Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Web Resources For Sewing Lingerie

These are my favorite lingerie-sewing resources. I have no financial interest in any of them, beyond a desire that they stay in business so I can continue to shop.

  • Sew Sassy Fabrics is my favorite source for lingerie "notions." They say of themselves:

    Sew Sassy Fabrics has been providing first quality fabrics and accessories to home sewers and cottage industries since 1987. We specialize in tricot, lace, elastic and lingerie fabrics, bra making supplies, lycra® and specialty fabrics for swimwear, activewear and costumes, and stretch fabrics containing lycra® or spandex for outer wear.

    I've been very pleased with everything I've bought from them, and I particularly recommend regular visits to Sew Sassy's sale pages. A few years ago, I got 500 yards of 3/8 inch plush lingerie elastic for $15.00. Since elastic is often the biggest expense in a lingerie project, this makes my sewing much more economical.

  • Wazoodle has a great selection of high-quality knits at good prices. Their tee-shirt grab bags are a fine source for inexpensive lingerie fabrics. I usually get one long-sleeved tee-shirt and a pair of underbritches per piece of fabric.

    Wazoodle started in 2002 as a part time business....Today we run operations in Toronto, [and] Montreal....We specialize in better quality textiles used for casual clothing, outerwear and children's wear. We occasionally dabble in finer ladies wear and home decor....We operate a retail web store at www.wazoodle.com. Our site is one of most visited fabric sites on the web, with close to a million visits each month.
  • Kwik-Sew pattern catalog. These days, I prefer Kwik-Sew patterns to the "Big Three" (Simplicity, Butterick, Vogue) I always used to browse. Kwik-Sew's patterns seem better-made and better-sized, and they include all sizes in one envelope. (I transfer my size to brown wrapping paper, and make alterations to my heart's content; or try a different size if need be. Meanwhile, I have a library of sizes in case I sew for someone else later.) Kwik-Sew has lots of lingerie patterns (for women, kids, and men, although I don't suppose you call mens' underbritches "lingerie").

    I usually pick out my patterns on this Web site, and order from Sew Sassy Fabrics or Wazoodle when I order fabric and sewing notions.

  • Dharma Trading Company has great prices on fabrics, as long as you like white and black, or you're willing to dye them yourself. (It's easy and I really enjoy it.) For lingerie purposes, they have many weights of woven silk fabric, and decent cotton jersey and cotton lycra among their knit fabrics. (I haven't yet tried their silk and hemp knits, but I'm intrigued....) They also stock dyable underwear and socks, if you prefer to dye without sewing.
  • Fay's Fashions and Fabrics has nifty value packs, grab bags of fabrics or notions. I particularly liked my elastics and lace trims.

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