd also expect the fabric to lose a lot of its crispness and get rather softer and limper. I've seen this happen to a friend's brocade. One of the things I love about silk brocade is how much body it has, but if you want it drapey, washing will do that. For a Tudor gown, you might be better off with a crisper hand. You don't have to *wash* it to pre-shrink it, though. Just getting silk wet will cause it to shrink. When I did my wedding gown, I just laid the folded yardage in the tub -- after testing a swatch -- and it kept its crispness. Dawn ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
[h-cost] size for a test swatch
Good afternoon all, I've come back from an event over the weekend inspired to make up a Tudor gown from a silk brocade I've got in my stash but I'm not sure how it will react to washing. I was going to wash a test swatch but I'm not sure how big I should cut it, I don't want to cut too much off as that may make it difficult to cut the gown efficiently, but I also want to be able to evaluate how the drape is affected by washing, which is difficult with a small piece. So for those who regularly wash a test swatch how big do you cut yours? Elizabeth Walpole Canberra Australia ewalpole[at]tpg.com.au http://au.geocities.com/amiperiodornot/ E-mail message checked by PC Tools Spyware Doctor (5.0.0.177) Database version: 5.07050 http://www.pctools.com/spyware-doctor/ ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
