Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Cutting Slippery Fabrics with Tissue Paper

This is one of those tips I’ve heard a million times but never actually tried: sandwiching slippery silks between two layers of tissue paper to make cutting easier and more accurate. Well, I finally tried it and it’s basically a MIRACLE.

I recently lined a garment with habotai, aka China Silk. Habotai feels lovely: light as a feather and silky soft. However, it is a veritable nightmare to work with (in my humble opinion). It is so weightless that it practically floats away when you try to cut it, plus the layers slip around on top of each other. Argh! You’re lucky if your cut piece of habotai even vaguely resembles your actual pattern piece.

So, obviously, I was dreading cutting and working with the habotai lining. (Why do I buy it? Usually to save money. It’s under $10 a yard, usually less than half the price of crepe de chine, which would be my first choice.) The college where I teach stocks rolls of tissue paper for the very purpose of cutting and sewing tricky fabrics, so I decided I needed to finally put this method to the test.

Here’s how it works. It’s best if you can get a roll of tissue paper, which is usually around 36” wide. Roll out a single layer on your cutting surface. Lay out your fabric on the fold, right sides together. Arrange the fabric so the selvages line up with one side of the tissue paper and pin them in place. Then fold the tissue paper in half lengthwise so that it’s sandwiching the fabric. Pin all the layers in place together.  You’ll have a tissue layer on the bottom, the two layers of silk, and the second layer of tissue on the top.

 
Next, place your pattern pieces on top of the tissue/fabric sandwich, using the selvage or fabric fold to align your pattern grainlines as usual.

Then just cut around your pieces! There’s no need for special scissors or anything. The tissue paper keeps the layers in place, making cutting a breeze.

Look at those neat edges of the cut pieces.



Now that your fabric is cut, you can also use the tissue pieces as a stabilizer while stitching seams. Leave the tissue piece on your bottom piece as you’re sewing, and it will feed through your machine as easily as quilting cotton.





Then just rip away the tissue paper from the seam. Sew with a short stitch length (like 2.0 mm) to make tearing the paper more perforated and easier to tear away. Keep some tweezers handy to pick out any stubborn bits of tissue.

That’s it! This method is fabulous for all sorts of slippery silks, like charmeuse, chiffon, georgette, etc.

Are you a fan of this method? Have any good sources for tissue paper by the roll?

51 comments:

  1. I love this method for cutting out slippery fabrics. Works like a charm. I use tracing paper that I get by the 50 yard roll from art supply stores for under $20.

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  2. Oh, shame you didn't tell me about this method earlier...
    But I will try it sometime, because I love chiffon, but hate to work with it. Thank you!

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  3. Some of the Great British Sewing Bee contestants could have done with this information for their challenge on the last episode!

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    1. I agree Lucy. I would have thought Mary the judge would have at least given this as a tip, it's not like it's a brand new technique

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  4. What a life-altering tip! You just made my life a bajillion times easier.

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  5. I used this method (only with pieces of tissue from the dollar store) to cut silk charmeuse - it works like a DREAM, even if layering individual pieces of tissue isn't a lot of fun.

    Charmeuse being what it is, I also put a layer of tissue between my layers of silk. Worth it.

    -looking for those sources-

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  6. Oh, what a lovely tip!!! Thank you!!!

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  7. Where does the school that you work at get it?

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  8. I have not tried this, but I am looking for a good source of tracing paper. I have heard that the medical supply places are a great resource. ~Teri

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    1. The paper they use on the doctor's exam bench/thing! I had heard that somewhere before, now that I think about it. Cool!

      The tissue probably avoids the problem caused by cutting through freezer paper or exam table paper -- having to resharpen your scissors.

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  9. I just trace out my pattern on freezer paper ad iron it directly to the fabric. It sticks but comes away clean!

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    1. I align the freezer paper with the selvedge, trace the pattern on it and cut. I iron very lightly, just a touch.

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  10. I've heard about this too but never given it ago, so glad it works wonders I really must try it out sometime

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  11. Super helpful, thanks! I'll have to try that freezer paper trick too.

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  12. Such a timely tip - I am starting on a formal dress this weekend with 2 different slippery untameable fabrics ... fingers crossed I come out the winner at the end of the cutting-out round ... J

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  13. doesn't the tissue paper dull your scissors? That would be my only concern...my shears are precious!

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  14. Thanks for sharing this! I wish I would've thought of this in the past.

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  15. Thank you for sharing, I hadn't heard of doing this before. I'll try it next time I'm using difficult fabric!

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  16. A cheaper alternative to exam table paper is spa table paper. Look on Amazon. Same exact stuff.

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  17. I use a lot of tissue paper because I trace most of my patterns before I cut them out. (Usually because I need to include alterations) Recently I have used deconstructed favorite garments to make my own patterns. If I place a layer of tissue over the fabric, and under the deconstructed pieces. I can make notes where I want to add specific changes or alterations and when I am finished I have the new pattern exactly as it was cut if I want to duplicate the results.

    I buy tissue paper in 36 inch wide and 12 inch wide rolls from an art supply store.

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    1. Oh, that is so smart! I also make my own patterns, and I'm horrible at not tracing the final pattern. Instead I save my taped together pieces with a plan to trace them "later". Yeah, right... But this would cure two problems at once! Thank you for the tip!

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    2. I iron my patterns before use to pellon, they last forever this way, store them in large manila envelops with the pattern pic taped to the front. I have patterns from 20 years ago that are still in perfect condition.

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  18. It's a great tip but I'm concerned about dulling the scissors, have you noticed any dulling on yours?

