How to sew Chiffon

Chiffon (which means raspberries in arabic!) looks and feels beautiful when worn, but even the most experienced sewers know that sometimes it can be tricky to work with. That’s why we wanted to share with you some tips on how to make the most out of this amazing fabric:

Practice with small projects using scraps and offcuts until you feel ready to take on a whole chiffon garment.
Lay a piece of tissue paper under the fabric and place the pattern pieces on top, and pin all three layers together.
Don't try and cut corners by doubling up chiffon and cutting it - only cut one layer of chiffon at a time.
Use French seams where possible. This looks much neater on sheer fabrics, and will help the garment drape beautifully.
Create beautiful chiffon ruffles by setting your sewing machine to use a long stitch with tight pressure.
Fabric stabilisers or "stiffeners" can greatly simplify the process of working with chiffon by stopping it from moving around so much! You can use it on seam lines or coat it on the entire fabric. Iron-on spray starch is a great temporary stabiliser that usually wears off by the time you've finished making. If not, it's easy to gently rinse the garment and hang dry. Before committing to this approach, test a small scrap of fabric to ensure the process of removing the stabiliser doesn't damage the fabric.

Here are some tips from Tamara of Connect on how she found sewing our beautiful Super Fine Chiffon

The new photographs of the Chiffon definitely give a better understanding of the fabric, however the photos still don't quite illustrate how super light it is - I would definitely order a sample beforehand to get the best idea of the fabric from that.

My tips when sewing would be to handle very much with care as the fabric is very sensitive. I advise using a small/thin needle with the fabric so as to not rip through it - the tension of the sewing machine also affects the warping of the fabric. My suggestion would be to sample the needles and tensions on scrap pieces to make sure that the settings are correct. I also suggest slightly feeding the sewing machine with the fabric, however it is important that it is done slowly as to not create gathering.

When you care for and handle the fabric gently, it works super well!

Name: Tamara Fenech
Company: Connect
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