BIG KNIT fabric

Today we would like to introduce you to our big knit fabrics.

Big knit is, as the name says, a knitted fabric.

It’s a perfect material for warm clothes, especially in this time of the year.

First we would like to give you some tips on how to cut, prepare and sew your projects followed by some inspo pictures. 

Sewing needle:

– Jersey needles / stretch needles

It´s important that the needle have a rounded top. A point top needle would destroy the knitted fabric.

Because our big knit fabric is quite thick we would recommend needle size 90.

Sewing thread:

You will need a tear resistant thread, therefore we are not recommending cotton thread. 

We will recommend Gütermann threads –> psst you can even find matching Gütermann threads at elvelyckandesign.com, they are made with 100% polyester, are tear resistant, heavy-duty and will not shrink in the washing machine.  

Tips for knitted fabrics: 

Lay your fabric on a table or on the floor, make sure it´s unstretched.

Big knit is a quite thick knitted fabric, probably choose the pattern one size bigger and add extra seam allowance.

To mark notches use a pin or marker, don´t cut into the fabric, to mark notches to avoid unraveling loops. 

ironing: 

When ironing the fabric, try to work with steam and be careful not to flatten the texture.

Stabilize areas that are prone to stretching, such as shoulders, armholes and neck by iron on a seam tape. For example Bias Tape T12 from Vlieseline.

sewing machine: 

We would recommend to neaten the edges first with an overlock machine or a zigzag stitch with your sewing machine. Sew then all seams with a straight stitch on your sewing machine. You can lower the sewing foot pressure and choose a longer stitch lengths.

extra tip: 

The fabric tends to expand and normal hemming gets quickly a bit wavy, and it can be quite thick to add cuffs in the same fabrics. Therefore we would recommend to add cuffs with ribbed fabric or to add a bit more seam allowance on sleeves and front and back pieces and sew a drawstring with an inserted elastic band.