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  19. I found out about this method in December, when I was slaving over two metres of very slippery chiffon, trying to make myself a dress for a New Years event. It did work and it made my life so much easier, although it dulled my shears a lot. But it was worth it.
    Also, I found that it works best if you cut one layer of fabric at a time. A little bit more time consuming, but you do get a pattern pieces with no distortion at all. I see that you managed to cut your fabric on fold, I was afraid that it will still be too slippery.

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  20. This sounds like a great tip, but I'm wondering if anyone uses a rotary cutter and cutting pad? That's what I use and it means that there is no need to move your fabric at all. Sometimes if the fabric is super slippery, I'll put weights on it, but then I just use my rotary cutter to trace around the pattern and I'm done.

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  21. I've seen people do that. I don't have enough control. Serrated shears, which grip slippery fabric, are helpful though.

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  22. What a great tip! I'm definitely going to try this next time I'm cutting lining :)

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  23. Thanks for the tip! I am about to cut out a bias strip on silk and was deathly afraid . . . now I feel like I have a fighting chance!

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  24. I've grown up using this method. My mum would have used any paper she could get her hands on, even newspaper on darker fabrics. On smaller pieces of fabric I'd use kitchen roll and don't forget to use silk or lace pins rather than ordinary pins, they are much finer.

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  25. I have a rotary cutter and mat, and rather than sandwiching between two layers, I just put one layer of tissue paper underneath the fabric. That seems to work well for me. Also, someone asked where you can buy tracing paper. I get mine in 50 yard rolls from Dick Blick art supply.
    http://www.dickblick.com/products/speedball-tracing-paper-in-rolls/?clickTracking=true

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  26. I buy packs of tissue paper at the dollar store and use it for all of my pattern drafting. I love that i can choose different colors, and can easily use it for tracing and I can even sorta drape with it on my dress form.

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  27. Yay! I love this idea, and it's hopefully going to help me when I use your TIKI dress pattern as my wedding dress for next year...I was super nervous about using slippery fabrics for such an important project...

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  28. I used this tip for knits and it worked great! But I thought I got the tip from you!

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  29. What a great tip! Thanks for sharing it. It will surely become quite handy for me and your post will be bookmarked in case I ever forget about the tip when I need it. I found you via Craftgossip by the way.

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  30. This is great and I wonder if it will work on some fabric I bought to make fuzzy dice? The fabric sheds and is slippery and I've left it for a couple years now. I just couldn't get a grip on it! I wonder whether the tissue paper or freezer paper would be best? What do you do you for shedding fabric? Just baste it? Might be able to do that with the paper now. . .

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  31. In all my years of sewing I've never heard of that method....but I will sure file that info for future reference!
    When I had a little shop, I used to get paper items from Nashville Wraps....
    www.nashvillewraps.com
    They were very reasonable on pricing of items I ordered.

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  32. What is the recommended way to do this with a rotary cutter? I've been working with chiffon. I've tried cutting with scissors and a rotary and had issues with both, though less with rotary.

    Think it's worth a try using the full sandwich and a rotary?

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  33. Here's a great resource for 45" X 1300' rolls of tissue paper, and it is acid free which is great for storing textiles and vintage. It's on sale for under $35 at IDS International Design Supplies, Inc. in L.A. which is an excellent place for all design room supplies. (http://www.ids-la.com/Tissue-Paper-45-X-1300_p_826.html)

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  34. Great tip! I have never used this cutting method before, but I have put a layer under silk when sewing to make it easier to feed through the machine. Could you leave the tissue paper sandwich in tact to sew your darts, and would it easily pull away from the stitching once done? Has anyone tried that?

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  35. For years, I read that you must use paper when cutting slippery silks. I am working on my daughter's silk charmeuse wedding dress, and tried this method. When I rolled out the paper, it must have become electrically charged! I laid the fabric over the paper and WHAM! a static-cling nightmare. I needed help from my daughter to peel the paper away from the silk and then had to plunge the entire 6 yard mess into a bucket of water to get the static under control. In 48 years of sewing, this is the first time this ever happened to me. Anyone have similar stories or a solution for next time? Thanks!

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    1. I learned this from a retail clerk at Jo Ann Fabric - spray your fabric with spray starch. It becomes stiffer, won't get staticy, and washes out. After reading this tissue paper method, however, I think I'll use both! Hope it helps!

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  36. Oh this is exactly what I need to do for my next project. Thanks a lot for the tip...

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  37. If you're in NYC, SIL on 38th Street has 45" and 60" rolls of tissue paper for cutting, for about $30. Just ask at the front counter, and they'll bring it down for you.

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  38. Thank you! Worked like a charm. I invested in a mega roll (I'm pretty sure I will never run out if I sewed for another 50 years). Got it at Paper Mart in Orange, CA (http://www.papermart.com/Product%20Pages/Product.aspx?GroupID=7811&SubGroupID=7812&origin=product_ads&utm_source=google&utm_medium=adwords&utm_campaign=product_ads#7812) - Uline.com also had it for slightly more expensive. But it comes off in nice big sheets.

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  39. I must have missed this post in early April, but thanks you to your post today about where you sourced your tissue paper from I think I am ready to take on the chiffon dress that I have been putting off for a wee while because of the slippery factor. Thanks :-)

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  40. Im new to your blog - so catching up on some of your older posts when i have time. What a great method this is. Thanks :-)

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  41. I cut with a rotary cutter and if its slippery I use a rotary ruler as well.

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  42. I will definitely use this one next time. I just finished cutting lining and it has been a nightmare. Before swearing off slippery fabrics for good, I'll try this tip. Thanks Gertie!

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Thanks for your comments; I read each and every one! xo Gertie

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