Wool - Play Doh of Textiles

I didn't come to appreciate wool by sewing. Never wanting to be saddled with clothing that had to be dry cleaned, I sewed almost exclusively in cotton and linen.

It was knitting that introduced me to wool's appealing qualities. And I didn't come to knitting until 3 or 4 years ago. My knitting mentor, Beth, impressed upon me that knitting was most pleasurable, and most successful, in pure wool yarns. I was resistant at first. But of course she was right. Wool's soft hand, elasticity, and incredible ability to take on whatever shape you might mold it into makes it ideal for shaped garments. Once a hand-knit sweater is completed, one "blocks" it by placing it on the table in the appropriate shape and steaming. Not only does it retain that shape, but all the little imperfect and uneven stitches get right into line. It's an amazing thing to see.

Not to mention warmth. I'm not 20 anymore (shhh...) and all winter I'm cold. In the house or out, I tend to get chilled to the bone. My cotton sweaters and sweatshirts were just not doing it anymore. But, I found, wearing my hand knit wool sweaters or vest kept me completely warm. And, to my surprise, wool did not have to be scratchy or itchy in the least. And, for sweaters at least, I could hand wash them. (Alas, I would not hand wash a tailored wool jacket.)

So, the past few years, I have been experimenting with wool in my personal sewing. I had sewn several skirts in gorgeous wools (that a client brought me from overseas), a couple unstructured jackets, and a tailored vest many years ago that came out great on the outside, but inside of which I'd used fusibles exclusively, and very little shaping techniques. I'd never done any "real" tailoring.

I consider "real" tailoring to be when one imparts shape and structure to fabric with special fusing and/or machine and/or hand-stitching. Shape and structure that includes but is not limited to the seaming and darting. In other words, the fabric itself must be shaped....like clay or Play-Doh.

Wool is unique in it's ability to retain a shape imparted with heat, and moisture. You can somewhat shape other fibers, yes, but nothing is quite like pure wool. Other animal fibers, alpaca and angora for example, vary. When I say "wool," I mean fleece from a sheep or lamb. Next time I make up a dress coat with 6 yards of pure cashmere, I'll let you know how that tailors.


Wools come in so many varieties it's hard to know where to start, so I'll just pick one and go.

Crepe
Fairly easy to find and used for anything from dresses to suits. Crepe is woven with highly twisted fibers and can be quite ravelly. It has a very nice drape. Easy to work with.

Gabardine
This may be one of the most difficult wool to work with due to it's very fine fibers and close twill weave. It is difficult to make hand-stitching invisible, resistant to easing, and easy to over press. Gabardine is often used for pants as it is drapey but thin, "neat" and wrinkle resistant.

Woolen
Woolen is a soft suiting fabric. Fibers are thicker and fluffier than worsteds. Think Harris Tweed, flannels, herringbone, plaid, sports jackets, bias wool skirts. These are easy to work with...ease easily and easily hide hand-stitches.

Worsted
These are traditional men's suiting fabrics. They are harder and crisper than worsteds and so a bit more difficult to work with.

Bouclé
This pebbly, loosely woven fabric is often associated with the Chanel jacket. I have never used a bouclé but imagine it would be quite ravelly, but otherwise easy to work with. It would hide hand stitching easily and ease nicely. Bulk might be a problem and any clipped areas would need to be reinforced. Even feed might also be a problem so good basting might be a priority.

Jersey
Wool jersey drapes beautifully and is very easy to work with. Topstitching shows beautifully on it as well. Be sure the pre-steam the heck out of it as it shrinks visibly. (In fact, wool jersey can be purposefully shrunk and used as a lightweight felted fabric as well.)

Melton
A coating weight that is felted (fulled) after weaving. This makes it non-raveling and suitable for lapped seams or even raw-edged styles. It is fairly bulky and machine made buttonholes will be difficult. Topstitching looks nice and reduces bulk. For a couture touch, try topstitching by hand using "pick-stitching."

Boiled wool
This is on my list of fabrics to use one day. It has a pleasantly pebbly surface and won't ravel as the fibers have been felted together. Difficult to shape, it's often used for boxy, less structured garments, jackets, coats, and vests.