Preparing Embroidery Fabric, especially Linen Fabric

Figure out the Dimensions

First, figure out the dimensions your

finished piece will be. You’ll need to know the size the finished piece, once mounted. Then add 2.5 inches to that number on both sides, top and bottom. In other words, add 5 inches to the length and 5 inches to the width. So, if you’d finished piece will be 12x12 inches, you’ll want a cut piece of fabric that is 17x17 (12+2.5+2.5=17)

This is because you’ll need two inches

along each edge when mounting and you’ll loose around an inch of fabric top to bottom and side to side when shrinking. So add on 5 inches.

If you plan on mounting the fabric on a slate frame, you’ll need to add more onto the fabric for when you fold over the edges. Add an extra inch on each side and an extra half inch top and bottom, for the turn-overs on the fabric edges.

Remember to cut the fabric on thread/on

grain. It’s really important. When cutting your fabric, make sure you’re following the grain so the fabric is squared. When mounting your fabric, you want the warp and weft threads to lay perfectly straight up and down or side to side. If the fabric is stretched off grain when mounted, puckering and warps can form. Which are almost impossible to fix. So it’s really important to make sure the fabric is mounted squared, on grain/on thread.

Understanding Fabric Grain

All woven fabric has a grain – both lengthwise and crosswise – the grain refers to the weave of the fabric. When cutting fabric, make sure it’s squared on grain.

To cut fabric “on grain” or “on thread” squared, first it’s helpful to know a bit of terminology. Fabric, like linen or cotton, and even silk, is made by weaving threads together on a loom. When a piece of fabric is purchased off the bolt, the two sides that run parallel to each other, the finished edges, are called the “selvage”. The “warp” thread are the ones that run parallel to the selvage. These are the threads that are set up on the loom during the weaving process that set the width of the fabric. The “weft” threads run the length of the fabric. These are the threads that are woven through the warp threads during the weaving process. The Warp and Weft threads run perpendicular to each other, and this is what’s known as the “grain” of the fabric. So, in short, the weft threads are the crosswise grain, and the warp threads are the lengthwise grain. The lengthwise grain runs parallel to the selvedge whilst the cross grain runs at right angles. Finally there’s the bias which runs diagonally across the fabric. If a piece of fabric was cut on a diagonal, that’s called on the “bias”. Which is not ideal when embroidering because it can stretch the fabric in ways that lead to terrible puckering and warps. Typically, the selvage edge is already squared, so it’s not necessary to cut. But every other edge should be cut on grain. Squaring up your fabric so that you can hoop up on the grain will give you better results as mounting your fabric “off grain” or at an angle to the direction of the weave often leads to puckering or warping.

Recap of Terminology

There are three types of grain:

* Lengthwise, or warp

* Crosswise, or weft

* Bias

Weft and Warp or Lengthwise and Crosswise grains are both straight grains that align with the threads in woven fabric. Bias, however, is at a 45-degree angle to the length and cross grains.

Warp or Lengthwise Grain

* Runs parallel to the selvedges, or tightly woven sides to a piece of fabric.

* Has the least amount of stretch because the warp threads are usually the strongest and closest together.

Weft or Crosswise Grain

* Runs across the fabric, from selvedge to selvedge.

* Usually has some stretch, or give.

Bias Grain

* Runs at a 45-degree angle to the length and cross grains.

* Has a lot of stretch or give.

* Can be difficult to work with because of the stretch. Bias needs to be handled with care because once it has stretched it can’t always recover.

How to Cut the Fabric on Grain

When cutting a piece of fabric, first make

sure any pre-cut edge is on thread. Do this by pulling out threads, along that edge, until one is pulled that runs the entire length of the fabric. This will leave a bit of fray or “shards” along that edge, just trim them off. The edge that’s left will be on thread.

For sides that need to be cut, first measure out the desired length and width, using the side of the fabric that is now on grain. I use a “T” Square along that edge to place my measurements. Double check that the measurements are correct before cutting. Measure twice, cut once. It’s helpful to mark the measurements on the fabric using a water-soluble pen or dress-maker’s chalk.

Once the correct measurements are marked out on the fabric, make a cut about an inch long along the marks made. Separate the fabric along the cut, and look for a single thread within that cut that runs the direction you’re cutting. Gently separate a thread away from the rest of the fabric, then start pulling or “gathering” it out from the fabric. It should be removed completely from the fabric by just pulling, but a bit of force may be needed. A piece of hard beeswax can be used to wrap the thread around to help pull it from the fabric. It’s easier on the hands. If the thread breaks while puling, cut the fabric along the line, or void that was created where the thread was removed. Find the end of that thread again and continue pulling.

Once the thread is out, a perfect line will be left, from where that thread once was. Cut along that line with sharp scissors. It always is a good idea to use larger dressmaker’s scissors.

Remember to hold your scissors correctly! They’re are two holes in the handles of the sheers, the top round hole, and the bottom more oval hole. Your thumb goes in the top round hole. Place your pointer finger outside of the oval bottom hole, and your middle, index and pinky fingers inside the hole. Keep the tip of the blade on the flat work surface, and don’t roll the scissors to the left or right, keep the blades straight. Once cut, that edge will be on thread.

Repeat this step for the side that runs

perpendicular to the cut you just made, if it needs to be cut, and any fabric that wasn’t pre-cut and already neatened. When finished, the piece of fabric will be cut at the desired measurements, on grain, perfectly squared.

This step is crucial to preventing warps and puckering later on. It’s extremely important that the fabric is mounted on grain in a hoop, stretcher bars or slate frame. And having fabric that’s squared, cut on grain will make life so much easier when mounting it.

