To sew slippery fabric without it shifting, stop it moving before it reaches the needle: cut it in a single layer on a surface it can grip, such as tissue paper or a cotton sheet, pin or hand-baste every seam inside the seam allowance, and sew slowly with a new 60/8 or 70/10 needle, a short stitch of 1.8 to 2 mm, and either a walking foot or a strip of tissue paper under the seam. Satin, charmeuse, chiffon and lining fabrics creep because their smooth filament yarns slide over each other and over the machine bed, so every trick below gives the fabric something to hold on to.
Why does slippery fabric shift when you sew it?
Satin, charmeuse, georgette, habotai silk, polyester lining and most "silky" blouse fabrics are woven from filament yarns with almost no surface friction. Under the presser foot, the feed dogs pull the bottom layer forward while the foot drags on the top layer, so the two creep against each other. By the end of a 60 cm (24 in) seam the top layer can be a full centimeter (3/8 in) ahead, and the seam puckers or ends with one edge longer than the other.
Two more problems come along with it. These fabrics stretch and sag on the bias, so a piece cut on a slippery table rarely matches the pattern. And they fray fast, so every raw edge loses width while you handle it. Cutting, pinning and sewing all need to answer those three things: creeping, distortion and fraying.
What do you need to sew slippery fabric?
- A new fine needle: 60/8 or 70/10, microtex (sharp) by preference, universal if that is what you have. A blunt or thick needle snags filament yarns and leaves pulled threads.
- Fine polyester or silk thread. Heavy cotton thread sits proud of the surface and puckers thin fabric.
- Fine, sharp pins, 0.5 mm or "silk pins". Thick quilting pins leave holes that do not close.
- Tissue paper, or a wash-away stabilizer, in strips 4 to 5 cm (1 1/2 to 2 in) wide.
- A walking foot, or a straight-stitch foot with a straight-stitch needle plate (the one with a small round hole).
- A rotary cutter, a cutting mat and pattern weights.
- Spray starch or a gelatin bath (optional, see below) for the most unruly fabrics.
- A pressing cloth and an iron set to silk or synthetic.
How do you cut slippery fabric accurately?
- Stabilize the fabric first if it is very fluid. Spray starch on the wrong side, let it dry, and press; or soak the fabric in a solution of one sachet of unflavored gelatin in 2 l (2 qt) of warm water, hang it to dry and press. Both wash out afterward and turn a limp charmeuse into something that behaves like cotton lawn. Test on a scrap: some silks water-spot.
- Lay a sheet of tissue paper or a cotton sheet on the table. Spread the fabric on it in a single layer, right side up, and smooth it with your palms until the selvage runs straight along one edge of the table. Never let it hang over the edge.
- Cut every piece in a single layer, mirrored for pairs. Place the pattern pieces on top, hold them with weights, and cut with a rotary cutter through fabric and tissue together. For a pair, flip the pattern piece over for the second cut. Cutting through the paper keeps the fabric from sliding under the blade.
- Mark immediately. Snip notches no deeper than 3 mm (1/8 in), or mark them with tailor's tacks. Chalk rubs off these fabrics within minutes.
How do you sew slippery fabric step by step?
- Pin inside the seam allowance, every 3 to 4 cm (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 in), with the pins at right angles to the seam and the heads toward you. Pins placed in the body of the garment leave permanent holes in satin.
- Hand-baste any seam longer than 30 cm (12 in), every curve and every seam you want to match. Basting with long running stitches in a contrasting fine thread takes two minutes per seam and removes the creep entirely; it is the single most reliable technique on this list.
- Set the machine to a 1.8 to 2 mm stitch and lower the presser foot pressure if your machine allows it. A shorter stitch feeds the fabric in smaller bites and puckers less.
- Sew with tissue paper under the seam, between the fabric and the feed dogs, and on top as well if the foot still drags. Tear the paper away afterward, pulling along the stitching, not across it.
- Use a walking foot or a straight-stitch plate. The walking foot feeds the top layer at the same rate as the bottom. The straight-stitch plate stops the fabric being pushed down into the wide zigzag hole on the first stitch; if you do not have one, start with a scrap of fabric under the foot and sew onto the garment from it.
- Hold the fabric taut, not stretched, one hand in front of the foot and one behind, and let the machine pull. Sew slowly; speed is where the layers get away from you.
- Finish the seams so they cannot fray. A French seam encloses the raw edges in two passes and is the standard finish on light slippery fabrics; on heavier satin a narrow zigzag or three-thread overlock also works.
- Press with a pressing cloth, lifting the iron rather than sliding it, at the silk or synthetic setting. Sliding stretches the seam; too much heat glazes polyester satin.
If a pattern's sewing guide can answer questions, this is the moment to use it: in Sewly's guide you can ask "my fabric is slippery, any tips for this step?" and get advice specific to the piece you are sewing.
What are the most common mistakes with slippery fabric?
- Cutting on the fold. The two layers never lie evenly, so one side of the garment comes out larger. Single layer, every time.
- Using the needle that is in the machine. An 80/12 universal that sewed cotton last week has a rounded, slightly worn point that drags and snags.
- Pinning across the garment. The holes stay. Pins live in the seam allowance only.
- Sewing over the pins. Fine pins bend and deflect the needle, and a 60/8 needle breaks easily. Pull each pin as the foot reaches it.
- Backstitching at the start. Three stitches in reverse on chiffon chew the fabric into the needle plate. Leave long thread tails and tie them off instead, or start 1 cm (3/8 in) in and sew backward to the edge first.
- Skipping the test seam. Ten minutes on a scrap with the real needle, thread and stitch length tells you whether you need tissue, a different foot or starch before any of it reaches the garment.
When should you use these techniques instead of the ordinary ones?
Use the full routine, with basting and tissue paper, for charmeuse, chiffon, georgette and very light polyester lining, and for anything cut on the bias such as a bias-cut slip dress. For crisp satin, duchess satin and taffeta, which shift less, a walking foot, fine pins and a straight-stitch plate are usually enough. Sheer fabrics bring their own problems of show-through and seam finishing; the sheer fabrics guide covers them, and sewing with satin goes into needle, thread and pressing settings for that fabric in particular.
Spray starch and gelatin are for the fabrics that fight everything else. They add half an hour to the project and a wash at the end, which is why they come last rather than first.