Radical Combination of Knits & Wovens!

Innovating with Knits and Wovens gives you that designer edge and look!

Isn't life great? Top designers are combining flowing wovens with drapey knits! You can too! Sewing your own clothes allows the freedom of design and expression. This is really exemplified here!
All fabrics and patterns mentioned are available on our website!

          

          

Black rayon lycra knit and striped rayon woven

          

Knits give a flattering fit and still leave plenty of breathing space.

          

Wovens are flouncy and flowing. But we often use them in separate garments. In this newsletter, we tackle the challenges of combining these two terrific textiles into one delightful garment.
We want to make it worth your time to sew - go ahead - pick style, fit, fabrics, colors, textures, to combine in ways that are unique and couldn't find in any store! You really do get to have it all! 

        

Look for patterns with distinct elements. For example, a dress that acts as a combination of  separate elements - here as a skirt with a top. This Kwik Sew pattern has a  wide waistband between the bodice and skirt, which makes it ideal.

        

          

Pattern - Kwik Sew 3758 - Dresses

          

The bodice is designed for stretch knits and the gathered skirt would work well with a woven. The wide elastic band at the waist will hold and tame any wavy seams.

        

        

This green and black chevron stretch silk
44" wide stretch silk charmeuse with shades of olive green, black  chevron pattern against a natural white background. 14" repeat, chevrons  run with selvedge)

          

pairs wells with

          

a black lightweight knit  -
a Modal Rayon/Spandex blend jersey knit in black.  94% Modal, 6% Spandex.  Dry clean recommended. Modal is a type of rayon, a semi-synthetic  cellulose fiber made by spinning reconstituted cellulose, in this case  often from beech trees.

        

        

        

So we've taken the guesswork out of the process for you!

        

Simply order online or look for the pink stars on the bolts and you will know what to pair together!

        

      

        

Try a stretchy knit at the tummy for support and comfort!

        

        

Pattern - Kwik Sew 3242 - Misses' Skirts & Top

        

You can really see how this would work in the next pics.

        

Use a knit for the waist yoke. This allows for comfort and body changes. For more support, you can make the yoke taller and fold it over like yoga pants. If you are looking to expand a maternity wardrobe, you could make the  waist band in two different sizes and swap it out for the larger size as  your pregnancy progresses A long shirt can cover the band for ease. From the pictures below, you can really start to imagine how this pattern can be used to combine knits and wovens.

        

This pattern also includes a tank top. You can make the front in a silk or rayon and the back panel in a knit! This technique will also work on most sleeveless shirt patterns (avoid sleeves for this type of technique) You have the best of both worlds - ease and stretch  in the back and style and a very flattering fabric in the front.

Remember - this pattern is designed for knits - it has no darts it and will sew up too tight in a woven. It's important to make a test garment when replacing patterns made for knit with a woven portion since a pattern designed for knits relies on on the give of a knit when they are graded and will not fit the same in a woven fabric. Don't be afraid to play and experiment!

        

Beginners will be happiest with cotton wovens, but use a solid kona cotton on the back and a fun cotton woven print on the front!

        

Just because you are a beginner doesn't mean you lose out on the fun: Change things up - try variety!

      

        

Here are a few other shirt patterns that can be tried with this technique. This easy tank from New Look is a winner. The darts at the front work well for rayon or silk, while the back is good for knit. Now here is where your fabric pairing pays off : you get to skip the back zipper and make the back into one piece instead of two! Bonus! And you haven't even started to wear it!
Pattern - New Look - 6483 - Tank
The drapeyness of this shirt is great for the rayon or silk front.
The tucks are great in the rayon and the back can be a plain knit.

Pattern - New Look - 6102 - Top, Dress, Scarf
Look at your pattern stash - there are other patterns that work well for this technique that we have discussed in previous newsletters - For example - you can breath new life into your Titus patterns!

Pattern - Titus - Spring Cami

      

          

            

Tips and Quips  

            

              

                

The different stretch of knits and wovens affects the way the joining seam acts. It may be wavy or  pucker.

                

Test, Test, Test!  

            

Sew swatches of each fabric together to see how they act when sewn and washed.

Look for stable knits with minimal stretch.  

            

Avoid structured garments.

Stay with design and fitting elements that work with each fabric, for example darts work best with wovens and are generally better avoided with knits.

Choose fabrics of the same weight. If the woven is heavier than the knit, it will pull it out of shape.

Try a T-shirt top with a woven skirts - puckering at waistline can be covered up with elastic. 

Avoid combining wovens and knits around difficult to fit areas such as the bust and arrmsyche. The negative ease of the knit can be  difficult to combine with the regular ease of the woven, creating a fitting issue. The result is that the woven can "hold" the knit away from the body, making the underarm and bust fit incorrectly.  

            

      

        

This is a nice pattern for combining knits and wovens for comfort and wearability. The easy fit in the jumper lets you confidently combine these two very different types of fabric. The modern lines make it ideal for a unique design. Try alternating colors  or mixing a graphic pattern with a solid. Get creative!

        

          

            

Pattern - Kwik Sew 3955 - Misses' Jumper

            

The center back panel piece is a great place to add in your knit fabric  for movement, comfort, and ease. This allows you to use non-stretchy wovens in front without sacrificing fit or structure.

          

          

      

        

          

Look for stable knits with minimal stretch

          

Ponte is a good knit to try for its stability. You will have to use it with a heavier cotton or a linen.

            

            

      

        

Stonemountain & Daughter sewing instructor Barbara Beccio recommends sewing in a twill tape to stabilize the knit as you would in a bias cut dress. For a delicate knit, you can also try sewing in silk organza to stabilize the seam.

        

 You can stabilize and baste the tape inside the stitch line - so Barbara recommends using a 1/8" inch strip.

      

     

        

Another method suggested by our own customer service representative, Gerri --- is to cut your woven on the bias and to match the stretch of the bias woven to the stretch of the knit.

        

    

        

Have you ever put a knit and woven together in a garment sucessfully?

        

Let us know your results! Email us or share on Facebook.

      

        

Need pricing on anything you've seen in this newsletter? We are a short click away and are happy to answer any of your product questions!