When sewing cosplays, it is vital to a lot of cosplayers and costumers that they choose the right fabric for a good fit and accurate look. Here are my top tips for choosing fabric for your costumes:
· Don’t buy your fabric straight away. Look around at many different options in different shops. You might find a fabric for cheaper, or a better suited one in a different shop. Of course, if you see a very unique fabric, be sure to snatch that up right away!
· Buy swatches. If you’re fabric shopping online especially, be sure to order a fabric swatch first before buying the fabric. These are offcuts or small squares of the fabric which allow you to see what the fabric is like. Do this for a number of options to see what you like best before choosing your fabric.
· Look at colours of fabrics. If you’re going for screen accuracy with your cosplay, make sure you are certain what colours of fabrics to use.
· If you need to dye fabric, be sure it’s a fabric you can definitely dye. Synthetic fabrics like polyester or nylon cannot be dyed. Natural fabrics like cotton can.
· If you’re a beginner sewer, try to use fabrics that are easier to work with. Cotton and linen fabrics are easiest to work with as they don’t stretch. Silks and delicate fabrics are a little harder to work with due to how they should be handled with care and used for items that will not go through a lot of strain.
I learned the hard way that chiffon is a very difficult fabric to work with - stay away from that devil fabric, no matter how pretty it make look! I hope these fabric tips will help you in choosing them for your own costumes.
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