Neaten the Edges

Once it’s cut and squared, neaten/finish the edges to prevent it from fraying. Using either a sewing machine zig-zag stitch, or use a whip stitch by hand, or a serger to finish the edge of the fabric. Sew along the edge of the fabric, on all sides, to prevent it from fraying as you work. Just make sure your tension on the machine is correct, and there’s no puckering of the edges of the fabric.

Shrinking the Linen

Now it’s time to pre-shrink the linen.

Step 1). Hot Tap Water

First get a large, glass bowl, making sure it’s large enough to hold the entire piece of fabric. Let your tap water get as hot as it will get. Then place the fabric in the bowl, and fill with hot tap water. Let it soak while you get the next step ready. Fill a teapot with water and let in come to a boil. I use a cheap electric teapot I purchased for under $20.00. While it’s coming to a boil, turn your tap water to as cold as it can go, Stir the fabric that’s in the bowl with a wooden spoon a few times, while the water is getting cold. Empty the hot water from the bowl, being careful to not let the fabric fall out into the sink (I have dumped fabric on top of dirty dishes). And watch your hands with the hot water. Be careful!

Step 2). Cold Tap Water

Fill the bowl with the cold water. The linen will have a hard texture at this point. Let it soak in the cold water for a few minutes.

Step 3). Boiling Hot Water

Empty the bowl again. Now poor the new boiling water from the teapot onto the linen in the bowl. Again using the spoon, make sure the linen is completely submerged. Watch your hands! Fill up the teapot again and bring to a boil. Empty the water after soaking for 10 minutes.

Step 4). Cold Tap Water

Run the tap with cold water again, and fill the bowl with ice cold water. Swish the linen around making sure the cold water penetrates all of the fabric. It will feel really stiff now. Let it soak for a few minutes.

Step 5). Boiling Hot Water

While it’s soaking, bring the teapot to another boil. Once more, dump out the cold water and pour the new boiling water. Make sure the linen is covered with the boiling water. Stir a few time with the spoon, then let it be until the water cools to room temperature naturally.

So…. To be clear….

1. Hot tap water

2. Cold water

3. Boiling water

4. Cold water

5. Boiling water left to cool.

The extreme hot and cold is what shrinks the linen.

Drying/Ironing

Have two clean towels laid out on a flat surface, like a clean counter top or table. A surface that you don’t mind getting a little wet is probably preferable. Remove the linen from the bowl. You can gently shake some of the water out over a sink or tub, without letting the fabric touch either. Or, let it drip a bit over the bowl for a few seconds. Now, do NOT wring out the linen. Just lay it flat on one of the towels. Place the other towel on top and press down with your hands, removing the excess water.

You can at this point, while it’s damp, use an iron to remove any wrinkles. Fist, double check that your ironing board cover is clean or put down a clean cloth or sheet over it. Then, using a dry iron, set on the linen / cotton setting, move over the linen only horizontally and vertically. Do NOT move the iron across the fabric diagonally! Moving the iron over the fabric diagonally will stretch the fabric out along the bias. Leaving you with a wonky, warped, not squared piece of fabric.

Constantly move the iron, never leaving it in one place. Turn the fabric over and iron the other side. Don’t worry about getting it dry with the iron, you’ll only scorch the fabric. Just get the wrinkles out, then lay it flat to dry on a clean dry towel.

While it’s drying, if you notice the fabric

forming bubbles or ripples, it’s not because it isn’t drying flat. It’s because parts of the fabric are drying at a different rates, which causes it to bubble up in those areas. It’s fine, leave it to dry completely. Once it’s totally dry, usually overnight, you can go over it once more with a quick dry iron to get it perfectly smooth and flat.

Storing Long Term

If you don’t plan on using/mounting the

linen straight away, and are going to store it, try not to fold your linen. Folding linen will damage the threads of the linen fabric along the fold line. Because of the way linen is made, using flax, the fibers aren’t very elastic, and can actually break along a fold. It’s always better to roll the fabric up to store it. There are a few different ways to store it, but I find this system works for me.

I get some long 2”x 36” mailers tubes,

and archival quality tissue paper. Scroll over to see more pics. I wrap the tube in the paper so the fabric doesn’t touch the mailer tube. Then I lay out my fabric and simply roll it up as if it were wrapping paper around the tube. I then add another layer of tissue paper, and repeat the process with another piece of fabric. I try to keep similar fabrics on the same tube. I’ll also write on the tissue paper what the fabric is, it’s count or weight, brand, etc. Once I’ve wrapped around 5-6 different fabrics, I again wrap tissue paper around it all. Around the outside of this last layer, I’ll clip on additional paperwork, like receipts or business cards for any of the wrapped up fabric. Then, so I know exactly what fabric is on that tube, I use QR codes and place one at the top of the tube. I’ll add pictures of each fabric, all the information about each fabric and it’s placement on the tube to the QR code. Then when I need to find a specific piece of linen, I can look up the QR code and find the tube it’s located on. Because the fabric tends to be wrapped fairly loosely, it’s easy to pull a fabric off the tube when your ready to use it. I store all the wrapped tubes in a Christmas wrapping paper bin. I have one of those tall standing fabric bins with a lid, but they make ones that slide under the bed, or ones that hang from doors.

If you absolutely have to fold the fabric to

store it, roll up some archival quality tissue paper, and add it inside the fabric, along the fold. Basically folding the fabric over the rolled up paper. This will help prevent hard folds in the linen, which again will damage the fibers.

Also, it never hurts to go to your local

fabric shop and see if they’ll give you the cardboard fabric bolts. They will sometimes give them away, and you can purchase them as well. And, they are fairly easy to store.

I hope all that is a bit helpful? As always, if

you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to

ask. I’m always happy to help